The formal participation of Syrians to the employment in Ankara and attitudes of local people toward Syrians – An experimental design

Despite a significant Syrian population in Turkey, the proportion of Syrians with work permits is low. Promoting their legal employment is necessary for economic benefits, prevention of radicalization, and their right to work. However, given negative attitudes toward Syrian refugees in Turkey, it's crucial to examine how formal employment affects these attitudes. The study employed Contact Theory and Realistic Group Conflict Theory (RGCT) to examine the impact of formal employment of Syrians on attitudes toward them, considering workplace contact and workplace competition. An experimental survey with eight vignettes, varying across three variables with two levels each, was administered to 240 local workers in Ankara's industrial areas. The study found that formal employment is linked to positive attitudes (lower social distance) and lower threat perception, consistent with Contact Theory, while workplace competition is linked to negative attitudes (higher negative emotions) and higher threat perception, consistent with RGCT. However, no significant results were found for hypothesized workplace contact and interactions of manipulations. Also, threat perception was found as a partial mediator in the association between competition and attitudes, and as a full mediator between formal employment and attitudes.