- An Open University academic’s report suggests Ukrainians are considered less of a threat
- That Somalis and Syrians are seen as ‘culturally distant’
- And that the results could also be due to skin colour and religious differences
Britons are much more likely to help Ukrainian refugees over others from Syria or Somalia says a research project by an OU academic.
Dr Sharon Xuereb, a Staff Tutor in Psychology and Counselling at the OU, conducted the study in both the UK and Malta that involved 287 participants.
Adults in Malta were invited to take part because the country has large numbers of migrants from the Mediterranean. Most people living there have either met or regularly interact with asylum seekers.
Perceived threat and negative emotion fuelled prejudice
The report revealed that there was greater perceived threat and negative emotion associated with non-Europeans, which then fuelled prejudice, and leads to a lack of willingness to help them.
Yet it also revealed that the positive feeling towards Ukrainians made Britons and the Maltese more likely to want to assist.
Dr Xuereb said in the study:
“While Malta and the UK are both European countries of Christian heritage, similar to Ukraine, Malta is geographically and culturally closer to Syria than is the UK, despite the religious differences.”
She continued:
“Ethnically, religiously and culturally Somalia is different to both the UK and Malta, though Somalis are well-represented amongst the asylum-seeking population in Malta.”
Ukrainian refugees viewed more positively
She believes Ukrainians would be perceived more positively, because that is the political discourse. They are also legally allowed to come to the UK as refugees.
Dr Xuereb points out that asylum seekers from other countries have very limited legal options, so they may choose to come to the UK through illegal routes, and so are immediately seen as breaking the law.
People taking part in the study were asked how they felt about asylum seekers on a scale of 1 to 7 in terms of admiration, fondness, inspiration, pride, respect, anger, shame, contempt, disgust, frustration, hate, resent, unease, pity and sympathy.
Other, similar scales were used for the perceived threat of Ukrainian refugees versus those from Somalia and Syria, along with prejudice and attitudes towards helping.
In relation to the latter example, people were asked to what extent they thought asylum seekers should receive certain types of help, such as medical assistance or updating their qualifications.
Dr Xuereb said:
“Across the entire sample, more negativity was reported about Syrian and Somali asylum seekers than Ukrainians, with more negative emotion, less positive emotion, more prejudice, and lower attitudes towards helping.”
Her research showed UK adults are less positive about asylum seekers who are not white and who are perceived as culturally more distant.
She concluded:
“The results show that not all asylum seekers are equal, and white European asylum seekers are seen in a more positive or kinder light than darker-skinned ones from outside Europe.”
She said these findings are in line with previous studies that found a perceived threat leads to prejudice towards asylum seekers.
The new study has been published in the journal PLoS ONE.
Picture: Shutterstock
