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Trust Beyond Borders: The Role of Non-State Actors in Shaping Immigration Preferences
Evidence for high-income countries suggests that greater political trust, defined as confidence in state actors, relates to more openness towards immigration. We argue that in contexts of weak state governance, trust in non-state actors, such as the church or international organisations, could also be relevant.
To explore this, we conduct face-to-face surveys, each including a conjoint experiment, in three border locations experiencing large inflows of Venezuelans: Boa Vista (Brazil), Cúcuta (Colombia), and San Fernando (Trinidad and Tobago). Results indicate that individuals with higher levels of trust in international organisations have lower preference for communities with a closed door to immigration.
The findings suggest that a nuanced conceptualisation of trust that accounts for non-state actors helps explain how public attitudes toward immigration are shaped in settings of weak state governance. This implies that national-level or state-centric analyses are insufficient, and that analyses must be tailored to local governance settings to capture the role of non-state actors. Finally, the results show that in regions with weak state governance, international organisations may act as trusted intermediaries to enhance openness to immigration.
Please join either in person or online. For in-person attendees, the talk will be preceded by a light lunch at 12.15pm. Please email comms@sociology.ox.ac.uk with any questions.
Date:
23 February 2026, 12:45
Venue:
Seminar Room, Department of Sociology and Online
Speaker:
Carlos Vargas-Silva (COMPAS, University of Oxford)
Organising department:
Department of Sociology
Organiser contact email address:
comms@sociology.ox.ac.uk
Part of:
Sociology Department Weekly Seminar
Booking required?:
Not required
Audience:
Members of the University only
Editor:
Laurel Millen-Quinn
