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    The Role of Knowledge of Racist History and Identity in Perception of Racism

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    Nelson_ku_0099D_11265_DATA_1.pdf (824.1Kb)
    Issue Date
    2010-12-09
    Author
    Nelson, Jessica Christy
    Publisher
    University of Kansas
    Format
    61 pages
    Type
    Dissertation
    Degree Level
    Ph.D.
    Discipline
    Psychology
    Rights
    This item is protected by copyright and unless otherwise specified the copyright of this thesis/dissertation is held by the author.
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    Abstract
    European Americans tend to perceive less racism in America, and see ongoing racism as a less likely source of existing racial disparities, than do African Americans. Most research that investigates group differences in perception of racism has focused primarily on motivational explanations for observed differences: specifically, that African Americans or European Americans experience ego-defensive motivations to perceive or deny racism, respectively (Adams et al, 2006) Without denying identity-relevant motivations as a source of differences in perception of racism, this study considers the additional hypothesis that differences in perception of racism can also reflect a difference in knowledge of racism in U.S. History. In the present study, African American and European American participants (N=309) indicated their knowledge of American history (positive and racist), perception of racism (isolated and systemic), and identity (ethnic and national collective self esteem). I used a signal detection measurement paradigm that included both consensually "true" events and fabricated (but plausible) events to distinguish accuracy from racism-expectant or other schema-driven responding. This study was successful at illustrating that even with a new, more stringent measure, racial differences in perception of racism can be accounted for by racial differences in knowledge of racist history. Results also support my secondary hypotheses that racial differences in perception of racism are particularly strong for perception of racism in systemic manifestations compared to isolated, individual events and that ethnic identity moderates the relationship between race and perception of systemic racism.
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/1808/7741
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    • Dissertations [4466]
    • Psychology Dissertations and Theses [459]

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    Contact KU ScholarWorks
    785-864-8983
    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
    785-864-8983

    KU Libraries
    1425 Jayhawk Blvd
    Lawrence, KS 66045
    Image Credits
     

     

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