Intergroup Threat and Tolerance Towards Venezuelan Immigrants in Chile / Tolerancia y amenaza intergrupal hacia inmigrantes venezolanos en Chile

Abstract

This study compares levels of intergroup threat and tolerance towards Venezuelan immigrants in Chile among university students and members of the general population, examining whether distinct latent profiles emerged in the full pooled sample. A total of 490 Chilean adults participated in the study, including 289 university students (M = 21.69, SD = 3.08) and 201 members of the general population (M = 41.88, SD = 15.77). Participants completed validated Chilean versions of the Intergroup Threat Scale and the Tolerance Scale. Descriptive analyses and independent-samples t-tests were conducted using JASP. To identify latent attitudinal profiles, latent class analysis (LCA) was conducted in the combined sample including both groups, and sample type (university students vs. general population) was subsequently included as a covariate to examine whether it predicted class membership. Results showed that university students reported significantly lower levels of perceived symbolic, realistic and security/safety threat than the general population, with large effect sizes. They also scored higher on appreciation of diversity, although no significant differences were observed in terms of acceptance or respect. The LCA conducted on the full sample supported a two-class solution. The first profile, labelled Committed-Tolerant (63%), was characterised by high levels of acceptance, respect and appreciation, together with low perceived threat. The second profile, labelled Ambivalent-Tolerant (37%), combined relatively high acceptance and respect with higher levels of perceived symbolic, realistic and security/safety threat. Additional analyses indicated that belonging to the general population significantly increased the likelihood of membership in the ambivalent, higher perceived threat profile. Overall, the findings suggest that attitudes towards Venezuelan immigrants in Chile are heterogeneous and cannot be reduced to a simple opposition between tolerance and rejection.