{"id":1143,"date":"2014-10-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-10-07T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/%20rroma.org\/08-10-2014-germany-dispute-over-antiziganism-study\/"},"modified":"2022-07-26T13:57:14","modified_gmt":"2022-07-26T12:57:14","slug":"08-10-2014-germany-dispute-over-antiziganism-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rroma.org\/fr\/08-10-2014-germany-dispute-over-antiziganism-study\/","title":{"rendered":"08.10.2014 Germany: dispute over antiziganism study"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" class=\"MsoNormal\">Fleischhauer\/Petrovich \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t(2014) criticise the study on antiziganism issued by the anti-discrimination agency \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tin Germany, as being strongly biased and politicised. They accuse the agency of \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\thaving \u201cfudged\u201d the methodology used by scientists to obtain clearer results. The \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGerman anti-discrimination agency denies this accusation: <em>\u201cThe scientists who carried out the study cannot agree the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tinterpretation of the anti-discrimination agency.<\/em> <em>\u201cThe difficult job of studies is that politics likes clear results, which \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tscience often cannot deliver\u201d, says Wolfgang Benz, one of the two project \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tmanagers. [&#8230;] The social sciences are not an exact science. It\u2019s about moods \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tand attitudes, for which there are no exact measurement instruments. Therefore, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tit is important to formulate the questions so that they do not suggest a \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tparticular answer. The researchers intentionally designed a catalogue in which one \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\thas to rate statements on a scale of one to seven. [&#8230;] The research team had \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tmade \u200b\u200bthe conscious decision to only interpret the values \u200b\u200b \u200b\u200b6 and 7 as a \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tdismissal. However, Luders and her colleagues have added to the 10.9 percent those \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\twho chose the scale value 5, to get a value higher and thus more \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tmedia-suitable.\u201d<\/em> The dispute initiated by the Spiegel-journalists therefore \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconcerns the qualitative weighting of the applied analytical tools. Indeed, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tstatistics, their design and evaluation should be reviewed critically, for all \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tstudies. However, in the case of the methodology applied by the German \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tanti-discrimination agency, one cannot identify a one-sided interpretation of \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthe results, as the Spiegel-journalists claim. The negative values \u200b\u200bof 5-7 are \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tall above the mean 4, representing no opinion in favour of a rejection or \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tacceptance of a statement. The accusation that the study results were \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tartificially inflated, therefore only applies to a limited extent. It depends \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ton how the statement \u201cquite accurate\u201d is weighted with respect to the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tstatements \u201caccurate\u201d and \u201cvery accurate\u201d. The researchers state, concerning \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthe use of the Likert scale: <em>\u201cThe scales \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\twere made uniformly, using a Likert scale of positive values \u200b\u200bfrom 1 to 7, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\twhich were adjusted in a verbalised form to the respective question content. The \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcontext for the decision in favour of a finer scale division was the wish fore \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tmore graded answers instead of having a clear dichotomy into positive and \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tnegative, as for example, a 4-scale would have created\u201d<\/em> (Antidiskriminierungsstelle des Bundes 2014: 34). The authors \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tremark that is was the particular wish of the client, therefore the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tanti-discrimination agency, not to create values as high as possible, but also \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tto capture gradations: <em>\u201cIt would be \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcontrary to the scientific intention of the study as well as towards adequate \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcourses of action intended by the client, to cancel the graded answers in \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tfavour of the determination of maximum values possible\u200b\u200b. Therefore, the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tscaling values \u200b\u200bwere summarized in the presentation of the results as follows: \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t1 and 2, 3-5, and 6 and 7. Therefore, more nuanced opinion groups are eventuated: \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthose who clearly agree or reject and a middle section, with opinions not as \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tdistinct <\/em>(Antidiskriminierungsstelle \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tdes Bundes 2014: \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t37).