Gendered Xenophobia? Gendered Immigration Attitudes & Labor Market Vulnerability

• In Event: Lightning Round: Feminism, Gender, and the State in Japan, Korea, and China

Abstract

This study delves into the gender differences in attitudes toward immigrants, highlighting gendered interpretation as key to understanding attitudes toward immigration. It argues that gender differences in immigration attitudes do not necessarily reflect innate tolerance levels but are instead influenced by their employment situations and vulnerabilities within the labor market. Utilizing data from a survey of 1,234 Japanese nationals that includes embedded experiments as well as existing surveys, this study examines gender differences in attitudes toward male and female immigrants, while considering their positions in the labor market. The study finds that information highlighting the economic necessity of immigrants leads to increased favorability among male respondents, but not female respondents. Additionally, the study finds that women, particularly women in non-professional jobs, demonstrate increased hostility toward female immigrants when exposed to such information. Lastly, there is a positive and statistically significant correlation between non-professional job status and more negative attitudes toward immigrants among women, but not men, when exposed to information about non-professional immigrant workers. These findings align with the labor market competition argument of immigration attitudes. By providing an alternative perspective on gendered attitudes toward immigrants, this study contributes to a more nuanced analysis of immigration attitudes, emphasizing the need to consider the interplay of gender and economic vulnerability. These insights are crucial for policymakers in developed democracies with serious gender inequalities, highlighting the complexities of anti-immigrant sentiments and the importance of incorporating gender-sensitive approaches in immigration policy.

Author

• Jieun Susie Park, University of California Los Angeles