Fear and Loathing in Times of Distress – Causal Impact of Social and Economic Insecurity on Anti-Immigration Sentiment

Abstract

The causal nexus between socio-economic stressors and anti-immigration sentiments remains unclear despite increasing evidence over their correlation. We exploit the social and economic disruptions brought about by the epidemic outbreak in March 2020 to randomly provide survey respondents with, at the time of the survey, pessimistic information about the economic and health consequences of the epidemic. Both economic and social stressors causally induce upsurges in anti-immigration sentiment and demand for fiscal pressure retrenchment. However, radicalised attitudes are accompanied by political radicalisation only when the negative economic consequences of the epidemic are highlighted.

Keywords: D72, H51, H53, H55, O52, P52

JEL Classification: economic crisis, social crisis, immigration, survey experiment, radical political preferences