Neighbourhood-level social capital and anti-immigrant prejudice in an African context: an individual-level analysis of attitudes towards immigrants in South Africa

Abstract

African states are often characterised as low trust societies. Could a deficiency of social capital explain prejudice towards immigrants in such societies? Using South Africa as a case study, this paper tests the effect of social trust, social bonds with neighbours and a sense of community on attitudes towards foreigners. The results reveal that social capital may be a more important predictor of attitudes than economic status. Social bonds between neighbours and a sense of community were found to be more salient determinants of prejudice than social trust. In African societies it is, therefore, important to invest in programmes that promote social cohesion within communities.

Shutting the Gates in South Africa: National Identification and Popular Attitudes towards Closing Borders to Immigration

“…Contact with immigrants, which has been shown to influence individual opinion on migration (Gordon & Maharaj ), was measured using dummy variables (0 = no contact; 1 = neighbours only; 3 = acquaintances only; 4 = friends) based on responses to three questions on different levels of contact. Two indicators were used to capture sociotropic concerns (Hypothesis 2).…”

“…Although contact may play a role in predicting intergroup tolerance (e.g. Gordon & Maharaj ) it would appear that there is no effect on popular support for border closure. In other words, interestingly contact with migrants did not seem to have a significant impact when controlling for a range of other variables.…”

“…() conducts a test of labour market self‐interest as a predictor of attitudes towards immigration restriction in South Africa and did not find that measures of labour market position were strong predictors of attitudes. Gordon and Maharaj () look at prejudice towards international migrants and did not find a significant correlation between labour market status and prejudice. This study will control for labour market status but the work of Facchini and his colleagues suggests that other non‐economic variables are driving attitudes towards immigration controls in South Africa.…”

“…Facchini et al . ; Gordon & Maharaj ) in the country employ quantitative methods to study attitudes.…”

Refugees, Foreign Nationals, andWageni: Comparing African Responses to Somali Migration

“…These were neither the first nor the last violent attacks on immigrants in South Africa, though they attracted international attention to the problem of xenophobia there. With these complex economic and political dynamics fueling questions about who really “belongs” in the country (Mosselson 2010; see also Crush 2001; Gordon & Maharaj 2015; Landau 2010, 2011; Neocosmos 2010; Nyamnjoh 2006; Peberdy 2001), polls show that a large majority of South Africans favor restrictive immigration policies (Crush & Pendleton 2004; World Values Survey 2017).…”