Exploring Perceptions About Opportunities and Immigration: Evidence for European Countries

Resumen

Immigration has been identified as one of the most prominent political problems in Europe, whose relevance has increased since the outbreak of the COVID pandemic. In order to gain greater understanding of this crucial issue it is advisable to complement the use of objective indicators with subjective information based on perceptions, thus reflecting personal opinions, points of view, and emotions.This chapter aims to analyze individuals’ perceptions toward opportunities, social justice, and immigration and compare these perceptions with indicators referred to inequality and immigrants’ situation in European countries.For this purpose, microdata was used from two surveys, the European Social Survey (ESS) and European Social Survey of Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC). The ESS provides data about individuals’ perceptions and public attitudes while EU-SILC microdata allows to analyze immigration and opportunities in Europe.Results show that, in most European countries, there is an increase in inequality, especially inequality of opportunity. Nevertheless, individuals perceive there are equal opportunities even though disparities are growing. The rise of Inequality of Opportunity is accompanied by a worsening in immigrants’ situation: being an Immigrant has become more important in shaping individuals’ opportunities, and although perceptions toward immigration improve when the share of immigrants increases, this result is not translated in an enhancement of immigrants’ situation.