Antecedents and Consequences of Negative Relationships for Muslim Youth in Germany

In increasingly diverse Western European school environments, intergroup relationships among Muslim and non-Muslim students continue to be shaped by broader social dynamics. This dissertation revisits and expands existing research on interreligious friendships and negative peer interactions by examining how dislike ties, friendship segregation, and interreligious bullying influence the integration of Muslim and non-Muslim youth in Germany. Drawing on longitudinal social network data, the empirical contributions analyze: (1) how existing friendship and dislike ties shape future intergroup relationships, with an emphasis on prior interreligious connections; (2) the extent to which Islamic affiliation and gender contribute to intra- and interreligious dislike dynamics among students; and (3) the impact of interreligious bullying on the academic achievement of Muslim and non-Muslim students, with a focus on its long-term effects. By integrating theories of social identification, religious homophily, and educational inequality, this dissertation provides new insights into the antecedents and consequences of negative interreligious interactions, contributing to the broader discourse on youth socialization, integration, and cohesion in multicultural societies.