Migrant Threat and Support for Punitive Criminal Justice Policies

• In Event: Criminal Justice Policy in a Comparative Context

Abstract

The objective of this study is to examine the relationship between support for punitive criminal justice policies and the perceived threat posed by migrants. Prior research suggests that perceptions of ethnic minorities as threatening influence public support for punitive formal social control. However, it is largely unknown whether perceptions of migrants as threatening impact punitive sentiments outside the United States, especially in central Europe where there has been a recent influx of Syrian migrants. Drawing on the minority threat perspective and using recently collected survey data from 1,000 adults residing in 10 neighborhoods located in Slovenia’s capital city, Ljubljana, this study empirically investigates the link between individual perceptions of the threat posed by Syrian migrants and punitive attitudes. This study will also assess whether this hypothesized link is moderated by a variety of social factors. Implications for theory and research will be discussed.

Authors

• Xia Wang, Arizona State University

• Gorazd Mesko, University of Maribor

• Michael D. Reisig, Arizona State University