Attitudes to Migration and Patterns of Discrimination: Findings from Japan, the UK, Colombia, and Peru
This event aims to present the differences in attitudes to migration and patterns of discrimination among receiving society members in Japan, the UK, Colombia, and Peru towards various migrant groups in those countries. Adam Komisarof will examine the diverging criteria for social acceptance in Japanese society towards immigrants from China, Western countries, and ethnic Japanese from South America, employing frameworks of national identity and social markers of acceptance. He will also detail how this approach may be applied in other country contexts. Will Allen will share findings about the differences in migration attitudes towards Venezuelans in Colombia and Peru and the factors accounting for those variations. Mariña Fernández-Reino will describe perceptions of discrimination among migrant minorities in the UK (EU and non-EU migrants) and identify how such perceptions change based upon variables including the proportion of native British individuals within respondents’ social circles and respondents’ familiarity with the British public and political discourse. Robin Cohen, an international expert in globalization, migration, and diaspora studies, will act as discussant. Frameworks and theories to expand our understanding of discrimination will be introduced from various fields (acculturation psychology, sociology, and political science) and include, for example, social markers of acceptance (as detailed in Komisarof et al., 2023) and social network theory. Robust cross-national findings will be rooted in data collected in four nations on three continents and used to inform the dialogue between the audience, discussant, and presenters after the discussant and presenters have spoken.

Following the welcoming from the Migration Oxford convener, invited speakers will deliver presentations on their research as described above, followed by the discussant’s remarks. The speakers and discussant will then welcome questions and comments from the audience and engage in a dialogue to further discuss the event’s main themes. Light refreshments will be served.

This event is open to students and migration researchers at all stages of their careers, including senior scholars leading participatory research projects from across the Social Sciences Division. Members of the Oxford Sanctuary Community are also warmly invited to attend.

Join us in person or via Zoom: zoom.us/meeting/register/tJErdO2grDgpGdUJcJ8F-swUPwgorvg4IJ5-#/registration
Date: 2 February 2024, 11:00 (Friday, 3rd week, Hilary 2024)
Venue: 58 Banbury Road, 58 Banbury Road OX2 6QS
Venue Details: COMPAS Boardroom: places extremely limited; no wheelchair access
Speakers: Dr Adam Komisarof (Keio University), Mariña Fernández-Reino (COMPAS, University of Oxford), Dr William L Allen (DPIR, University of Oxford), Professor Robin Cohen (Emeritus Professor of Development Studies)
Organising department: Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS)
Organiser: Migration Oxford
Organiser contact email address: migrationoxford@compas.ox.ac.uk
Host: Abril Ríos-Rivera (Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS))
Booking required?: Not required
Booking url: https://www.migration.ox.ac.uk/event/attitudes-to-migration-and-patterns-of-discrimination
Cost: Free
Audience: Public
Editor: Nathan Grassi