The meaning of being Muslim has undergone enormous changes in the aftermath of the bombings in New York in 2001. The initial reaction of Western media outlets was to portray Muslims as a global threat. In social, cultural and political contexts, Muslims were thought to be unable to fit into Western societies. For example, in a major survey, over half of Australians preferred that their relatives not marry into a Muslim family.
This book examines the attitudes, perceptions and knowledge of young Muslim and Western students towards one another in German, Australian and New Zealand educational institutions. It also addresses the views, pressures, unconscious biases, presumptions and expectations, social, cultural and religious influences that drive the relationship between the two communities.
Acknowledgements
List of Figures and Tables
About the Authors
1 Cross-Cultural Attitudes in Education: Majority-Minority Students in
Australia and Germany
1 Religious Diversity, Education, and Prejudice
2 Knowledge, Attitudes and False Beliefs in Education
3 Examining the Resentments and Grievances of the Australian Muslim
Community
4 Examining the Resentments and Grievances of the Dominant Australian
Community
5 Fostering Race-Related Dialogue in Education between the Two Groups
6 Methodology and Analysis
PART 1: Knowledge, False Beliefs and Cross-Cultural Attitudes
2 Knowledge, False Beliefs and Fact-Driven Perceptions of Muslims in
Australian High Schools
1 Introduction
2 Method
3 Findings
4 Perception of Islam
5 Discussion
6 Conclusions
3 Knowledge, False Beliefs, and Information Processing Perception of
Australia by Muslim High School Students
1 Introduction
2 Companion Study of Non-Muslim Students
3 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
4 Overall Results
5 Words and Images Which the Word Australian Triggers in the Mind of
Participants
6 Discussion and Findings
7 Conclusions
4 Reaction Mixture of Perception and Attitudes of Tertiary Educated Muslim
Students to Mainstream Australian Community
Abe W. Ata and David Teh
1 Introduction
2 Originality and Relevance of the Survey
3 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
4 Findings
5 Knowledge about Christianity
6 Educational Influences on Interfaith Relations
7 Conclusions
PART 2: Intergroup Relations, Social Distance and Religious Bias
5 Perception of the Other in Catholic Schools in Australia: A National
Survey
1 Introduction
2 Survey Method
3 Characteristics of Participating Schools
4 Conclusions
6 Differentiating Effects of Social Distance and Intergroup Contact: German
University Students Views on Islam and Muslims
Abe W. Ata and Klaus Baumann
1 Introduction
2 Definitions and Background Perspectives
3 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
4 Results and Discussion
5 Conclusions
7 Commixture Effects of Community Norms, Knowledge, and Friendship on Social
Distance/Intergroup Relations with Muslims in the Wake of the Christchurch
Terrorist Attacks
Abe W. Ata and David Teh
1 Background Perspectivesthe Case of New Zealand
2 Survey Method, Data Analysis, and Sample Characteristics
3 Statistical Computations and Data Analysis
4 Results and Discussion
5 Conclusions
PART 3: Religious Affiliation, Gender Differences, and Integration
8 Do Muslim-Australian Tertiary Students View Their Own Values to Be
Compatible with Those Held by the Dominant/Mainstream Society!
1 Originality and Relevance of the Survey
2 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
3 Conclusions
9 Cultural, Gender and Religious Predictors of Perception of Muslims at
Tertiary Institutions
1 Method Originality and Relevance of the Survey
2 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
3 Results and Discussion
4 Conclusions
10 Knowledge, False Beliefs and Fact Driven Perceptions of Muslims in German
Universities
Abe W. Ata and Klaus Baumann
1 Introduction
2 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
3 Discussion
4 Conclusions
PART 4: Social Cohesion, Stereotyping, and Inclusivity
11 Psychological and Social Distance of School-Age Non-Muslim Australians
towards Muslims and Islam
1 Methods
2 Results
3 Discussion and Conclusions
12 How Do Students in Islamic Schools Perceive Their Values as Compatible
with the Broader Australian Community: A National Survey
1 Survey Method and Sample Characteristics
2 Findings and Discussion
3 Overall Results
13 Conclusions
1 Part 1: Knowledge, False Beliefs and Cross-Cultural Attitudes
2 Part 2: Intergroup Relations, Social Distance and Religious Bias
3 Part 3: Religious Affiliation, Gender Differences and Social Harmony
4 Part 4: Social-Psychological Distance, Stereotyping, and Inclusivity
References
Index
Abe W. Ata, PhD (1980), is Adjunct Professor at both La Trobe and Victoria universities. He has published 21 monographs, 37 entries in three encyclopedias, and 153 journal articles.
