Making and Breaking Stereotypes: East Asian International Students’ Experiences With Cross-Racial Interaction

• In Event: Poster Session 19
  In Poster Session: Equity, Stereotypes, and Acculturation

Abstract

In response to recent budget cuts, US universities are admitting larger numbers of international students. These students add a great deal of cultural and intellectual diversity to college campuses, but they also bring racial stereotypes that can affect cross-racial interaction as well as campus climate. Fourteen interviews with Chinese, Japanese, and Korean international students were conducted at UCLA, regarding these students’ racial stereotypes and how contact with diverse others challenged or reinforced these stereotypes over time. Results indicated that a majority of students had racial hierarchies and harbored prejudices toward African-Americans and Latinos prior to arriving at UCLA. Positive cross-racial interactions did change negative stereotypes, however a lack of opportunities to interact with diverse others led to stereotype ossification.

Author

• Zachary Stephen Ritter, University of California - Los Angeles