About
36
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Introduction
I do research on:
(1) Anti-immigrant attitudes, Empathy, Cross-ethnic friendships, Diversity, Political activism, Radicalisation,
(2) The role of social contexts (parents, peers, school) in adolescent development.
Additional affiliations
December 2018 - December 2021
June 2017 - December 2023
March 2014 - March 2016
Publications
Publications (36)
Although intergroup attitudes are assumed to develop due to the influence of parents, there is no longitudinal evidence supporting this claim. In addition, research on socialization of intergroup attitudes has omitted possible effects of adolescents on their parents. We also know little about the conditions under which intergroup attitudes are tran...
Although research has shown the effects of empathy manipulations on prejudice, little is known about the long-term relation between empathy and prejudice development, the direction of effects, and the relative effects of cognitive and affective aspects of empathy. Moreover, research has not examined within-person processes and, hence, its practical...
This 3-wave study of Swedish majority adolescents (N = 659; MageT1 = 13.41; MageT3 = 17.33) examined the effects of parents' and peers' attitudes on changes in youth attitudes toward immigrants as well as an interplay between parent, peer, and school context. The results of multilevel analyses revealed that within-person fluctuations in youth attit...
Although political radicalism is one of the major societal threats, we have limited understanding of how it is formed. While there are reasons to expect that harassment experienced in adolescence increase the propensity for radicalism, this relationship has not yet been investigated. This five-wave study of Swedish adolescents ( N = 892) examined t...
Although classrooms have been described as an important socialization agent for the development of intergroup attitudes, the role of classroom climate has rarely been investigated. This 5‐wave study of Swedish adolescents (N = 892, 51.1% girls, nested in 35 classrooms) examined the role of cooperative classroom climate for the development of youth...
This preregistered three-wave longitudinal study examined 1) how family functioning relates to identity commitments over time and 2) how identity commitments impact later school adjustment among 3) immigrant-origin (N=205, Mage=16.25 years, 31.1% girls) and native adolescents (N=480, Mage=15.73 years, 47.9% girls). Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Pan...
Despite ample research on empathy development, its social origins have been understudied, particularly in the context of peer relations. This two-wave study of Swedish adolescents (N = 318; MageT1 = 16.28, SD = .49; 55% females) examined longitudinal associations between youth friendships and empathy. The results showed that adolescents befriended...
Although previous research has shown that deliberative discussions have consequences for intergroup attitudes, very little is known about this impact during the formative adolescent years. In addition, the mechanism explaining the mechanism through which discussions affect intergroup attitudes is not clear. This 3-wave study of Swedish adolescents...
Although schools have been described as an important socialization context for the development of intergroup attitudes, longitudinal multilevel studies are still rare within this field. This 3-wave study (with annual assessments) of German adolescents (N = 1292; Mage = 13.86; 51.8% female) examined the role of school experiences (perceived multicul...
Although several studies have examined outgroup empathy, the link between trait empathy and outgroup attitudes has been underinvestigated. In the present study this link was investigated among two samples of ethnic Dutch preadolescents (N = 335, Mage = 10.83 years, SD = 0.94; 53% girls; N = 326; Mage = 10.53 years, SD = 1.03; 48% girls). It examine...
This study examined short- and long-term effects of ethnic classroom diversity for intergroup relations in adolescence. Using a five-year panel of Swedish majority youth ( M ageT1 = 13.40, M ageT5 = 17.30), we found only limited direct effects of classroom diversity on anti-immigrant attitudes. However, classroom diversity increased the likelihood...
This chapter brings together social and developmental research on ethnic majority youth reactions to growing diversity. It shows no general trend in youth attitudes towards immigrants in recent decades, suggesting that youth reactions may be determined by the proximal social environments they are embedded in. Therefore, this chapter reviews researc...
This 3-wave study of Swedish majority adolescents (N = 659; MageT1 = 13.41) examined the effects of parents’ and peers’ attitudes on changes in youth attitudes towards immigrants as well as an interplay between parent, peer, and school context. The results of multilevel analyses revealed that within-person fluctuations in youth attitudes were posit...
Although research has shown that school context has consequences for intergroup attitudes, few studies have examined the role of teacher qualities, such as teacher support. In addition, previous research has paid limited attention to the mechanisms that could help to explain teacher effects. This 5-wave study (2010-2015) examined the effects of per...
Tolerance Tolerance is commonly defined as putting up with ideas, persons, or practices that one disagrees with or dislikes. Theory and research have focused on one particular kind of tolerance, namely political tolerance, that concerns the willingness to extend civil liberties to disliked groups. Although difficult and complex, political tolerance...
Ethnic and racial intergroup attitudes are assumed to develop due to the influence of social contexts. However, there is still little longitudinal evidence supporting this claim. Hence, we know little about the relative importance of social contexts, the possible interplay between them as well as about the conditions and mechanisms that might under...
Facilitating positive youth development in times of diversity entails counteracting negative attitudes. Two longitudinal studies of Swedish majority youth show risks and protective factors for development of their negative attitudes towards immigrants. Risks: parents and peers’ negative attitudes towards immigrants. Protective factors: cross-ethnic...
