Preferences for Segregation? A study of migrants and hosts in Adana, Turkey

Abstract:

This study explores immigrant inclusion at the neighborhood level through a conjoint experiment that examines simultaneous migrant and host community preferences for residential segregation. It considers this topic in the context of Turkey, a country that has experienced massive in-migration of refugees from the Syrian civil war. The experiment is implemented through a 5000 person door-to-door survey in Adana, Turkey that draws equally from migrant (Syrian) and host (Turk) populations. The primary focus of the conjoint is on neighborhood demographic composition and whether the effect of out-group size on willingness to live in the neighborhood is symmetric or asymmetric across migrant and host populations. We find that Syrian migrants in Adana do not condition their residential preferences on demographic factors, including the size of their own group, a finding at odds with studies suggesting that European migrant populations prefer to live in migrant heavy communities.  In contrast, we find that host members are significantly affected by demographic factors, especially the size of the migrant population. Indeed outgroup aversion among the host population remains regardless of the level of crime in the neighborhood, and that crime only becomes a significant factor shaping preferences in ingroup dominant neighborhoods. Our findings suggest that preferences for segregation in Adana are asymmetric, with hosts, not migrants, seeking it.