Supplemental Material for Testing Invariance of Ethnic-Racial Discrimination and Identity Measures for Adolescents Across Ethnic-Racial Groups and Contexts

2020 ◽  
pp. 009579842098366
Author(s):  
Yara Mekawi ◽  
Natalie N. Watson-Singleton

Though considerable empirical work has documented the ways in which African Americans are dehumanized by other racial groups, there is no research examining how perceiving dehumanization (i.e., metadehumanization) is associated with the mental health of African Americans. In this study, we examined the indirect effect of racial discrimination on depressive symptoms through metadehumanization and explored whether this indirect effect was contingent on racial identity (i.e., centrality, private regard). African American students completed measures in a university lab located in the Midwestern region of the United States ( N = 326; Mage = 19.7, 72.4% women). We found that the degree to which racial discrimination was indirectly associated with depressive symptoms through metadehumanization was contingent on racial identity dimensions. Specifically, the indirect effect of racial discrimination on depressive symptoms through metadehumanization was only significant for individuals who were relatively higher on centrality and private regard. This research suggests that the role of metadehumanization is stronger among African Americans who strongly identify with and have positive views of their racial group. We discuss these results in the context of social cognitive theories.


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-335
Author(s):  
Fabio Bacchini ◽  
Ludovica Lorusso

Purpose This study aims to explore whether face recognition technology – as it is intensely used by state and local police departments and law enforcement agencies – is racism free or, on the contrary, is affected by racial biases and/or racist prejudices, thus reinforcing overall racial discrimination. Design/methodology/approach The study investigates the causal pathways through which face recognition technology may reinforce the racial disproportion in enforcement; it also inquires whether it further discriminates black people by making them experience more racial discrimination and self-identify more decisively as black – two conditions that are shown to be harmful in various respects. Findings This study shows that face recognition technology, as it is produced, implemented and used in Western societies, reinforces existing racial disparities in stop, investigation, arrest and incarceration rates because of racist prejudices and even contributes to strengthen the unhealthy effects of racism on historically disadvantaged racial groups, like black people. Practical implications The findings hope to make law enforcement agencies and software companies aware that they must take adequate action against the racially discriminative effects of the use of face recognition technology. Social implications This study highlights that no implementation of an allegedly racism-free biometric technology is safe from the risk of racially discriminating, simply because each implementation leans against our society, which is affected by racism in many persisting ways. Originality/value While the ethical survey of biometric technologies is traditionally framed in the discourse of universal rights, this study explores an issue that has not been deeply scrutinized so far, that is, how face recognition technology differently affects distinct racial groups and how it contributes to racial discrimination.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 509-526 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael R. Sladek ◽  
Adriana J. Umaña-Taylor ◽  
Elana R. McDermott ◽  
Deborah Rivas-Drake ◽  
Stefanie Martinez-Fuentes

2009 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Wilson

AbstractThis paper attempts to show how racial prejudice and selective, usually inarticulate, racial discrimination influenced attempts to conduct an objective examination of charges of cruelty in the training and exhibition of performing animals in Britain in the early twentieth century. As the debate intensified, and following the appointment of a parliamentary Select Committee, one explanation often given by both sides for shortcomings in the treatment of performing animals was the alleged cruelty particularly or exclusively attributable to the “alien enemy,” “foreigners,” and distinct racial groups. The Committee faced the problem of assessing attributions of real cruelty as opposed to unproven charges that may have resulted from irrational, emotive, or strategic prejudice. This paper examines the context in which such charges were made, and the degree to which they might have been introduced or resorted to in order to serve the prejudices or interests of each side in the controversy.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emil O. W. Kirkegaard

Self-reported discriminatory experiences differ slightly by US social racial groups, but why? Using the public-use Add Health dataset, the matter was investigated. It was found that when accounting for cognitive ability (IQ) that differs by social race group, there no longer seemed to be any detectable differences in self-reported discrimination, nor any differences related to skin tone. This seemed to be due to a slight correlation between self-reported discrimination and cognitive ability (r = -.14).Furthermore, the validity of social racial groups were examined for the prediction of self-reported income. It was found that other-perceived social race and skin tone did not predict income when IQ was included in the model, but self-perceived social race did. Results were overall congruent with meritocracy and incongruent with racial discrimination models.


2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 1319-1338
Author(s):  
Moshe Hirsch

Abstract Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary study of mental processes involved in the acquisition, classification, organization and interpretation of knowledge in the human environment as well as the decision taken on the appropriate action based upon it. The point of departure is that people do not directly sense information; cognitive processes mediate between sensory input from the environment and behaviour. These cognitive processes are influenced by neurological, psychological, socio-cultural and other factors. In recent years, there has been growing scholarly interest in the study of cognitive sociology, focusing on the interactions between culture and cognition. This stream in sociological literature draws upon and complements cognitive psychological literature. The prohibition on discrimination constitutes one of the fundamental rules in international human rights law, but studies reveal that racial discrimination is pervasive and persistent in many states. Non-compliance with this international legal rule is significantly related to cognitive processes through which people acquire and interpret incoming information about other people. Racial groups are socially constructed and deeply ingrained socio-cognitive biases feed and reproduce racially discriminatory behaviour. These biased mental processes, however, are not inevitable and may change over time. Effective struggle against racial discrimination requires that international legal mechanisms also address the socio-cognitive infrastructure that facilitates and sustains racial discrimination. Consequently, this study also discusses some international legal strategies aimed at mitigating cognitive biases and enhancing compliance with treaties prohibiting racial discrimination.


Crisis ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 172-178
Author(s):  
Brooke A. Ammerman ◽  
Martha K. Fahlgren ◽  
Kristen M. Sorgi ◽  
Michael S. McCloskey

Abstract. Background: Despite being a major public health concern, it is unclear how suicidal thoughts and behaviors differentially impact separate racial groups. Aims: The aim of the current study was to examine the occurrence of nonlethal suicide events, in addition to suicide attempt characteristics and factors contributing to suicide attempts. Method: A final sample of 7,094 undergraduates from a large northeastern university, identifying as members of three racial groups (White [67.30%], Black [17.30%], and Asian [15.40%]), completed online questionnaires. Results: White participants reported increased likelihood of endorsing lifetime suicidal ideation and plan, whereas Black participants reported decreased likelihood of these events; no differences were found in rates of lifetime suicide attempts. Black participants' suicidal behavior may involve greater ambivalence of intent. A higher proportion of Asian participants endorsed interpersonal factors as contributing to their suicide attempts, whereas a greater percentage of White participants reported internal contributing factors. Limitations: Findings are limited by the sample size and assessment of lifetime suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Conclusion: The findings present a more nuanced look at attitudes and actions related to suicidal thoughts and behaviors that may inform future research and risk assessment procedures.


2014 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leigh Wilton ◽  
Diana T. Sanchez ◽  
Lisa Giamo

Biracial individuals threaten the distinctiveness of racial groups because they have mixed-race ancestry, but recent findings suggest that exposure to biracial-labeled, racially ambiguous faces may positively influence intergroup perception by reducing essentialist thinking among Whites ( Young, Sanchez, & Wilton, 2013 ). However, biracial exposure may not lead to positive intergroup perceptions for Whites who are highly racially identified and thus motivated to preserve the social distance between racial groups. We exposed Whites to racially ambiguous Asian/White biracial faces and measured the perceived similarity between Asians and Whites. We found that exposure to racially ambiguous, biracial-labeled targets may improve perceptions of intergroup similarity, but only for Whites who are less racially identified. Results are discussed in terms of motivated intergroup perception.


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