Poster #19 - Parental Determinants of Islamophobic Attitudes in Offspring

• In Event: Poster Session 11

Abstract

Research demonstrates that parents have a strong influence on the development of prejudice in their offspring (Miklikowska, 2016;2017). However, not much is known about the ways in which adolescents are specifically socialized to develop Islamophobic attitudes (e.g., Pal & Wellman, 2020). In March 2021, the Human Rights Council from the United Nations released a report stating that Islamophobia had reached “epidemic proportions” worldwide (United Nations, 2021). As research has shown that parents are key socializing figures in contributing to the development of child prejudice, it is likely that they play an important role in the development of Islamophobic attitudes. To that end, the current research provides an original contribution by assessing the origins of Islamophobic attitudes from a developmental perspective by focusing on parental determinants of Islamophobia. The parenting styles framework (Baumrind, 1971), parental acceptance-rejection theory (Rohner, 2004), and integrated threat theory (Stephan & Stephan, 2000), provide the theoretical foundations for the proposed research. Perceived parental rejection (i.e., the experience of a parent communicating lessened love to their child) and authoritarian parenting (i.e., a parent-centered approach that expects children to experience harsh discipline and obey strict commands) both contribute to the development of child aggression (Akse et al., 2004; Masud, Ahmad, Cho, & Fakhr, 2019). Endorsement of aggression has consistently been linked to child prejudice (e.g., Piumatti & Mosso, 2017). Research also shows that children actively learn parental prejudice through the facilitation of discussion that scapegoats minorities (e.g., Meeusen & Dhont, 2015). Therefore, when parenting behaviors that engender aggression in children are coupled with consistent discourse from parents that highlight perceived threats from the Muslim community (i.e., anti-Muslim discourse), there is an increased likelihood that the offspring will develop Islamophobic attitudes. This study will be the first to investigate these parenting variables as determinants of offspring Islamophobia. This work is anticipated to have important implications for understanding the construct of Islamophobia and specifically to explicate the role of parenting processes in its development. Given the relatively limited work in this area and the societal implications for understanding this important developmental phenomenon, this work in-progress has strong potential to contribute to the knowledge base surrounding this phenomenon.
IRB approval has been obtained and data collection is underway for this project. Data will be collected from 300 college-aged (18-22) late adolescents in the U.S. utilizing MTurk. The following scales are being administered to the participants: the Tripartite Islamophobia Scale (Uenal et al., 2020), the Intergroup Anxiety Towards Muslims Scale (Hopkins & Shook, 2017), the Islamophobia Scale (Lee, Gibbons, Thompson, & Timani, 2009), the Parental Authority Questionnaire (Buri, 1991), the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire (Rohner, 2004), the Buss and Perry Aggression Questionnaire (1992), and a self-designed measure reflecting parental discourse regarding the Muslim community. The following main hypotheses will be tested via path analyses: 1) parental rejection predicts increased offspring Islamophobia, 2) parental anti-Muslim discourse predicts increased offspring Islamophobia, 3) offspring aggression mediates the relationship between parental acceptance-rejection and offspring Islamophobia.

Authors

• Sanum Shafi, Syracuse University
  Presenting Author

• Matthew Keefe Mulvaney, Syracuse University