Parental Racial Identity, Reflected Appraisal and Segmented Assimilation: Insights from a Longitudinal and Multigenerational Study

• In Event: 41061 - Section on Latina/o Sociology Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 2: Latinx Racial and Ethnic Identity: Self-Perception, Census, and Fluidity

Abstract

Traditional assimilation theories frequently neglect the complexities of race/ethnicity and its impact on immigrant integration. Concentrating on the unique experiences of the Latinx population, this paper expands on the segmented assimilation theory by incorporating insights from the racial and skin-tone reflected appraisal theory. Employing the Kaplan Longitudinal and Multigenerational Study (KLAMS) dataset (n=7,691), I examine the relationship between parental meta-perception of their skin color- i.e., their perception of other people’s attitude toward their skin color- and assimilation patterns among their children. The results of multinomial logit models suggest that parental skin tone appraisal is associated with both acquaintance with the American dominant culture and maintaining ethnic identity. In other words, parents who think others put them down because of their skin color are 1) more aware of the subtle signals of racialized bias and 2) more likely to maintain their ethnic identity and to keep connections with their ingroup community on the other hand. If the premises of the segmented assimilation hold, their children would experience upward mobility combined with persistent biculturalism. The different levels of discrimination experienced based on skin tone, however, are expected to moderate the effect.

Author

• Nasim Vaseiezadeh, Texas A & M University-System Office