Concordance between acculturation attitudes and perceptions of the Spaniards toward Maghreb immigrants: relationship to prejudice

Abstract

Concordance or discrepancy between majority and minority acculturation attitudes, and between majority attitudes and perceptions of minority acculturation, as well as their influence on intergroup relations have recently begun to be evaluated. This work attempts to widen the perspective of the second approach, using the Relative Acculturation Extended Model (RAEM) as a reference. Acculturation attitudes of native residents in the south of Spain, where there is a strong influx of immi- grants, are compared to their perceptions of the strategies that Maghrebian immigrants are putting into practice, specifically considering the different areas of acculturation in the RAEM. The different levels of concordance are also compared to prejudice against the immigrants. The results show that the discrepancy between attitudes and perceptions is greater in the areas pertaining to the hard core of the culture (family, religious beliefs and way of thinking). Furthermore, persons on a conflictual level of concordance generally expressed more prejudice against Maghrebian immigrants than those on a consensual level. The results are discussed in comparison to those found in previous studies with other majority and minority groups and in other contexts.