Intragroup Threat, Generational Status, and Immigration Attitudes: An Examination of the Threat-Control Relationship Among Latinos

• In Event: Latinos, Immigrants, and the Importance of Police Views and Emerging Issues

Abstract

Immigration is a central topic in U.S. politics. Indeed, there has been a shift in Latino voting and policy preferences, specifically across different generations of Latinos. Research has shown that generations of Latinos that have remained in the United States longer have supported anti-immigration policies and more conservative political candidates compared to first-generation Latinos. While existing research has expanded knowledge of perceived Latino threat and how it shapes punitive border control attitudes among whites, less is known about how perceptions of Latino threat and immigration attitudes function among Latinos, and how this relationship might vary across different generations. Using national data from an online survey of Latinos (N=289), this study aims to expand prior work by analyzing perceived Latino threat and punitive border control attitudes within the Latino community. Preliminary findings show that second-generation Latinos are less likely than those who identify as third-generation plus to perceive Latinos as threatening across all three dimensions of threat (economic, political, and criminal). Implications for support for restrictive immigration policies, and the less studied role of Latino identity in shaping intragroup perceived threat is discussed.

Authors

• Michelle Angel, Portland State University

• Arynn Infante, Portland State University