Acculturation and Expectations?: Investigating Differences in Generalised Trust between Non-Western Immigrants and Ethnic Danes

Abstract

This article investigates different sources of generalised trust among ethnic Danes and non-Western immigrants together with the gap in trust levels across the two groups. New survey data from Denmark were utilised, and the variables included socioeconomic resources, interethnic contact, perceptions of institutional fairness, timespan in Denmark, national identification and language proficiency. The results showed that interethnic contact and institutional fairness matter less for immigrants than for Danes vis-à-vis trust and that these variables alone do not explain the trust gap. The results also showed that their interactions with ethnicity reduce the trust gap for respondents with little interethnic contact or negative perceptions of institutions. Share of lifespan spent in Denmark also correlated negatively with social trust for immigrants. The results are discussed as the reflection of dynamic acculturation and changing expectations rather than socialisation or distinctly personal experiences.