Swedish and Norwegian Attitudes Towards the United States
| Author | Peter Grothe |
| DOI | 10.1177/001083677601100203 |
| Published date | 01 June 1976 |
| Date | 01 June 1976 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Swedish and Norwegian Attitudes Towards
the United States
1
PETER GROTHE
De Anza College, San Jose State University, California
Grothe, P. Swedish and Norwegian Attitudes Towards the United States. Cooperation
and Conflict, XI, 1976, 183-200.
This study, based on a paper given to the 1975 annual convention of the American
Political Science Association, gives the results of questionnaires filled out by more
than 2,800 Swedes and Norwegians. Swedes and Norwegians who had been to the
United States were compared with control groups of their fellow countrymen who
had not been there regarding their perceptions of America. Further, those who had
been to the United States were asked about their perceptions of their own countries.
The data showed that on most - but not all - indicators, those who had been to America
were more positive than the control groups who had not been there. Scandinavians who
had been to America were particularly positive about American personality charac-
teristics but were negative about the perceived lack of a comprehensive social welfare
system in the U.S. Scandinavians who had been to America seemed to return home
both more appreciative and more critical of some aspects of their own countries.
Peter Grothe, De Anza College, San Jose State University, California.
I. INTRODUCTION
nations, starkly simple and exceedingly in-
accurate. The nature of the various
How do samples of Swedes and Norwe-
types of
images - their comparison with reality, and
gians who have been to the United States
the identification of causal factors are at-
perceive America differently from con-
tackable problems. Until some headway is
trol
made, international relations must
groups of their fellow countrymen
always be
in danger of decisions based on fantasy.2
who have not been there? To what ex-
Although we
tent, if at all, do Swedish perceptions of
agree with Professor
the U.S. differ from those of Norwegians?
Leighton’s premise, it is not our function
to
Further, do Swedes and Norwegians tend
judge the validity or invalidity of Scan-
dinavian perceptions of the United States.
to have changed views about their own
In this research, we are not so interested
countries as a result of their stay in
in
America?
reporting ’reality’ as we are in percep-
tions of reality, upon which decision-
Before reporting the findings, a word is
makers base their decisions.
in order about the purpose of the re-
Considerable research has been con-
search and about the methodology.
ducted on travelers’ images of the country
There is a growing body of literature
being visited. Much less has been done
in the social sciences about foreign travel
on an equally intriguing question - how
as a factor in attitude change, and we
persons change their attitudes towards
hoped that this study could make some
their own countries after an extended stay
modest contribution to ongoing theory in
abroad. Bauer, Dexter &
Pool have
this field. Alexander Leighton once
written a landmark work on this subject,
wrote:
and we wanted to see whether our data
A
central question in the matter of nation-
were supportive or not of their thesis
al attitude and belief is the way the members
that persons experience attitude change
of any given nation perceive the members
about
of another. Generally, the people of
policies or aspects of their own
one
nation harbor stereotyped images of other
countries after being abroad.3
184
Our guiding hypothesis in this paper,
we asked the Gallup affiliates in the two
then, is that foreign travel does tend to
countries (Norsk Gallup in Norway,
produce attitude change (1) about the
S.I.F.O. in Sweden) to send question-
country being visited and (2) about one’s
naires to control groups which had not
own country.
been there. The groups were matched by
occupation. Thus, if we received X
number of questionnaires from Swedish
II. RESEARCH PROCEDURES4
engineers who had been to America, an
A
total of 2,734 Swedes and Norwegians,
attempt was made to receive X number
slightly more than half of whom had been
of questionnaires from Swedish engineers
to the United States, filled out mailed
who had not been to America. If there
questionnaires (about a 70% response
were more visitors than non-visitors to
rate). In addition, we interviewed more
America in a particular occupation cate-
than 300 persons, including the prime
gory,
than
the
computer program
ministers of both countries. The mailed
weighted the two groups, so they would
questionnaires were collected in 1971,
come out equally. Although we only con-
but the interviewing continued into 1975.
