Open AccessCombined Effects of Cultural-Linguistic Proximity and Naturalization on Political Integration of First-Generation Immigrants
Author(s) -
Josep Lobera,
Santiago Pérez-Nievas,
José Rama
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
migraciones
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.314
H-Index - 7
eISSN - 2341-0833
pISSN - 1138-5774
DOI - 10.14422/mig.i51y2021.005
Subject(s) - naturalization , immigration , politics , preference , ethnic group , political science , demographic economics , relevance (law) , political economy , sociology , development economics , law , economics , citizenship , alien , microeconomics
Although the under-participation of ethnic minorities in the electoral field is frequently observed, the nuances of their political engagement remain relatively unexplored by scholars. Particularly, little empirical analysis has attempted to identify the barriers faced by first-generation immigrants to adopt a party preference in their host country. Drawing on a unique survey data with a large sample of first-generation immigrants (N= 2,648) in a new migration country (Spain), this article explores the relevance of different set of factors (cultural proximity vs immigration status) in explaining the acquisition of a party preference among this minority population. We find that cultural proximity (as defined by the country of origin: Latin-American vs the rest) is a strong predictor for the acquisition of a party preference. Additionally, our results suggest that the predictive strength of this factor is reinforced through a naturalization regime that facilitates full political rights to culturally closer immigrants, thus reinforcing their a priori better conditions for political integration. Finally, the results also suggest that permissive (rather than restrictive) naturalization policies might work better to secure the political integration of migrant minorities.