The Association between Perceived and Actual Xenophobia (APAX)

本项目旨在通过非假设的网络信任游戏，实证地揭示和澄清实际和感知的仇外心理/歧视之间的模糊联系。仇外心理的主要困惑包括重新出现的调查结果，即融合程度较高的移民出身的人往往感到特别受到歧视和排斥；但真的是这样吗？其中一种解释是，他们的文化适应使他们能够充分了解自己所面临的歧视的真实程度。为了正确地调查这些主张和问题，我们需要微观数据，以了解a)个人对仇外心理和歧视的看法与b)他们实际被本地多数成员拒绝和歧视的准确性。该项目旨在首次收集此类数据，通过在（西）德国五大城市的2000名德国本地人和移民中进行非假想的在线信任游戏。信任博弈的优势在于，它围绕着两个玩家的相互评价展开。因此，它允许我们观察（在连续尺度上）参与者实际上（错误）信任的程度，以及他们是否感知到（错误）信任。只有这些特殊的数据才能使我们探究实际和感知的仇外心理之间的经验联系，从而检验长期存在的论点，并更深入地研究这一鲜为人知但至关重要的种族边界制定方面。

This project sets out to empirically uncover and clarify the obscure interlinkage of actual and perceived xenophobia/discrimination by means of online trust games with non-hypothetical vignettes. Among the prominent puzzles of perceived xenophobia range re-appearing findings that better-integrated persons of immigrant origin tend to feel particularly discriminated and rejected; but are they? One explanation, among others, is that their acculturation allows them to fully grasp the true extent of discrimination they face. To properly investigate these claims and questions, we need micro data about the (in-)accuracy of a) individuals’ perceptions of xenophobia and discrimination compared against b) their actual rejection and discrimination by native majority members. This project aims to collect such data for the first time, by conducting online trust games with non-hypothetical vignettes among 2,000 native German and persons of immigrant origin in (West-)Germany’s five largest cities. The advantage of the trust game is that it revolves around two players’ mutual evaluation. It thereby allows us to observe (on a continuous scale) how much the participants are actually (mis-)trusted and whether they perceive to be (mis-)trusted. Only such exceptional data will allow us to inquire into the empirical interlinkage of actual and perceived xenophobia and thereby test long standing arguments and delve deeper into this little understood but crucial aspect of ethnic boundary making.