Prejudicial and Welcoming Attitudes toward Syrian Refugees: The Roles of Cultural Humility and Moral Foundations

Abstract

Debates about immigration policy have sparked increasingly negative attitudes toward refugees, particularly those of Muslim identification. Research to date has found that post-immigration prejudice and discrimination, often reinforced at a systemic level, pose an additional psychological burden to refugees. The present study explored associations between cultural humility, moral foundations, political orientation, religious commitment, and xenophobia toward Syrian refugees. Data were collected from adults (N = 996) in the United States during the 2016 presidential election cycle. Cultural humility was positively correlated with openness to immigration and moral foundations of care and fairness, and inversely related to prejudicial attitudes, perceived real and symbolic threat, and moral foundations of loyalty, authority, and purity. Over and above political identification and religiosity, cultural humility was found to be uniquely associated with more positive attitudes toward Syrian refugees. Additionally, the relationship between the moral foundations of care and fairness and positive attitudes toward refugees was mediated by cultural humility. Findings are discussed in light of the biblical mandate within Christianity to welcome foreigners and advocate for the vulnerable, while balancing compassion with wisdom. In addition to approaching psychological care with refugees through the lens of cultural humility, psychologists have a unique opportunity to advocate for this population through systems-level intervention. We discuss ways to cultivate the moral foundations of care and fairness at church and community levels, which may facilitate greater cultural humility.