The Impact of Perceptions on Interpersonal Interactions in an African American/Asian American Housing Project

Abstract

An increasing number of communities in the United States are ethnically diverse. In recent decades, large numbers of immigrants, for example, Mexicans, Central Americans, Latin Americans, and Asian Americans, have been incorporated into predominantly African American urban neighborhoods and communities. An understanding of the nature of interactions in these ethnically, culturally, and sometimes linguistically diverse environments is necessary to enable community members and leaders to deal with changing interactional patterns in their neighborhoods. By recognizing that interpersonal interactions are influenced by ethnicity and by comprehending the impact of ethnicity on social interaction, it may be possible for these dynamic neighborhoods to maintain a sense of community life that includes all ethnic groups. However, information on the effect of immigration on African American lifeway is lacking.A body of literature exists on Chinese American communities in America. These studies include examination of the types of indi-AUTHORS' NOTE : We gratefully acknowledge the many residents of the housing project who participated in this project. Thanks are also extended to various professionals working in the area and a special thanks to employees of the Housing Authority and the Community Center.

Integrating diversity and fostering interdependence: Ecological lessons learned about refugee participation in multiethnic communities

“…In this case, the context in which participation occurred was clearly related to Hmong participation in multiethnic communities. Since interaction and participation in multiethnic communities are low and most often occur within ethnic groups, not between groups~Guthrie & Hutchinson, 1995;Jong, 1989;Humphreys & Woods, 1993!, attention to the climate in ethnically mixed communities and how it influences participation is essential. Most researchers agree that participation is facilitated or inhibited by both individual and contextual characteristics and the complex ways in which they interact~e.g., Wandersman, 1984;Wandersman & Giamartino, 1980!. The findings from this study suggest that the extent to which Hmong felt included and accepted in their communities was related to their participation.…”

“…Most researchers agree that participation is facilitated or inhibited by both individual and contextual characteristics and the complex ways in which they interact~e.g., Wandersman, 1984;Wandersman & Giamartino, 1980!. The findings from this study suggest that the extent to which Hmong felt included and accepted in their communities was related to their participation. First, similar to previous researchers~e.g., Guthrie & Hutchinson, 1995;Hein, 1995!, our data suggested that Hmong residents were less likely to participate due to negative intergroup relations. Attention to intergroup dynamics is critical for refugees who are often a minority in their resettlement communities.…”

“…; that is, daily economic concerns about survival in a new country, loss of community and social support, and loss of meaningful social roles, rather than solely to past traumas~e.g., Gorst-Unsworth & Goldenberg, 1998;Pernice & Brook, 1996!. In addition, while refugees must adapt to ways of life that are very different from their previous experiences, they must also struggle to become integrated into communities that are often less than welcoming~e.g., Benson, 1990;Goode, 1990!. Although the United States has become increasingly diverse~Allen & Turner, 1990;Edmondson, 1996!, different ethnic and cultural groups often remain isolated from each other and negative attitudes and misperceptions among groups persist~e.g., Guthrie & Hutchinson, 1995;Merry, 1980;1981!. In some areas, conflict, violence, and hate crimes have increased, often with refugees as the targets~Hein, 1995; U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, 1988!. Therefore, given the challenges faced by refugees and the potentially negative dynamics within multiethnic communities, there is a strong impetus to understand the processes through which refugees' well-being and their integration into their resettlement communities can be promoted.…”

Development and initial validation of the Internalization of Asian American Stereotypes Scale.

“…The Model Minority Stereotype was predominantly a political weapon used during the 1960s (Success Story of One Minority Group, 1966) to convey that Asian Americans overcame discrimination with determination and hard work and that African Americans' complaints of inequality were a result of their own laziness. This placed the blame of racial inequality on the minority groups themselves (Osajima, 1988), fueling resentment between Asian Americans and other racial minority groups (Guthrie & Hutchinson, 1995;Kim, 2(X)4) and causing White Americans to view Asian Americans as a threat (Toupin & Son, 1991). The Model Minority Stereotype is also associated with the misconceptions that Asian American students do not need academic or personal help or that they are mentally healthier compared to other groups (Sue & Sue, 2008), Contrary to these popular myths, the Frances C. Shen, Psychology Department, University of Illinois Springfield; Yu-Wei Wang and Jane L. Swanson, Department of Psychology, Southem Illinois University Carbondale.…”

Activating Racial Stereotypes onSurvivor: Cook Islands

“…However, earlier studies have shown that in spite of this strong sense of loyalty to family, a prevalent stereotype is that Asian Americans are viewed as being unsociable with members of the dominant group (Guthrie & Hutchinson, 1995;Hughes & Baldwin, 2002;Lin et al, 2005). Given these claims about perception of sociability with members of the in-group and the dominant group, the following hypothesis will be investigated.…”