ABSTRACT
Rising immigration in Europe has become a very important issue in many European countries, including Finland. Questions of if and how immigrants should acculturate into their host societies have become common. This study had three main aims: (1) to examine the relationship between perceived threat (realistic threat and symbolic threat) and acculturation preferences (assimilation and integration) in relation toward immigrants living in Finland; (2) to understand the relationship between acculturation preferences (assimilation and integration) and prejudice toward immigrants; and (3) to test the moderating role of intergroup contact on the aforementioned relationships. The sample for this study consisted of 795 Finnish adolescents. Results showed a non-significant relationship between acculturation preferences (assimilation and integration) and perceived threat (realistic threat and symbolic threat); a significant negative relationship between assimilation and prejudice; and a significant positive relationship between integration and prejudice. No significant moderating effect of intergroup contact was found on the relationship between perceived threat and acculturation preferences in relation toward immigrants living in Finland and the relationship between acculturation preferences and prejudice toward immigrants. The implications of these findings are also discussed.
