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Migration‐based Ethnic Diversity and Social Trust: A Multilevel Analysis of How Country, Neighbourhood and Workplace Diversity Affects Social Trust in 22 Countries
Author(s) -
Kokkonen Andrej,
Esaiasson Peter,
Gilljam Mikael
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
scandinavian political studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.65
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1467-9477
pISSN - 0080-6757
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9477.12027
Subject(s) - social trust , multilevel model , diversity (politics) , ethnic group , neighbourhood (mathematics) , social psychology , affect (linguistics) , religious diversity , argument (complex analysis) , contact theory , survey data collection , european social survey , cultural diversity , contact hypothesis , sociology , demographic economics , political science , psychology , social science , social capital , economics , law , mathematical analysis , chemistry , structural engineering , computer science , engineering , biochemistry , communication , machine learning , statistics , politics , mathematics , anthropology
How does ethnic diversity affect social trust? The conflict hypothesis, which predicts a negative effect, and the contact hypothesis, which predicts a positive effect, represent the main competing answers. This article argues that the ‘true’ answer to the question is contingent upon the social units under study and how they interact. More specifically, it is argued that diversity will have a negative effect on social trust when focusing on social units where intergroup contacts are easy to avoid (neighbourhoods broadly defined), whereas diversity will have a positive effect when focusing on social units where intergroup contacts are hard to avoid and are supported by higher authorities (e.g., workplaces). The data substantiating the argument is from the first round of the E uropean Social Survey, covering 30,000 individuals nested within 22 countries, and is analysed by means of multilevel linear regression modeling.