Lenka Dražanová

Yesterday was my last day as a Research Fellow at the @mpc-eui.bsky.social @eui-eu.bsky.social. After nearly eight years, I am grateful for the brilliant colleagues, projects, and conversations that have shaped my work on attitudes towards migration, fairness, and democracy. On to new beginnings! ✨

Excited to be speaking at Collegio Carlo Alberto this Thursday, Sept 25! If in Turin, please join us!

I’ll talk about the origins of attitudes toward immigration — how early-life experiences, political climate, and education shape views across generations.

www.carloalberto.org/event/lenka-...

Grateful for the opportunity to present my ongoing work on public fairness perceptions on the use of biometrics and automated decision-making in border control at @hertiecfr.bsky.social this morning. I believe it is especially timely vis-à-vis the EES being rolled out next month

Voted in the Czech elections by post for the first time. A long-awaited reform, but also one wrapped in debates over procedure, access and trust 👉 www.e15.cz/volby/koresp...

My department at Leuphana University offers 6 fully funded PhD scholarships (incl. research funding) for three years.

If you are interested in studying democratic resilience (particularly party competition and elections 🤓) and you have a strong methodolgical background: Apply!

shorturl.at/kcTbG

Universitair Docent in de Sociologie van Sociale Ongelijkheid Tilburg University | Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences is op zoek naar een Universitair Docent in de Sociologie van Sociale Ongelijkheid, Departement Sociologie, locatie Tilburg.

Our #Sociology department is looking for an #AssistantProfessor in the field of Social Inequality (with the possibility for a permanent contract).

www.academictransfer.com/en/jobs/3546...

@sociologytiu.bsky.social @tilburg-university.bsky.social @academic-chatter.bsky.social #academicjobs

Very interesting read on academic publishing from the editor’s perspective 👇

"Wir schaffen das" - Deutschlands Asylpolitik und die EU – DW – 25.08.2025 Der Anstieg von Asylsuchenden in den Jahren 2015/2016 betraf die ganze EU. Wie blicken die Politik und die Menschen im Rest Europas auf die Asyl- und Migrationsdebatte der letzten zehn Jahre?

Pleased to be quoted as an expert in a new Deutsche Welle article 👉 p.dw.com/p/4zOHD
It looks at how migration debates have shaped politics & public opinion across Europe over the past decade.

More Educated, More Pro-Immigration? - midem Does more education automatically lead to more open attitudes towards immigration? Education is often seen as a key to fostering inclusive attitudes toward immigration and strengthening social cohesio...

📢 Does higher #education make people more pro-immigration? Not always.
New MIDEM paper by @lenkadrazanova.bsky.social dives into 20 years of ESS data — and challenges common assumptions.
Read her study: forum-midem.de/more-educate...
@stiftungmercator.bsky.social @tudresden.bsky.social

I am very much looking forward to give this talk next week in Dresden. Please join us either in person or online! 👇

Presented at a closed roundtable hosted by OHCHR in Geneva yesterday, discussing fairness concerns around new technologies in Europe. Grateful to contribute to a timely and much needed conversation at the intersection of human rights, tech and migration governance #AFARproject @volkswagenstiftung.de

Using 9 rounds of ESS data from 20 countries, we show:
🔎 Migrants tend to be more pro-immigration
💡 But not always! Their attitudes shift with time, context, & experiences like discrimination
📉 Longer-residing migrants often grow more negative

Migrant and Non-migrant Views on Immigration in Europe - European Journal of Population Attitudes toward immigration are usually investigated from the non-migrant residents’ perspective. Much less is known about how perceptions of immigration policy and immigrants vary across immigration...

📣 New article out! With @sedovicmicha.bsky.social we look at not just how the majority thinks about immigration, but also what (first and second generation) migrants' attitudes are

Full piece in European Journal of Population:
👉 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

#migration #socialcohesion #europe

JUST PUBLISHED 🔍 Do #migrants in Europe view immigration with solidarity or as a threat?

Immigrants tend to have more positive views than non-migrants, but first-gen immigrants grow more negative the longer they stay.

