SEMINAR: Perceptions of �us� and �them�: Why and when is multiculturalism threatening?

When and why do majority-culture Australians find the concept of multiculturalism threatening? In this project, we explore the psychological underpinnings of responses to policies and practices designed to assist immigrants settle in Australia. Why do some Australians object to these policies and practices, while other Australians embrace them? We will present findings from the first of our three investigations, where we surveyed 517 Australian-born people identifying as 'White Australians'. We measured people's perceptions of levels of discrimination toward both immigrants to Australia, and to majority-culture ("White") Australians. Perceptions of past and current discrimination were measured, as were people's expectations about how these levels might change in the future. We find, first, perceptions about levels of discrimination toward these two groups matter; support for multicultural initiatives were related to differing views about levels of discrimination toward these two groups. Second, our data suggest that time also matters; perceptions of past discrimination toward immigrants, and expectations of future discrimination toward majority-culture Australians uniquely predict responses to multicultural initiatives. Third, we find that patterns of perceived discrimination are not necessarily 'zero-sum', but additive. We will discuss these findings with respect to social and cross-cultural psychological theory, and outline our follow-up studies aimed at further unpacking the ‘zero sum’ effect.