Research School of Psychology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
School of Psychological and Clinical Sciences, Charles Darwin University, Casuarina, NT, Australia.
PLoS One. 2018 Mar 29;13(3):e0193337. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0193337. eCollection 2018.
Previous research has demonstrated that there is a negative relationship between ethnic diversity in a local community and social cohesion. Often the way social cohesion is assessed, though, varies across studies and only some aspects of the construct are included (e.g., trust). The current research explores the relationship between diversity and social cohesion across a number of indicators of social cohesion including neighbourhood social capital, safety, belonging, generalized trust, and volunteering. Furthermore, social psychological theories concerning the role of positive contact and its impact on feelings of threat are investigated. Using a sample of 1070 third generation 'majority' Australians and structural equation modelling (SEM), findings suggest ethnic diversity is related to positive intergroup contact, and that contact showed beneficial impacts for some indicators of social cohesion both directly and indirectly through reducing perceived threat. When interethnic contact and perceived threat are included in the model there is no direct negative effect between diversity and social cohesion. The theoretical implications of these findings are outlined including the importance of facilitating opportunities for positive contact in diverse communities.
先前的研究表明，当地社区的种族多样性与社会凝聚力呈负相关。然而，社会凝聚力的评估方式在不同的研究中有所不同，而且研究只包含了该结构的某些方面（例如信任）。本研究通过一系列社会凝聚力指标（包括邻里社会资本、安全、归属感、普遍信任和志愿服务）来探讨多样性与社会凝聚力之间的关系。此外，还研究了关于积极接触及其对威胁感影响的社会心理学理论。该研究使用了 1070 名第三代“多数”澳大利亚人的样本，并采用结构方程模型（SEM），结果表明，种族多样性与积极的群体间接触有关，并且这种接触通过减少感知威胁，对社会凝聚力的一些指标具有直接和间接的有益影响。当在模型中包含族裔间接触和感知威胁时，多样性与社会凝聚力之间没有直接的负面影响。概述了这些发现的理论意义，包括在多元化社区中为积极接触创造机会的重要性。
