When an immigration society is struck by economic hardship, hostility towards immigrants is prone to rise: this prediction is borne out both by widely accepted theories and abundant empirical evidence. However, despite matching the conditions of large immigrant presence and strong economic woes, the Spanish case does not fit that forecast. Throughout the first six years of the economic crisis that began in 2008, stated concern for immigration has decreased, as did manifest hostility toward immigrants. How can such Spanish exceptionality be explained? This article traces the situation at baseline, as well as the evolution of attitudes since 2008, to then identify various explanatory hypotheses and discern their implications for public policy.

Economic crisis Group competition theory Attitudes towards immigration and immigrants Group position theory

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