The Paradox of the Right-Wing Immigrant: Political (Re)Socialization and Single-Issue Favorability among Filipino American Conservatives

• In Event: 30469 - Right-Wing Populism in the US and Beyond

Abstract

How do immigrants learn about politics in their new country that make them favorably predisposed to conservative politics? We answer this question using an exploratory sequential design in mixed-methods research. Our qualitative study suggests show that the values, norms, and traditions that they were socialized into in during their formative years in the Philippines, when left unchallenged during periods of macrostructural events (e.g., dictatorship) and life transitions and turning points (e.g., college, employment, and migration), solidify over time and become the worldview that shape their political trajectories as adults. Their political resocialization in the U.S. depends on how they are integrated culturally, socially, and economically, they are introduced to U.S. politics through homophilous discussion networks where their pre-existing values are either strengthened or questioned. In these spaces, in the absence of or limited knowledge of American political system, they learn how to navigate the liberal-conservative continuum through information shortcuts, schemas, and cognitive heuristics. Because they rely on like-minded peers within these networks as informational guideposts in developing their schemas, their politics tend to be oriented towards a single issue. Our observations also show that this exclusive focus is more notable and intense among Filipinos who lean conservative due to the cultivation of one dominant value (e.g., commitment to faith, respect for authority), identity (e.g., Christian, patriot), and interest (e.g., capitalist, nation) in their networks as opposed to those who develop multiple and intersectional identities (e.g., racialized workers) and tend to support liberal or left politics. For our survey-experiment based on a national random sample, we estimate the “single-issue favorability premium” among Filipino immigrants—the extent to which they favor candidates espousing policy stances that align with their single-issue concerns, and demonstrate that this premium is more pronounced among right-leaning Filipinos.

Authors

• Sharon Quinsaat, Grinnell College

• Nico Ravanilla, University of California, San Diego