Public Sentiment Toward Migration in a Globalizing World: The Case of Spain and its Distinctive Demeanor Toward its Immigrants

Author

Caroline ThompsonFollow

Date of Award

Spring 5-9-2020

Document Type

Undergraduate Thesis

Department

Croft Institute for International Studies

First Advisor

Miguel Centellas

Second Advisor

Gang Guo

Third Advisor

Simone Delerme

Relational Format

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

This thesis discusses Spain's overall public opinion around immigration, exploring factors that contribute to the development of a country's attitude toward its immigrants. Spain exemplifies a particularly distinctive attitude in relation to its European Mediterranean counterparts, displaying an increased receptiveness toward its immigrant population. I examine economic factors, studying whether or not perceived economic competition can lead to significantly increased negativity toward immigrants. However, I find that, specifically regarding the Spanish case, economic competition does not determine the country's attitude toward immigration. Therefore, I focus on this element of authoritarian legacy and its contribution to public opinion around immigration. Following an extensive discussion on Franco's authoritarian regime and Spain's recent transition to democracy, I suggest that the increased receptiveness in Spain could likely be attributed to the country's recent history of dictatorship.

Recommended Citation

Thompson, Caroline, "Public Sentiment Toward Migration in a Globalizing World: The Case of Spain and its Distinctive Demeanor Toward its Immigrants" (2020). Honors Theses. 1548.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/1548

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.