Xenophobia victimization and migrants' system trust. Results of a standardized survey

Abstract

In a nationwide survey conducted in Germany in 2001, members of immigrant minorities (N=3247) report experiences of insults, threats and physical attacks in public. Members of visible minorities (from Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Turkey) are more frequently affected than people with less obvious minority status, whose families come from Italy, for example. They are also more likely to attribute these incidents to xenophobic attitudes on the part of the perpetrators.

The frequency of incidents correlates with a decrease in trust in state institutions such as the police and the judiciary, as well as a loss of the subjective feeling of security. The more severe the incidents experienced, the lower the trust in institutions, and the more likely respondents are to agree with the statement that minorities must defend themselves in order to protect themselves from attacks.

Although no causality can be derived from these cross-sectional correlations alone, the authors see evidence of a trust-destroying effect of xenophobic incidents. They argue for a sensitive approach by state authorities to victims in order to avoid secondary victimization.