We're All in this Together: Cross-Racial Linked Fate and Political Engagement

• In Event: The Psychology of Radicalized Political Engagement

Abstract

Linked fate has long been understood to be a protective factor for political participation among minority populations, with varying degrees of impact (for a review, see, McClain et al 2009). Since Dawson (1995), linked fate has been theorized to accrue to in-group populations almost exclusively. Recent work by Moreau, Nuño, and Sanchez (2019), finds that the participation rates of heterosexual Latinos are strongly increased by their feelings of linked fate with LGBTQ populations. I build on this work by asking, whether cross-racial linked fate increases participation for other out-group populations, as well. Using survey data from Latino decisions, I analyze whether Latino, black, and white respondents have a sense of cross-racial linked fate, and if it impacts their level of political engagement. This study is novel in that, only a handful of studies conceptualize cross-racial linked fate, and none are able to investigate across more than two groups. The conceptualization and findings associated with cross-racial linked fate have important, far reaching implications for the use of linked-fate within in-group populations, and for the interpretation of what it means for an individual or population to have feelings of linked fate, in general.

Author

• Lisa May Sanchez, University of Arizona