Framing Effects on Public Support for Undocumented Immigrant Regularization

Migration has become a highly contentious issue across many European countries, where initiatives to regularize the status of undocumented migrants face substantial political opposition. While public attitudes toward immigration have been extensively studied, comparatively little attention has been paid to public opinion on large-scale regularization programs (i.e., the granting of legal status) and the role of framing in shaping support for such policies. To address this gap, we conducted an experimental study to examine how different framing strategies influence public support for regularization policies in Belgium. Our results show that emotionally engaging messages and narrative presentations of factual information increase support for the regularization of undocumented migrants, especially those who are employed. From a public policy perspective, these findings suggest that framing can help policymakers build public support for regularization programs.