Countering anti-Muslim attitudes among Christian and religiously unaffiliated 13- to 15-year-old students in England and Wales: testing the contact hypothesis. Issue 3 (2nd July 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Francis, Leslie J.; McKenna, Ursula; Arweck, Elisabeth
• Is Part Of: Journal of beliefs & values. Volume 41:Issue 3(2020)
• Page Start: 342
• Page End: 357
• Publication Date: 2020-07-02
• Subjects: Islamophobia -- contact hypothesis -- educational resources -- research impact; Religions -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; Theology -- Periodicals; Religious education -- Periodicals; Values -- Periodicals; 200.1
• DOI: 10.1080/13617672.2019.1653062
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1361-7672

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Drawing on data provided by 5, 811 students from schools in England, Wales, and London who self-identified as either 'no religion' or as Christian, this study explored the effect of the contact hypothesis (having friends who are Muslims) on scores recorded on the seven-item Scale of Anti-Muslim Attitude (SAMA), after controlling for type of school (with or without a religious character), location (England, Wales, and London), personal factors (sex and age), psychological factors (extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism) and religious factors (self-assigned affiliation as Christian, worship attendance, and belief in God). The data demonstrated the positive effect of having friends who are Muslim on lowering anti-Muslim attitudes. The path is then described from educational research to curriculum development in the design of resources that offer young learners vicarious experience of having friends who are Muslims.