Breaking the Exclusion Cycle: How to Promote Cooperation between Majority and Minority Ethnic Groups
Oxford University Press, 2020
Book description
"Bracic offers an edifying account of the individual behaviors and biases that sustain cycles of social exclusion, with a focus on the important case of the Roma in Europe. She bridges insights from behavioral economics and social psychology to offer a comprehensive theory of exclusion, and relies on a rich array of mixed methods to test it, even introducing new ways of measuring discrimination in sensitive contexts. The result is a must-read for anyone seeking to better understand the micro foundations of social exclusion, and how the vicious cycle could be broken."
Claire L. Adida, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
"Breaking the Exclusion Cycle is an exceptionally well-written study of anti-Roma discrimination in Central Europe. Blending ethnographic work, original surveys, and behavioral games, the book offers a provocative theory of how prevailing anti-minority culture precipitates 'survival strategies' by the minority group that in turn reaffirm the negative attributions and assessments of the dominant group. The book also documents a potential way out: the 'exclusion cycle' can be broken when negative stereotypes are punctured by cooperative social interaction between groups that in turn lessens exclusion. The book should be required reading for anyone who seeks to understand discrimination and strategies for addressing it"
Donald P. Green, J.W. Burgess Professor of Political Science, Columbia University
"The Romani populations in Europe have suffered from social exclusion more persistently than any other minority, with shocking and often unpunished assaults on their members that continue to this day. Ana Bracic's brave and illuminating study on the Roma in Slovenia reveals an 'exclusion cycle' in which discrimination by the majority and misapprehended 'survival strategies' by the minority sustain unremitting prejudice. Her compelling argument is developed with ethnography, revealing experiments, and a comparison across towns showing how certain types of contact can ameliorate this unfortunate blot on Europe's human rights record."
David D. Laitin, Professor of Political Science, Stanford University
"Bracic's new book is an innovative and necessary look at how individuals perpetuate the exclusion of others and what can be done to break the problematic cycle. Bracic's brilliance shows in both the careful theorizing and in the novel experimental design. Not only is this a must-read for human rights and NGO scholars, this is a critical piece of work for all interested in stopping discrimination and xenophobia."
Amanda Murdie, Thomas P. and M. Jean Lauth Public Affairs Professor of International Affairs, University of Georgia
Claire L. Adida, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
"Breaking the Exclusion Cycle is an exceptionally well-written study of anti-Roma discrimination in Central Europe. Blending ethnographic work, original surveys, and behavioral games, the book offers a provocative theory of how prevailing anti-minority culture precipitates 'survival strategies' by the minority group that in turn reaffirm the negative attributions and assessments of the dominant group. The book also documents a potential way out: the 'exclusion cycle' can be broken when negative stereotypes are punctured by cooperative social interaction between groups that in turn lessens exclusion. The book should be required reading for anyone who seeks to understand discrimination and strategies for addressing it"
Donald P. Green, J.W. Burgess Professor of Political Science, Columbia University
"The Romani populations in Europe have suffered from social exclusion more persistently than any other minority, with shocking and often unpunished assaults on their members that continue to this day. Ana Bracic's brave and illuminating study on the Roma in Slovenia reveals an 'exclusion cycle' in which discrimination by the majority and misapprehended 'survival strategies' by the minority sustain unremitting prejudice. Her compelling argument is developed with ethnography, revealing experiments, and a comparison across towns showing how certain types of contact can ameliorate this unfortunate blot on Europe's human rights record."
David D. Laitin, Professor of Political Science, Stanford University
"Bracic's new book is an innovative and necessary look at how individuals perpetuate the exclusion of others and what can be done to break the problematic cycle. Bracic's brilliance shows in both the careful theorizing and in the novel experimental design. Not only is this a must-read for human rights and NGO scholars, this is a critical piece of work for all interested in stopping discrimination and xenophobia."
Amanda Murdie, Thomas P. and M. Jean Lauth Public Affairs Professor of International Affairs, University of Georgia
Prize for Best Book published in 2020, Experimental Research section (APSA)
Committee: Samara Klar, Evan Lieberman (Chair), and Gareth Nellis
The committee reviewed several excellent books, but one stood out as clearly deserving of the prize for this year’s best book incorporating experimental research. Dr. Ana Bracic’s Breaking the Exclusion Cycle, sets out to study the dynamics of social exclusion. She offers a plausible theory of exclusion that highlights the attitudes and behaviors of not only those who engage in exclusionary practices, but of those who are excluded and who may react to various prompts and cues in anticipation of harsh treatment, fueling a cyclical dynamic.