<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" class=\"MsoNormal\">This finding is contrary \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tto the assertion of Spiegel-journalists that the anti-discrimination agency \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\trequested clearer results and therefore forced them for the presentation. In \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tterms of a critical analysis, the demand for a nuanced presentation of the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tresults is clearly to be agreed with: the heterogeneity of reality is rarely \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tblack and white. On the other hand, one must also realise that people can often \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tbe influenced by the views of the majority in their beliefs and subordinate themselves \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tto social constraints. This phenomenon is studied in the social sciences, under \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthe term \u201cnew institutionalism\u201d. This includes stereotypical views about \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tminorities such as the Rroma. That the federal agency for anti-discrimination \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tdid not totally evaluate the results is confirmed by the finding that the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tmajority of the respondents were aware of the genocide against the Rroma through \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthe Nazis. This point was communicated in the study as it is.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" class=\"MsoNormal\">Fleischhauer (2014) himself \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tdidn\u2019t create his research and viewpoints in a value-free space, and therefore can \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tbe described as a political journalist himself, as can be read in his \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcommentary on Spiegel Online. There, he comments in a condescending ductus \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tabout the anti-discrimination agency, and alleges that the director has lost \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ttouch with reality outside of discrimination questions: <em>\u201cWho only meets people who believe in the same thing, eventually loses \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ttouch with reality outside his own world. There, one easily panics if one faces \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcontradiction.\u201d<\/em> This is a meaningful comment insofar, because Fleischhauer \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\touts himself as strongly prejudiced himself, and loses somewhat credibility (compare \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSaarbr\u00fccker Zeitung 2014, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tS\u00fcddeutsche Zeitung 2014, RP Online 2014).<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Antidiskriminierungsstelle des \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBundes (2014) Zwischen Gleichg\u00fcltigkeit\u00a0und Ablehnung Bev\u00f6lkerungseinstellungen gegen\u00fcber \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSinti und Roma. In: <em style=\"font-family: Arial;\">Antidiskriminierungs-stelle \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tonline<\/em> vom 3.9.2014. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.antidiskriminierungsstelle.de\/SharedDocs\/Downloads\/DE\/publikationen\/Expertisen\/Bevoelkerungseinstellungen_Sinti_und_Roma_20140829.html?nn=4193516\" style=\"font-family: Arial;\">http:\/\/www.antidiskriminierungsstelle.de\/SharedDocs\/Downloads\/DE\/publikationen\/Expertisen\/Bevoelkerungseinstellungen_Sinti_und_Roma_20140829.html?nn=4193516<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fleischhauer, Jan (2014) Umstrittene \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAntiziganismus-Studie: Kritische Fragen unerw\u00fcnscht. In: <em style=\"font-family: Arial;\">Spiegel online<\/em> vom 7.10.2014. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.spiegel.de\/politik\/deutschland\/antidiskriminierungsstelle-fragen-unerwuenscht-fleischhauer-kolumne-a-995811.html\" style=\"font-family: Arial;\">http:\/\/www.spiegel.de\/politik\/deutschland\/antidiskriminierungsstelle-fragen-unerwuenscht-fleischhauer-kolumne-a-995811.html<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fleischhauer, Jan\/Witsch, Kathrin (2014) \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPolitische Wissenschaften. In: <em style=\"font-family: Arial;\">Der \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSpiegel<\/em> vom 6.10.2014., S. 42-43.<\/li>\n<li>RP Online (2014) Streit um Studie \u00fcber \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tVorurteile gegen Sinti und Roma. In: <em style=\"font-family: Arial;\">RP \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOnline <\/em>vom 5.10.2014. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rp-online.de\/panorama\/deutschland\/streit-um-studie-ueber-vorurteile-gegen-sinti-und-roma-aid-1.4574212\" style=\"font-family: Arial;\">http:\/\/www.rp-online.de\/panorama\/deutschland\/streit-um-studie-ueber-vorurteile-gegen-sinti-und-roma-aid-1.4574212<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Saarbr\u00fccker Zeitung (2014) Streit um Studie \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\u00fcber Sinti und Roma. In: <em style=\"font-family: Arial;\">Saarbr\u00fccker \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tZeitung online<\/em> vom 6.10.2014. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.saarbruecker-zeitung.de\/nachrichten\/politik\/Hamburg-Berlin-Roma-Sinti-Wissenschaftlerinnen-und-Wissenschaftler;art2815,5460052\" style=\"font-family: Arial;\">http:\/\/www.saarbruecker-zeitung.de\/nachrichten\/politik\/Hamburg-Berlin-Roma-Sinti-Wissenschaftlerinnen-und-Wissenschaftler;art2815,5460052<\/a><\/li>\n<li>S\u00fcddeutsche Zeitung (2014) Wissenschaftler \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tkritisieren Zuspitzung der Sinti-und-Roma-Studie. In: <em style=\"font-family: Arial;\">S\u00fcddeutsche Zeitung online<\/em> vom 5.10.2014. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sueddeutsche.de\/politik\/diskriminierung-wissenschaftler-kritisieren-zuspitzung-der-sinti-und-roma-studie-1.2159083\" style=\"font-family: Arial;\">http:\/\/www.sueddeutsche.de\/politik\/diskriminierung-wissenschaftler-kritisieren-zuspitzung-der-sinti-und-roma-studie-1.2159083<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fleischhauer\/Petrovich (2014) criticise the study on antiziganism issued by the anti-discrimination agency in Germany, as being strongly biased and politicised. 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