Poster #151 - Disrupting Perceptions of Colorblindness as the Norm: Children’s Talk About Race

• In Event: Poster Session 09

Abstract

By 10 years, children in the U.S. tend to avoid even minimal mention of race (Apfelbaum et al., 2008). However, engaging in conversations about race has been shown to lower young children’s racial biases (Vittrup & Holden, 2011). Further, adults are more likely to intervene when observing racial biases if children mention race. Talking about race is thus an important skill for fostering antiracism. Do children identify contexts in which race should be raised?

To address this question, we designed a novel task to measure if children can identify contexts that merit discussion of race. In a preliminary study, 25 6- to 12-year-old children read 4 pairs of scenarios (8 total). Each pair depicted same-race targets attempting to complete a similar task: One scenario was manipulated so that the target’s race impacted their ability to complete the task (race-relevant) and the other scenario was manipulated so that the target’s race was irrelevant to their ability to complete the task (control). For example, one race-relevant scenario describes a target attempting to cover up a scar with makeup that does not match their skin tone, whereas the corresponding control scenario describes a target attempting to cover up a stain with stickers that do not look like them. Participants rated the outcome of each event on a scale from 1 to 5 (1 = very bad to 5 = very good) and provided an explanation for their rating. Children’s use of racial terminology (e.g., Black) in their explanations was coded.

Preliminary findings revealed significantly more race talk on race-relevant (M = 0.84, SD = 0.53) scenarios compared to control scenarios (M = 0.13, SD = 0.23), t(24) = 7.15, p < .001. Further, roughly 64% of children explicitly mentioned race in race-relevant scenarios, suggesting that young children identify and take advantage of opportunities to discuss race. Because perceptions of colorblindness could impede the development of this skill (Pauker et al., 2015), a second study was designed to test whether dispelling the myth that not talking about race (i.e., colorblindness) is the norm in the U.S. can further prepare children for racial discourse.

In a second study, 204 8- to 12-year-old children are randomly assigned to an Intervention or Control condition. A survey assesses their estimates of the percentage of people in the U.S. that endorse a colorblind ideology. Children in the Intervention condition then learn facts about the prevalence of color consciousness in the U.S. For example, they will learn about the high frequency of conversations about race among families of color. It is predicted that children in the Intervention condition will be better at identifying contexts to mention race on the novel task.

The data should have implications for strategies to facilitate conversations about race among children. Initial findings reveal that children are not unwilling or unable to talk about race (i.e., “colorblind”), suggesting that they have the skills necessary to engage in antiracism. These skills may be sharpened by enlightening children about antiracist practices that are already occurring in their society.

Authors

• Grace Reid, Washington University in St. Louis
  Presenting Author

• Lori Markson, Washington University in St. Louis