The Psychology of Race

1. The Psychology of Race

2. Is Race Relevant? • In the past people incorrectly identified five major races: white, yellow, red, brown, and black. • Scientists gave them the names: Caucasian, Oriental, Native Indian, Indo-Pakistani, and Negroid. • Today scientists have found no significant genetic difference to justify their division into races. • The American Anthropology Association identifies race as a learned cultural behaviour.

3. Early Explanations of Prejudice • More than a half century ago Gordon Allport and Theodore Adorno used questionnaires to measure the strengths of individual prejudice. • They were able to find a correlation between higher education and tolerance.

4. Early Explanations of Prejudice • Later Adorno identified characteristics of non-tolerant individuals with “Authoritarian personalities.” Here are the characteristics: • Quick to judge things as good/bad and right/wrong. • Low tolerance for ambiguity. • Ethnocentrism – People who strongly favour their culture over another. • Bigoted parents • Parents were cold and disciplinarian with them.

5. Linking Prejudice to Child Development • Francis Aboud developed a theory called the social-cognitive theory of prejudice. • Children become aware of ethnic groups at the age of 4 or 5. • Parents effect what children learn so does the broader society. • Along with these factors she thinks you need to understand child cognition. • When children are most aware of self-concerns at age 4, they become aware of other ethnicities. Their ideas usually include in group membership and out group stereotypes.

6. Linking Prejudice to Child Development • Children's ideas are incomplete and confused at this age. • At around age 7 their abilities change and they become more able to look outside themselves, usually at this point they can become less prejudiced if they are properly exposed. • At 10-12 children develop reasoning skills that help them see individuals and judge them that way rather than as a group. • At any stage a child who is bombarded with racist ideas will develop and hold prejudices. • Aboud has recognized both the role of parents and development rates of children positing that as a child grows their understanding of race can change.

7. Affirming Racial Identity • Everyone has a racial identity that we must strive to affirm for our personal well being and comfort with ourselves. • Even if race is not a genetic issue it is a cultural one. • One should negate negative stereotypes about their culture. • Learn how to act in specific situations in order to not become a passive victim.

8. Subordinate Cultures • John Ogbu first coined the term subordinate culture for minorities because he believes that minority cultures are often put at a disadvantage. • He studied the effects of forcing African American children into the white mainstream majority.

9. Subordinate Cultures • African Americans come from a culture where speaking and listening are more important than reading and writing. • Ebonics developed on plantations during the era of slavery. • Ebony and phonics “Ebonics” or black sounds. • It is part of some black people’s social identity. • Linguists have found that children who are taught with an Ebonics bridge to language learn to write using less Ebonics and learn to speak and write Standard English easier.

10. What Would You Do: Racism in America • Part 1 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cCQU0jt4cs • Part 2 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLXCCcqnY-I