LAUSR

ABSTRACT Several field experimental studies have shown that people with a migration background and a non-heterosexual orientation are discriminated against in the labour market. However, most studies do not consider that modern societies are differentiated into various social subfields where different selection criteria can apply. In the field of art, for example, one could observe a broad and intense discourse on diversity that could have shaped human resource decision-makers’ preferences which may subsequently lead to the fact that minorities are less disadvantaged, or even positively discriminated against. To test this assumption, we carried out a field experiment and sent out fictitious applications for an internship in dramaturgy at German speaking theatres. We only modified the information on the migration background and the gender identity of the applicants. The results show that people with a migration background and a transgender identity are not discriminated against in the field of theatre. People with a migration background even have a slight advantage. The results support the idea that we should differentiate between different social subfields of society and the labour market in future studies on discrimination.