To empirically test her broadly applicable theory, Dr. Bracic focuses specifically on Europe’s largest minority, the Roma, and their experiences of discrimination in Slovenia. She builds on careful historical and ethnographic insights as well as individual-level observational data to provide preliminary evidence for her theoretical claims. At the heart of the book are several carefully-executed “lab in the field” experiments, which were implemented in two different Slovenian towns. By playing experimental games with Roma and non-Roma, Dr. Bracic is able to shed light on the determinants of discriminatory behavior and coping strategies, sidestepping the many confounds affecting the observational analyses. The games themselves are innovative---for example, one involved the development of a simple video game to facilitate the participation of non-literate Roma citizens---and are crafted in ways that prioritize the safety and comfort of experimental subjects.
While highlighting the powerful and unfortunate ways in which exclusionary practices are self-reinforcing, Dr. Bracic also offers suggestive evidence on a promising path forward. Inter-group contact promoted by civil society organizations may help reduce exclusion and increase cooperation across ethnic-group lines.
Although most experimental political science research tends to be presented in scholarly journals, Breaking the Exclusion Cycle takes great advantage of the book format to offer readers both local context, and the opportunity to link multiple experimental research designs and findings such that the whole is even greater than the sum of the many strong parts.
The committee was impressed by the transparency of her research designs and several exemplary features of the work, which accorded with best practices. The book was honest and careful in the reporting of results, including by keeping the reader aware of variation in the credibility of different kinds of evidence. This book offers not only important lessons for scholars across fields who are interested in intergroup cooperation and exclusion, but it also provides a terrific manual on how one can use experimental methodology to answer important research questions.
In short, the committee applauds the substantive rigor, ambitious research, and the linking of real-world problems to theory and empirics displayed in this fine book, and we are pleased to award the prize to the author.
Committee: Samara Klar, Evan Lieberman (Chair), and Gareth Nellis
The committee reviewed several excellent books, but one stood out as clearly deserving of the prize for this year’s best book incorporating experimental research. Dr. Ana Bracic’s Breaking the Exclusion Cycle, sets out to study the dynamics of social exclusion. She offers a plausible theory of exclusion that highlights the attitudes and behaviors of not only those who engage in exclusionary practices, but of those who are excluded and who may react to various prompts and cues in anticipation of harsh treatment, fueling a cyclical dynamic.
To empirically test her broadly applicable theory, Dr. Bracic focuses specifically on Europe’s largest minority, the Roma, and their experiences of discrimination in Slovenia. She builds on careful historical and ethnographic insights as well as individual-level observational data to provide preliminary evidence for her theoretical claims. At the heart of the book are several carefully-executed “lab in the field” experiments, which were implemented in two different Slovenian towns. By playing experimental games with Roma and non-Roma, Dr. Bracic is able to shed light on the determinants of discriminatory behavior and coping strategies, sidestepping the many confounds affecting the observational analyses. The games themselves are innovative---for example, one involved the development of a simple video game to facilitate the participation of non-literate Roma citizens---and are crafted in ways that prioritize the safety and comfort of experimental subjects.
While highlighting the powerful and unfortunate ways in which exclusionary practices are self-reinforcing, Dr. Bracic also offers suggestive evidence on a promising path forward. Inter-group contact promoted by civil society organizations may help reduce exclusion and increase cooperation across ethnic-group lines.
Although most experimental political science research tends to be presented in scholarly journals, Breaking the Exclusion Cycle takes great advantage of the book format to offer readers both local context, and the opportunity to link multiple experimental research designs and findings such that the whole is even greater than the sum of the many strong parts.
The committee was impressed by the transparency of her research designs and several exemplary features of the work, which accorded with best practices. The book was honest and careful in the reporting of results, including by keeping the reader aware of variation in the credibility of different kinds of evidence. This book offers not only important lessons for scholars across fields who are interested in intergroup cooperation and exclusion, but it also provides a terrific manual on how one can use experimental methodology to answer important research questions.
In short, the committee applauds the substantive rigor, ambitious research, and the linking of real-world problems to theory and empirics displayed in this fine book, and we are pleased to award the prize to the author.
Honorable Mention, Harriman Rothschild Book Prize, Association for the Study of Nationalities
Finalist, 2022 European Studies Book Award, Council for European Studies