Read the full study:

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Navigating migration narratives This JRC Science for Policy report provides a comprehensive understanding of migration narratives and their impact on public perception and policy. It examines dominant media narratives, divisive rhet...

Very happy to have contributed to a chapter on public attitudes to migration in this new EC's report on migration narratives and how to effectively communicate about migration 👉 europa.eu/!KfKvQq

What shapes public views on asylum fairness?
A new in 🇩🇪 & 🇮🇹 study points to moral values:

🤝Those who value care & equality focus on fair treatment of asylum seekers
🏛️Those valuing loyalty & authority prioritise protecting the perceived interests of the host country

📌 cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/...

🧪 Based on a conjoint experiment in Germany + Italy 🇩🇪🇮🇹
💡 Key takeaway: some respondents have to reconcile competing moral values when judging what’s fair in asylum decision-making. Addressing moral dilemmas may help build broader support.

Would love to hear your thoughts!

📣 New working paper just out with Martin Ruhs! 🆕

How do moral values shape what people see as fair in asylum decisions?

Spoiler: people’s moral values predict whether they focus more on fairness towards asylum seekers or towards the host country

🔗 hdl.handle.net/1814/78296

Please join us either in person or online at this exciting Workshop we are co-organizing with colleagues from MIDEM @maikherold.bsky.social @olivieroangeli.bsky.social & others addressing key migration questions 👇

These are examples of what we call "migration communication campaigns".

In our new article (with @jamesrdennison.bsky.social and @mcarmoduarte.bsky.social), we present a database to explore how diverse campaigns shape our perceptions of migration.

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

📢 new Working Paper with Martin Ruhs

How do Europeans think about 'fairness' in asylum decision-making? What makes 'fair' asylum policies?

Take a look at new survey data from Germany + Italy

➡️ paper: cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/...
➡️ blopost: euideas.eui.eu/2024/09/17/w...

Which individual-level factors explain public attitudes toward immigration? a meta-analysis Public attitudes toward immigration have attracted much scholarly interest and extensive empirical research in recent years. Despite a sizeable theoretical and empirical literature, no firm conclus...

Our article "Which individual-level factors explain public attitudes toward immigration? a meta-analysis" in the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies now has a volume and issue number! www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Looking forward to give this talk at the MPC's seminar on January 16th 11-12 CET. I will be talking about Migrant and non-migrant views on immigration in Europe based on co-authored work with @sedovicmicha.bsky.social. It is a hybrid event so everyone is welcome to attend! www.eui.eu/events?id=56...

5/ Anne-Marie Jeannet and I also looked at "Cohort differences in attitudes toward sexual orientation (and) the formative political climate as a socializing agent" 👉 www.frontiersin.org/articles/10....

4/ in "Attitudes toward immigration in Europe: Cross-regional differences" in Open Research Europe
Jérôme Gonnot and I investigate how European public opinion has responded to short-term variations in regional immigration over the past decade 👉 open-research-europe.ec.europa.eu/articles/3-66

3/ in "Blame it on my youth: the origins of attitudes towards immigration" in @actapolitica.bsky.social Anne-Marie Jeannet and I investigate the origins of attitudes towards immigration drawing on political socialization theory Read it here 👉 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

2/ what we do in "Which individual-level factors explain public attitudes toward immigration? a meta-analysis" with Jérôme Gonnot, @heidland.bsky.social and Finja Krüger in Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies seems self-explanatory 👉 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

1/ Andrew Roberts and I delved into the intricate interplay between nationalism and citizenship dynamics in "National Attachments and Good Citizenship: A Double-Edged Sword" in Political Studies 👉 journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...
#NationalismStudies #CitizenshipResearch

📚 As a further way to introduce myself, I would like to share in the upcoming posts the fruits of last year's work and collaborations! Here is a number of posts highlighting the publications I'm proud to have contributed to in 2023 🎉:

Hello BlueSky, I am migrating here, so let me introduce myself! I am a social scientist interested in untangling the rise of authoritarianism and a shift towards less tolerant societies. My research interests lie at the intersection of political science, sociology, and political psychology.