Distinction Without a Difference: American Public Opinion on Immigrants and Refugees

Abstract Do Americans hold refugees in higher regard than immigrants? If so, why? We theorize that refugees activate humanitarian concerns and perceptions of deservingness, while immigrants trigger threat perceptions and competition, leading to divergent mental associations toward each group. We investigate these questions with a nationally representative online survey experiment fielded in 2024 that contrasts Americans’ attitudes toward refugees and immigrants using both open- and close-ended questions. Open-ended mentions reveal that refugees trigger themes of involuntariness, conflict, and humanitarianism, while immigrants elicit themes of domestic politics, fairness, and threat. Close-ended responses indicate that Americans view immigrants as more competent and more agentic than refugees, and they associate refugees and immigrants with different reasons for coming to the United States. Despite these differences in beliefs, respondents report no significant differences on warmth stereotypes, group affect, or policy preferences. Thus, while Americans do possess some divergent beliefs about refugees and immigrants, ultimately these are distinctions without a difference when it comes to group affect and policy opinions.