Globalization, contextual threat perception, and nativist backlash: A cross-national examination of ethnic nationalism and anti-immigrant prejudice

Abstract

According to critics of globalization, it has ushered in a new era of economic inequality, with some of the biggest “losers” being the majority working classes in advanced capitalist democracies. Economically aggrieved, culturally threatened, and politically excluded, they have become the bedrock of right-wing political parties in much of Europe and the United States. Integral to this phenomenon is the heightened anti-immigrant prejudice espoused by both supporters and leaders of populist movements. The present study investigates a critical issue in this context, one that has been implicitly assumed but relatively understudied: the impact of globalization on xenophobic attitudes among natives. It also examines whether and to what extent globalization moderates the effect of ethnic nationalism on their preferences for restrictive immigration and immigrant assimilation. Findings from multilevel analysis indicate that globalization, as well as the nativist backlash, plays a significant role in directly and indirectly shaping how immigration and immigrants are perceived in host societies.