Ethnic origin and residential location of immigrants in European countries

Anya Glikman, Kibbutzim College of Education
Moshe Semyonov, Tel Aviv University

Segregated ethnic neighborhoods are prevalent in most contemporary European cities. Whereas patterns of segregation have been studied extensively in America, research on immigrants' segregation and residential location in Europe is relatively new. The present research utilizes data from the European Social Survey to examine patterns of locational attainment among immigrants across 13 European countries and the extent to which they are influenced by immigrants' tenure in the host country, socio-economic characteristics, preferences regarding residential location, exposure to discrimination, and ethnic and cultural origin. The analysis reveals that residential attainment varies considerably across ethnic and cultural groups: immigrants from Asia or Africa as well as Muslims are less likely to reside in neighborhoods which are perceived as inhabited by Europeans. The roles played by differential residential preferences and by perception of discrimination are also examined and evaluated.