Department of Sociology

This research examines how intergroup contact experiences--including both their frequency and their qualities (friendly, discriminatory)--predict indicators of welcoming among U.S.-born and imigrant groups. Analyzing a new survey of U.S.-born groups (whites and blacks) and immigrant groups (Mexicans and Indians) from the Atlanta and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, we examine welcoming as a key dimension of social integration. Results consistently demonstrated that greater contact frequency predicted greater tendencies to welcome, and to feel welcomed by, each of the other groups.