Abstract:
Asian peoples are a rapidly growing population in New Zealand society, and negative attitudes concerning intergroup relations with Asian peoples are prevalent. This thesis presents two papers which examine the correlates of and rate of change in attitudes toward Asian peoples in New Zealand. In the first paper, a structural equation model of the Dual Process Model of Ideology and Prejudice (Duckitt, 2001) examined attitudes toward different aspects of intergroup relations with Chinese people (N = 15,608); warmth toward Chinese people, support for policies promoting greater immigration from China, and support for policies promoting greater trade ties between New Zealand and China. Both Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) and Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) were associated with each of these outcomes. This integrative analysis shows that attitudes toward a broad range of intergroup relations with Chinese people in New Zealand are commonly driven in part by motivational goals of maintaining social cohesion (RWA) and group dominance (SDO). In the second paper presented, I used latent growth curve analysis to determine the rate of change in warmth expressed toward Asian peoples between 2009 and 2014 in a nationally representative sample of New Zealand born New Zealanders (N = 5,362). This analysis identified significant change in warmth exhibited toward Asian peoples over this period. Warmth was relatively stable up until late 2010, but from then on increased steadily, resulting in considerably higher levels of warmth by the end of 2014. This study is the first in New Zealand to examine change within individuals, rather than across samples over time, and offers a robust image of how attitudes have been changing. The results are particularly encouraging given the notable levels of discrimination Asian peoples tend to face. Together, these analyses offer important insights into the state of attitudes toward intergroup relations with Asian peoples in New Zealand. The thesis ends with a general discussion of these findings, and the ways in which these analyses may be expanded in future research.