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Cyrus Samii, New York University
Thomas Zeitzoff, American University
Review paper for Social Issues and Policy Review
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Betsy Levy Paluck, Princeton University
Robin Gomila, Princeton University
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Theoretical background and objectives
In this project we examine the obstacles and opportunities immigrants may face when seeking naturalization with an empirical focus on German municipalities.
Naturalization can be a deeply personal moment for many migrants, fostering national identification and attachment. There is also evidence that naturalization improves integration outcomes in the political realm. Though non-citizens have access to many of the same rights as do citizens, citizenship continues to signify full membership in a political community. Yet, even though more and more immigrants in Europe are eligible for citizenship, they might not apply because the bureaucratic hurdles can appear daunting, and state authorities may seem inaccessible.
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Theoretical background and objectives
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Theoretical background and objectives
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Dissertation project
Theoretical background and objectives
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Theoretical background and objectives
There is a large amount of evidence on a negative relationship between ethnic heterogeneity, various measures of social capital (trust, voluntarism, associational membership etc.), and levels of public goods provision. The evidence includes survey-based studies, (field) experiments, as well as studies relating aggregate-level data to spatial units. Much of this evidence pertains to the United States, but in addition there are also some studies of African and Asian countries, as well as large-N cross-national studies. Studies focusing on European countries are rarer, and do not always provide unequivocal support for the negative relationship between ethnic diversity and various forms of social capital.