Samenvatting

Like many other European countries the Netherlands experienced a major influx of refugees in the fall of 2015. A majority of the population supported providing shelter to the refugees, but not without worries and anxieties about the effects of that influx, which sometimes lead to limited, local forms of social unrest. A study was started to shed more light on the worries and fears that existed in the population, on the assumptions these were based upon and on whether these worries and fears could lead to social unrest on a larger scale. The study was explorative, based on an eclectic, multi methods approach. The findings show that worries and anxieties were not limited to those who were opposed to the influx of migrants, but existed among supporters as well. The worries and anxieties were of a diverse nature, on topics like security, livability, economics, perceived (in)justice and socio-cultural aspects of life. A clear, credible answer or policy from the government was missed. When compared to the findings of earlier studies on the influx of migrants, some worries and anxieties seemed closely connected to what might be expected, in other cases a distinct ‘disconnect’ was found. These could be understood however when distorting mechanisms were taken into consideration that have been described in studies of more general security perceptions. As the worries and anxieties on the influx of refugees resonated other existing worries, anxieties and fears in society, a ‘cocktail of concerns’ was created that, given the right trigger, could have led to social unrest on a larger scale.