Is Cross-Group Friendship Related to Less Perceived Criminal Threat of Immigrants and Less Negative Attitudes Toward Immigrants to the United States?

• Published date: 01 December 2024
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/10575677231194816
• Author: Luzi Shi
• Date: 01 December 2024
• Subject Matter: Original Articles

Is Cross-Group Friendship

Related to Less Perceived

Criminal Threat of Immigrants

and Less Negative Attitudes

Toward Immigrants to the

United States?

Luzi Shi

Abstract

In recent years, the U.S. public has become increasingly concerned about the immigration issue.

Criminological research and group threat theory suggest that harsh immigration policy preferences

may be driven by perceived criminal threat of immigrants. More research is needed to understand

how to reduce perceived immigrant criminality and negative attitudes toward immigrants. Using

intergroup contact theory and an American adult sample (N=1,037), the current study tests if

cross-group friendship with foreign-born immigrants may reduce negative immigration attitudes

both directly, and indirectly by lowering perceived criminal threat of immigrants. Results from

regression analyses showed that perceived criminal threat was positively related to negative immi-

gration attitudes. Cross-group friendship was directly related to less perceived criminal threat and

less negative immigration attitudes. However, results from mediation analyses showed that cross-

group friendship did not further reduce negative immigration attitudes indirectly via lowered per-

ceived criminal threat. The results highlight the importance of meaningful cross-group friendship

in mitigating negative immigrant perceptions and call for future research to further investigate

ways to correct criminal typif‌ication of immigrants.

Keywords

intergroup contact, perceived crime threat, immigration

Introduction

In recent decades, immigration policy in the United States has become a highly debated political

issue, with some public consensus and concern over border security (Segovia & Defever, 2010).

Fueled by former President Trump’s rhetoric typifying immigrants as criminals, his voters strongly

Criminology and Criminal Justice Department, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA

Corresponding Author:

Luzi Shi, Criminology and Criminal Justice Department, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA.

Email: luzi.shi@uri.edu

Original Article

International Criminal Justice Review

2024, Vol. 34(4) 333-350

© 2023 Georgia State University

Article reuse guidelines:

sagepub.com/journals-permissions

DOI: 10.1177/10575677231194816

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support the initiative to “build a wall”(Gramlich, 2016) and are particularly willing to persecute

immigrants (Kunst et al., 2019). Among the general public, hostility toward immigrants spiked

after the 9/11 terrorist attack (Haner et al., 2021). A 2022 poll by Pew Research Center shows

that a total of 73% of the American public agreed that there should be increased security along

the U.S.-Mexico border and another 57% of the respondents supported increased deportations of

illegal immigrants (Oliphant & Cerda, 2022).

The punitive public sentiment may translate into increasingly restrictive policies toward immi-

grants. Federal, state, and local authorities have become more active in regulating and criminalizing

migration (Chacón, 2012). Punitive detention of immigrants has boomed and shown no signs of

turning back (Chacón, 2014). Harsh immigration policies have led to the separation of immigrant

children and parents (Wood, 2018). Ironically, research consistently shows that the crime rate of

immigrants is actually lower than that of citizens (Stowell et al., 2009). The immigration process

is selective and competitive, which requires the immigrants to be ambitious, relatively more edu-

cated, and skilled (Alba & Nee, 2009; Tonry, 1997). The inf‌lux of immigrants should thus reduce

the percentage of crime-prone individuals in the population and bring in new economic opportuni-

ties, which helps to revitalize the local communities (Bersani, 2014; Vigdor, 2014). Overall, the

popular “zero-tolerance”immigration measures have no observable impact on reducing crime

(Miles & Cox, 2014), but only exacerbate the suffering of immigrants and lead to public health

and human rights crises (Androff & Tavassoli, 2012).

Criminological research shows that one important social source of the American public’s restric-

tive attitudes toward immigrants is their misperceived criminal threat of immigrants (Stupi et al.,

2016). This line of research is related to group threat theory, which posits that prejudiced attitudes

arise when the dominant social group feels their privileged social status is threatened (Blumer,

1958). The dominant group is likely to socially construct the subordinate group as threatening and

dangerous and subsequently use penal policies to control the new “threat”(Jiang & Erez, 2018;

Sohoni & Sohoni, 2014). Empirical research has consistently found support for the group threat

hypothesis, though more is needed to understand how to reduce the perceived criminal threat of

immigrants (Chiricos et al., 2020).

One way to reduce negative and biased perceptions of immigrants may be through increased inter-

group contact. Intergroup contact theory posits that cross-group friendship may reduce negative attitudes

toward outgroup members via direct exposure and through changing biased judgments (Pettigrew,

2008). Prior research has shown evidence that positive contact with immigrants may foster more wel-

coming attitudes toward the group (Berg, 2020; Finseraas & Kotsadam, 2017). Surprisingly, little is

known if cross-group friendship may work to reduce crime misperceptions of immigrants.

The current study links the two lines of research of group threat and group contact to understand if

friendship with immigrants may be useful in reducing perceived immigrant criminal threat, thereby

further reducing restrictive and punitive attitudes toward immigrants. By using an original online

survey and a quota sample of American adults collected in 2021, I measure respondents’friendship

with foreign-born immigrants, perceived criminal threat of immigrants, and if they think more immi-

grants should be allowed into the United States, as well as support for internal immigration control

policies. I use regression models and mediation analysis to present the relationships between the

variables.

Building Up the Tension: Intergroup Threat Theory and Perceived

Criminal Threat of Immigrants

According to group threat theory, the dominant social group is likely to become prejudiced against

the subordinate social group when the latter threatens and challenges the former’s original superior

group position in society (Blumer, 1958). The challenge may be related to the objective growth of the

334 International Criminal Justice Review 34(4)