Experienced, Anticipated, and Vicarious Discrimination and their Attitudinal Consequences among Black and Hispanic Adolescents

• In Event: 1284 - Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 01. Discrimination and Its Rippling Effects

Abstract

The consequences for the victims of interpersonal racial discrimination are widespread, varied, and largely well-known to researchers. But does one need to experience discrimination first-hand to feel its consequences? The current study considers this recent question in the discrimination research by analyzing anticipated and vicarious connections to discrimination. The analysis provides the first results linking both direct and indirect exposure to discrimination with adolescents’ attitudes toward school (liking school, liking teachings, the importance of grades, and finishing homework) and their socio-economic futures (whether the world will be fair to them and whether they will be able to support themselves in the future). Data are from white, black, and Latino adolescents and their parents who were surveyed in the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods. Results indicate that while directly experienced discrimination tends to have the strongest and most direct negative impact on attitudes, anticipated discrimination and the discrimination anticipated by parents are also consequential. Overall the patterns highlight that the consequences of interpersonal racial discrimination do not stop with the intended victims. Instead, there are ripple effects that can negatively impact the worldviews of racial minority adolescents.

Author

• Daniel E. Herda, Merrimack College