Political Scientist’s Book Recognized by Social Science Organization | The Charger Blog - University of New Haven News

“Framing Immigrants,” a book by University of New Haven professor Chris Haynes that explored the roles that news coverage and language have on shaping immigration public opinion and policy, received the Distinguished Book Award from the Western Social Science Association, inform Renée Chmiel, M.A., Office of Marketing & Communications.
 

The research discussed in "Framing Immigrants" has helped to frame some of the work that Haynes has done with students.

Chris Haynes, assistant professor and coordinator of political science, has dedicated untold hours to studying immigration policy and how it is discussed by politicians and covered in the media. The years of work resulted in a book Haynes co-authored titled “Framing Immigrants: News Coverage, Public Opinion, and Policy” that one reviewer predicts will “inspire future generations of immigration researchers.” In recognition of the contributions the book has made to the ongoing discussion about immigration, it received the 2019 “Best Book Award” from the West Social Science Association. 
 
“I was very appreciative of the fact that our work, which took about seven or eight years to compile, was recognized in that way by fellow scholars,” said Haynes, who co-wrote the book with Jennifer Merolla and S. Karthick Ramakrishnan. “We’re humbled. It was validation for the work we put into it.”

Framing Immigrants:
News Coverage, Public Opinion, and Policy

When they set out to write the book, Haynes and his colleagues were specifically interested in examining the language around immigration and policy. He read “a few thousand” news articles and transcripts, and the group conducted several survey experiments to collect data on the impact of how the media and politicians refer to immigrants and immigration policy...

The researchers’ conclusions have helped to frame some of the work that Haynes and his students are doing, and he believes that their findings extend beyond immigration. He and his students recently conducted a poll in West Haven that addressed the community’s trust in government and political efficacy. They presented their results to Mayor Nancy Rossi. He impressed upon his students the importance of using carefully worded questions and response choices in order to get the most accurate results.
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Source: University of New Haven News