Friendship Homophily Among Diaspora Migrant Adolescents in Germany and Israel

Abstract

Abstract. Immigrant adolescents have been found to prefer intraethnic over interethnic friendships, a phenomenon called friendship homophily (FH). This study investigates whether Russian Jewish immigrants in Israel and ethnic German immigrants in Germany differ in their FH rates, which variables predict friendship homophily in each sample, and whether relative strength of association between predictors and FH differs between both samples. FH is measured using reports on best friends, cliques, and distant friendships. Results found FH, in general, to be more pronounced in the Russian Jewish sample, and acculturation orientation and language use predicted interindividual differences in FH in both samples. Perceived discrimination predicted higher levels of FH in cliques and distant friendships only in Israel. Findings suggest the importance of acculturation in selecting intra- or interethnic friends.