Has Anti-Americanism Become a “Progressive Prejudice” in Germany? Attitudes of the German Public toward America and Americans

ABSTRACT

The article examines the causes and social mechanisms of anti-American attitudes and behavior and illustrates the fruitfulness of this theoretical approach using the example of Germany. We argue that anti-American attitudes are rooted mainly in two sociopsychological functions: the rationalization of social change and the projection of self-parts that have been suppressed. Other determinants are social norms, lack of personal social contact with Americans, and a strong national identity. Further, we also investigate the correlation between anti-American attitudes and behavioral intentions. Using a national sample (n = 1,201) and a comprehensive measure of anti-Americanism, we document the distribution of perceptions about America and Americans among the German population and explore the explanatory power of the theoretical concepts.

KEYWORDS:

• Collective behavior and social movements
• global and transnational society
• peace
• war
• and social conflict

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the reviewers for their valuable comments on a previous draft of this article. The usual disclaimers apply.

Funding

Parts of this work were financed by the Fritz Thyssen Foundation, grant Az. 10.10.1.111.

Notes

1. The subjective political attitude was measured with an 11-point self-rating scale, where 0 = “left” and 10 = “right.” The variable was recoded: 1–3 “left” (20.4 percent), 4–7 “political middle” (68.5 percent), 8–10 “right” (11.1 percent). Educational level was evaluated using a categorical variable that measures the educational degree and was subsequently recoded into a quasi-metric variable reflecting years of education: “no graduation” = 7 years of education (.0 percent), “Volks-/Hauptschulabschluss/Polytechnische Oberschule 8. oder 9. Klasse” = 8 years (18.8 percent), “mittlere Reife/Realschul-abschluss/Polytechnische Oberschule 10. Klasse” = 10 (30.6 percent), “Fachhochschulreife” = 12 (5.1 percent), “Hochschulreife” = 13 (14.4 percent), “Fachhochschulabschluss” = 16 (10.2 percent), “Universitätsabschluss” = 18 (21.0 percent). Household income was measured in two steps: respondents who declined to answer the open question could classify their income using a categorical scale. Both variables were then combined (m = 2,715.8; s = 1,761.93; n = 977), where the mean of the categories was taken as the value of interest. (The category “1,500 to 2,000 euros,” for example, was recorded as “1,750.”) Finally, the net equivalent income was calculated according to Hauser’s (1996:13) method, dividing the household income by the square root of household members (m = 1,875.1; s = 1,432.29). The question measuring East German socialization reads, “Did you spend a large part of your childhood or youth in the GDR or the new federal states?” (n = 1,201). Those who answered “yes” were given the value 1 (22.2 percent). The age of respondents (m = 53.6; s = .51) was captured by asking the year of birth and the sex was determined from the interviewer’s perception of the respondent’s voice (47.9 percent men and 52.1 percent women).

2. Similar to most other studies testing the theory of planned behavior (Armitage and Conner 2001), we used simple survey items to measure the proposed theoretical concepts and did not differentiate between beliefs and perceived consequences/outcomes.

3. Signing this petition may be considered to be an act of anti-Americanism because the petition refers to an “inhumane economic system” to be “enforced throughout the world.” The term “inhumane” (menschenverachtend in German) in particular indicates a fundamental Manichaeism on the part of the actor, which jeopardizes any potential critical dialogue.

Additional information

Funding

Parts of this work were financed by the Fritz Thyssen Foundation, grant Az. 10.10.1.111

Notes on contributors

Heiko Beyer

Heiko Beyer is an Assistant Professor at the Institute for the Social Sciences at the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany, and currently Fritz Thyssen Fellow at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. His research interests include prejudice and discrimination, social movements, religious politics, and the sociology of human rights.

Ulf Liebe

Ulf Liebe is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Sociology at the University of Bern, Switzerland. His research interests include theory comparison, environmental sociology, environmental economics, and experimental methods.