Citizenship helps immigrants integrate says study

A study based on past Swiss citizenship decisions concludes that naturalisation accelerates political integration. The researchers suggest that lowering the stringent citizenship requirements could accelerate integration process.  The study led by researchers from the University of Zurich surveyed 768 immigrants who were either narrowly accepted or rejected for Swiss citizenship through the controversial secret ballot system that was in place in some German-speaking municipalities between 1970 and 2003. Under this system, citizens in the same municipality could vote to accept or reject a citizenship application based on a voting leaflet containing information on the applicants.  The results reveal that immigrants who became Swiss citizens by a narrow margin over 15 years ago are better integrated than those who were narrowly rejected. The narrowly naturalised group had the same level of political knowledge and participation as those of Swiss born nationals. For ...