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Attitudes and Prejudice towards Islam and Muslims among Croatian Students

Terrorist activities of Islamic extremists and the massive influx of predominantly Muslim refugees in Europe have contributed to the rising Islamophobia in European societies. Islam is increasingly being perceived as an inherently aggressive and violent religion that breeds intolerance and hatred of others. Accordingly, Muslims are viewed as an inferior and dangerous “Other” who poses a real threat to Western civilization, its values, people and way of life. A cross-sectional study conducted among the students of the University of Zagreb (N=650) had the primary goal to asses the attitudes and prejudice towards Islam and Muslims generally, as well as towards Muslims living in Croatia. Results showed that students mostly perceive Islam as a religion that promotes oppression of women and portray Muslims as a people who, when compared with the followers of other religions, are more prone to terrorism. However, results also showed a relatively low level of prejudice towards domestic Muslim population, with a broad majority of students rejecting statements that express negative attitudes towards Muslims living in Croatia. Although results showed a relatively low level of social distance, there was a weak to moderate positive correlation between social distance and anti-Muslim attitudes. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted in order to asses the role of political attitudes, social distance toward different national, religious, racial and social groups, knowledge of Islam in the attitudes towards Islam and Muslims, controlling for religiosity and gender. The strongest predictor of anti-Muslim attitudes was a perception of threat to European and national security.

anti-Muslim attitudes, Croatia, prejudice, social distance

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