To whom should I turn? Intergroup social connections moderate social exclusion's short- and long-term psychological impact on immigrants

Persistent social exclusion can detrimentally impact marginalized individuals' psychological well-being. However, little is known about the social factors that could moderate the psychological cost of social exclusion in persistently excluded social groups. Focusing on asylum-seekers, refugees, and voluntary economic immigrants, we tested if intergroup social connections with the majority national group (i.e., the host population) and other immigrants moderated the short- and long-term social exclusion impact. In Study 1 (N = 277), we found that the quantity and quality of connections with the national people reduced the immediate emotional burden of experimental exposure to social exclusion, whereas connections with other immigrants aggravated it. Study 2 (N = 112) consisted in a six-month longitudinal study investigating the influence of intergroup social relationships on the long-term psychological harm of social exclusion in asylum-seekers and refugees. Results showed that in participants who developed more frequent and close connections with people from the national group over time, social exclusion yielded a less detrimental long-term psychological impact. Oppositely, for immigrants who established increasing connections with other migrants, social exclusion led to more adverse psychological repercussions over time. The research provided replicated and complementary evidence highlighting that immigrants' intergroup connections can influence the short and long-term consequences of persistent exclusion, emphasizing the benefits of bridging connections with the national group and the risks of segregation within immigrants' niches.