trolled for occupation, we found that the
The tables are based on the results of
occupation groups which had been to
the mailed questionnaires. The purpose
America and the occupation groups
of the interviewing was to gain a deeper
which had not been there - roughly re-
understanding of the data from question-
sembled one another with respect to the
naires, as well as to form an impression
other demographic variables.
of what extent, if at all, Scandinavian
To repeat, ours is not a random sample.
perceptions of America changed between
We are simply interested in comparing
1971 and the present. (The interviews
Swedes and Norwegians who have been
we conducted in 1974 and 1975 give us
to the United States with comparable
the impression that on most areas we
groups who have not been there. Further,
investigated,
Scandinavian
attitudes
we are interested in internal comparisons:
towards America have remained fairly
for example, how do Swedish students
stable since 1971.)
who have been to America perceive it
No claim is made that the sample
differently from Swedish students who
represented a cross-section of Swedes
have not been to the U.S.?
and Norwegians. We were trying to
One could argue that persons who
compare Swedes and Norwegians who
choose to go to America are predisposed
had been to the United States with
to being more favorable than those who
comparable groups of their fellow coun-
do not choose to go there. Numerous
trymen who had not been there. Quite
studies have shown that predisposition to
obviously, a cross-section of Scandina-
belief is the most important determinant
vians do not visit the United States. Those
of belief itself. An attempt was made to
who go tend to be in the upper socio-
control for this factor: A large number
economic brackets. Through the coopera-
of respondents were exchangees on the
tion of various organizations that had
American Field Service International
sent students, exchangees, businessmen,
Scholarships Program (hereafter, referred
tourists, etc., to America, we were able
to as A.F.S.). These students live with
to obtain mailing lists of persons who had
an American family and spend their
visited or lived in America. (The majority
senior year in high school. We compared
had lived there for at least a year.)
A.F.S. students with two control groups.
Having obtained samples of Swedes and
The first control group consisted of
Norwegians who had been in America,
persons who applied for A.F.S. but were
185
not selected. Approximately eight times
image of America would have been more
as many students apply for A.F.S. as are
favorable.
accepted, and so many qualified persons
are turned down (by Scandinavian selec-
tors). We tried to choose from this
III. FINDINGS
group
the most qualified applicants who were
A
number of generalizations can be made
not selected. Thus, this control group
after surveying the results on seventy-
wanted to go to America, but was not
seven questions. (Those who had not
able to. The second control group was
been to America were asked to answer
selected to resemble the other two groups
only fifty-five questions.)
as much as possible, except that members
The first is that on most - but not all -
of this group did not apply for A.F.S.
indicators, those who had been to the
The sample consisted of 763 Swedes
United States were more positive about
and 700 Norwegians who had been to
the country than the control groups who
the United States and control groups of
had not been there.6 Furthermore, Nor-
495 Swedes and 468 Norwegians who
wegians were more positive than Swedes.
had not been to America. The control
The statement that those who have
groups of Swedes and Norwegians do not
been to America are more positive than
include an additional 178 Norwegians
those who have not been there is sup-
and 110 Swedes who had applied for
ported by the response to two ’general
A.F.S. but were not selected. The latter
reaction’ questions about countries, i.e.
were used only for comparison with
the type of questions which subsume
A.F.S. returnees and those with similar
many other questions. We asked respon-
characteristics who had not applied for
dents to indicate their generalized feelings
A.F.S.5
about countries by checking scales of
A final note about the sample: It is
positive-negative affect (a ’sympatitermo-
weighted to the political left. That is,
meter’). The scale went from plus 25 to
approximately half of the respondents
minus 25 at five-point intervals. If a
were between the ages of seventeen and
respondent felt extremely positive about
twenty-five, and a disproportionate per
a country, he checked -~-25. If he felt
cent of those with far-left leanings and
extremely negative about a country, he
anti-American sentiments are to be found
checked -25. If he felt neutral, he check-
in this age group. To put it another way,
ed 0. If he were moderately positive he
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