Racial Boundaries of Inequality: How Racial Hierarchies and Identity Shape Whites’ Explanations for Racial Inequality

• In Event: 183 - Regular Session. Racial and Ethnic Inequality 2

Abstract

Empirical studies of the causes of racial inequalities in the United States direct our attention to structural forces, yet many white Americans continue to provide individual-focused explanations. Utilizing data from the Portraits of American Life Study and the General Social Survey, we provide insight into the American racialized social structure through a unique study that compares whites’ explanations for black and Asian disadvantage. Results suggest that there is a continued – but adapted – adherence to individual explanations among whites that is consistent with the colorblind understanding of contemporary American racism. Critically, reliance on individual explanations differs depending on whether whites are asked to explain the disadvantage of blacks or Asians, suggesting that whites’ perceptions are impacted by the disadvantaged group’s social position. Additionally, importance given to one’s white racial identity relates to the use of individual explanations, further suggesting the role of social distance and outgroup perceptions in the persistence of individual-focused explanations. This work emphasizes an important point when considering future policy development: Individuals’ perceptions of inequality are often not empirically based, and they continue to be strongly influenced by social position and interaction.

Authors

• Kiara Douds, New York University

• Heather Avery O'Connell, Rice University