So Close, So Far. The Cultural Distance of Foreigners in Italy

Abstract

The presence of foreigners in a host country is a contentious issue: opponents claim, among other things, that the cultural distance between them and natives is too large to permit integration. However, it is impossible to ascertain whether this is true in the absence of a clear, standardised system for measuring cultural distance (whether it be by nationality, length of stay, educational level, etc.). In this paper, we argue that a recently proposed method, called DBS or Distance Between Strata, fits this scope. We present the methodology under a new light, investigate several of its properties, and apply it to two Italian surveys of 2011–13. Results indicate, first, that no group is homogeneous: Italians, for instance, display a clear North to South gradient. Second, foreigners are not all equally culturally distant from Italian natives: the ranking of their cultural distances largely conforms to expectation. Finally, Italians with a foreign origin are, as expected, close to Italians tout court, which suggests that cultural convergence is taking place.