The Role of Studying Abroad in Attitudes towards Immigration

A European Context

Authors

Keywords:

Eurobarometer, European Union, immigrants, migration, student mobility, study abroad

Abstract

International student mobility has been rising as a global phenomenon in the last few decades, while its impact could be various in different contexts. For the European Union (EU), studying in another EU member country could be regarded as an important factor for the solidarity and integrity of the Union. The current study elaborates on the role of studying abroad regarding the attitudes of people toward immigration in the EU. It shows that people who are studying in an EU member country, belonging to higher social classes and from EU15 countries, are more likely to have positive attitudes toward immigration. But after controlling several socio-demographic variables studying abroad still contributes positively to the attitudes of EU citizens toward immigration. Accordingly, current study provides promising pieces of evidence on the social contribution of studying abroad for both future research and policymakers.

Author Biographies

  • Yakup Öz, Karamanoğlu Mehmetbey University

    Yakup Öz, Ph.D., is a research assistant in the Department of Educational Sciences at Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University. His research interests lie in the area of internationalization of higher education, public diplomacy, European studies, and comparative and international education.

  • Enes Gök, Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University

    Enes Gök is an associate professor of the Department of Educational Sciences at Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University. In the last four years, he has worked as the head of Educational Evaluation Center and Distance Education Center. He also served as the consultant at the Higher Education Quality Council of Turkey from 2018 to 2020. He currently is a visiting scholar at Indiana University-Bloomington. He holds an MEd (2010) and EdD (2013) in higher education management from the University of Pittsburgh. During his education, he also served as the project associate and program coordinator at the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute for International Studies in Education, participating in national and international projects and events. His research interests include higher education administration, internationalization of higher education, and comparative education.

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Published

2021-11-03

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Research Articles (English)

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How to Cite

The Role of Studying Abroad in Attitudes towards Immigration: A European Context. (2021). Journal of International Students, 12(2). https://www.ojed.org/jis/article/view/3561