When Societal Norms and Social Identity Collide

Abstract

Racial minorities face a unique “race talk” dilemma in contemporary American society: their racial background is often integral to their identity and how others perceive them, yet talk of race is taboo. This dilemma highlights the conflict between two fundamental social processes: social identity development and social norm adherence. To examine how, and with what costs, this dilemma is resolved, 9–12-year-old Latino, Asian, Black, and White children (n=108) completed a photo identification task in which acknowledging racial difference is beneficial to performance. Results indicate minority children are just as likely to avoid race as White children, and such avoidance exacted a cost to performance and nonverbal comfort. Results suggest that teachers are particularly important social referents for instilling norms regarding race. Norms that equate colorblindness with socially appropriate behavior appear more broadly influential than previously thought, stifling talk of race even among those for whom it may be most meaningful.

The Nature and Consequences of Essentialist Beliefs About Race in Early Childhood

“…Thus, it is possible that relations between parent and child essentialist beliefs for race emerge at older ages than we studied here. Consistent with the possibility that older children are sensitive to their parents' beliefs about race, children ages 9-12 are less likely even to mention race when they perceive their parents or teachers to be generally uncomfortable talking openly about race (Pauker, Apfelbaum, & Spitzer, 2015). Language that parents use to talk about or refer to race provides one possible mechanism by which parents could pass on their beliefs to children (see, e.g., Gelman, Ware, & Kleinberg, 2010;Gelman et al, 2004;Rhodes et al, 2012;Segall et al, 2015).…”

Intervening in cultural development: The case of ethnic–racial identity

“…Unfortunately, societal norms are such that talking about race is taboo (Pauker, Apfelbaum, & Spitzer, 2015). Students demonstrate their understanding of this societal norm via their own reluctance to talk about race (Pauker et al, 2015). Similar reluctance has been documented among teachers (Kaplan, 2011; Pollock, 2004).…”

“…Moreover, an especially important audience in the university setting for the Identity Project intervention will be students who are training for careers in education. As previously noted, there is some reluctance among teachers to discuss issues of race (Kaplan, 2011; Pollock, 2004), yet teachers play an important role in setting the tone for how students will handle issues of race and ethnicity in school settings (Pauker et al, 2015). As a result, intervening with educators-in-training in a manner that enables them to have a more informed understanding of their own ethnic–racial identity could have significant ripple effects by impacting how they handle issues of race and ethnicity in their classrooms and their preparedness for delivering curricula that is designed to promote ethnic–racial identity development among their students.…”

Bias awareness predicts color conscious racial socialization methods among White parents

“…) and racial disparities (Kovera, 2019). Although willingness to recognize (their own and systemic) bias has been shown to be one of the strongest predictors of increased intergroup empathy and reduced prejudice (Monteith & Mark, 2009;Monteith, Mark, & Ashburn-Nardo, 2010;Ozier, Taylor, & Murphy, 2019;Nelson, Adams, & Salter, 2013), most White individuals are uncomfortable even discussing race and racism (Pauker, Apfelbaum, & Spitzer, 2015) or using racial labels (Karmali, Kawakami, Vaccarino, Williams, Phills, & Friesen, 2019), and tend to avoid it (Apfelbaum, Sommers, & Norton, 2008).…”