Do adolescents learn tolerant or intolerant attitudes towards outgroups from their parents? Can having immigrant friends protect adolescents from the negative influence of parental anti-immigrant attitudes? How important is the influence of parents compared to peers or school climate? This chapter answers these questions and advises on how parents,...
This longitudinal study of adolescents (N = 517) examined the effects of parents and peers’ anti-immigrant attitudes as well as intergroup friendships on relative changes in adolescents’ anti-immigrant prejudice, controlling for the effects of socioeconomic background. It also examined whether the effects of parents or peers would depend on adolesc...
The role of parents, peers, intergroup friendships and school in development of adolescents' tolerance and anti-immigrant attitudes. Mini-lecture for Forum för Levande Historia, Stockholm, October 2016.
Although the role of individual differences for political attitudes is undisputed, the psychological determinants of support for democratic values received limited attention. This study aimed at incorporating a variety of measures of stable individual differences and determining their relative effect on support for democratic values as well as at t...
In this chapter we explore how the Culture of Peace can be and in some cases is being actualized. First, noting that the United Nations resolutions on a Culture of Peace call for shifts in values, attitudes, and behaviors, we give attention to values that are supportive of peaceful attitudes and behavior. Second, we consider the nature and flexibil...
There is an oft-voiced proposition within evolutionary psychology that over the course of evolutionary time, natural selection favored human males who have killed over those men who have not. The implication is that killing has been favorably selected as a fitness enhancing strategy. Interestingly, the impetus for this proposition in large part ste...
Peace is much more than simply the absence of war. This so-called negative peace concept has been supplanted with more holistic and inclusive conceptions of positive peace that include such features as human rights, sustainable development, and access to justice. At a UNESCO congress in 1989, the idea of promoting a Culture of Peace that could prov...
Although it is assumed that support for democratic values, such as tolerance, develops as a result of social learning, concrete socializing circumstances are less obvious. The classical literature on political socialization pointed to parents as a direct determinant of youth civic formation. The present study aims at advancing this discourse by ass...
Theories on empathy development have stressed the role of socialization in general and the role of parental support in particular. This 3-wave longitudinal study of middle adolescents (N = 678) aimed to contribute to the extant research on the socialization of empathy (a) by examining the relative contribution of perceived maternal and paternal nee...
Although it is generally assumed that support for democratic values and beliefs develops as a result of social learning, the concrete socializing circumstances through which this occurs are less obvious. This study investigated the relationship between democratic family functioning and democratic values of adolescents. Adolescents' (N = 1,341, 16-...
Schwartz’s model of basic human values conceptualizes self-enhancing and selftranscendence
as opposing value dimensions. Self-enhancing values include striving for
power and achievement; hence, they are individual-centric, whereas self-transcendence
values include benevolence and universalism, which pertain to a concern for other people
and society...
Projects
Projects (4)
The ReMO COST Action focuses on wellbeing and mental health within academia, a theme of strategic importance for the European Research Area. Previous research shows that low levels of wellbeing and mental health problems have a negative impact on individual, team and organizational performance, triggering significant costs. In addition, institutional context, organizational structure and culture, as well as managerial practices have significant impact on wellbeing and health of employees. Therefore, general insights on the causes of workplace wellbeing and mental health need to be refined with contextual specifics (i.e. in academia) in order to develop tailored, effective and efficient prevention and action programs.
The project examines the development of prejudice in adolescence, with a particular focus on parents, peers and intergroup contact as key socialization contexts.
This project is part of a work conducted on behalf of The Living Forum History in Sweden. It focuses particularly on young people’s attitudes - tolerance and intolerance - during the formative years.
The project consists of five parts:
1. The first part approaches tolerance from historical and comparative perspectives. It covers ongoing trends regarding tolerant attitudes in Sweden in comparison to other European countries. In addition, it revolves around the question of to what extent Swedish citizens can be considered tolerant and how this can be interpreted from a historical perspective.
2. The second part is a qualitative study of the views of young people with regard to vulnerability and tolerance. Based on interviews with young people from different social and ethnic backgrounds, this part will provide a better picture of how young people perceive tolerance.
3. The third part covers the development of tolerance and intolerance during the formative years. We will thereby gain a sounder empirical understanding about the extent and about the timeframe when tolerant and intolerant attitudes may be shifted.
4. The fourth part deals with the mechanisms behind tolerant and intolerant attitudes. Here we will provide knowledge about the role played by parents, schools, peers and civil society organizations in fostering tolerant attitudes among young people.
5. The fifth part deals with the relationships of teachers with regard to the issue of tolerance. The purpose is to problematize the context of tolerance from an educational perspective.
The studies will be conducted by researchers from various disciplines and will be published in an anthology in 2017.
The following researchers will contribute: Ali Abdelzadeh; Cecilia Arensmeier; Viktor Dahl; Elisabet Langmann; Erik Lundberg: Marta Miklikowska; Lars Trägårdh; Johan Von Essen; Susanne Wallman Lundåsen; Metin Özdemir and Sevgi Bayram Özdemir.
