Race, Gender, and Opinion Toward Black and Female Presidential Candidates

Using data from the 1974 and 1978 General Social Surveys, publicopinion toward blacks and women as presidential candidates wasexplored. We tested the hypotheses that white males would beleast likely to support presidential candidates from both groups,while black females would be the most likely to express thissupport. We found that although blacks in general were moresupportive of black candidacies than were whites, women werenot consistently more supportive of female candidates. Whileblack women were more likely than black males to support femalecandidates, among whites few gender differences were found.     

Black/White Differences in Job Shift Behavior: A Dynamic Analysis*

This study investigates one mechanism through which black/white differences in returns to resources occur through time—job shifts. The results show that whites change jobs more often than blacks, move upward more often than blacks, and compete for higher levels of rewards more often than blacks. Whites are more likely to move within firms and across firms than blacks. However, the results show that whites do not always receive greater returns to resources as determinants of job shifts. Whites do receive greater returns to education in interfirm shifts in prestige than blacks. However, blacks receive equal or greater returns to education and firm-specific resources in intrafirm shifts in prestige and wage than whites.     

Polarization and progress in the black community: Earnings and status gains for young black males in the era of affirmative action

We examined the occupational mobility and earnings attainment of young black and white male workers in the period 1974–1981 for evidence of class polarization among blacks in the era following the 1960s' antidiscrimination legislation. Our model links occupational status and earnings to the social resources of education and father's socioeconomic status, using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, 1968–1981. The results suggest that such resources operated more strongly for advantaged blacks than for whites. But for less advantaged blacks, race remained a significant barrier. As predicted by the polarization hypothesis, enforcement of affirmative action guidelines was beneficial, but only to more qualified blacks.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the annual meetings of the Society for the Study of Social Problems, August 1987.     

Race,Region, and Earnings: Blacks and Whites in the South

Abstract Using data from the 1980 Public-Use Micro Sample (PUMS) A-file, we examine the effect of region on black and white earnings within the Black Belt and the rest of the South. We find that Black Belt residence depresses earnings for both blacks and whites, more or less equally. There was no support for the hypothesis that there would be a greater penalty to being black in the Black Belt, compared to being black in the non-Black Belt South. It is the additive effects of race and region that lead to lower earnings for Black Belt blacks. We conclude that region is a useful theoretical concept which needs to be more adequately theorized and incorporated into sociological analyses.     

Caribbean immigrants: a black success story?

"This article examines the 1980 earnings and earnings attainment process of Afro-Caribbean immigrants [to the United States] relative to Afro-Americans, native-born whites and foreign-born whites. Controlling for gender, the comparisons consider Caribbean Islanders as a whole and disaggregated by nation of origin. The results indicate that, in 1980 at least, fact did not justify the opinion that any West Indian subgroup had higher gross or net earnings than native-born blacks. Rather, a few non-English speaking subgroups fared worse. In addition, regardless of national background, Caribbean-born men experienced vast earnings disparities relative to white men. This was not the case for West Indian women, whose net earnings were, at minimum, equivalent to those of white women. Further analysis suggests that, for most Caribbean groups, West Indian background adds little to an understanding of the earnings attainment process that cannot be obtained from other measurable characteristics."     

Evaluations of Women and Men Among Black and White College Students1

Rainwater's assertion that blacks have low self-evaluations because they receive more negative evaluations from other blacks than whites receive from other whites is challenged here by reference to Heiss and Owens evidence that negative self evaluation among blacks is limited to work-related traits. Substantial support was found for our major hypotheses that, compared to whites, (1) blacks would report more negative evaluation of “most men” but not of “most women” (since the provider role is traditionally ascribed primarily to men), and (2) the more negative evaluation of “most men” by blacks would be limited to work-related traits.     

LEARNING BUT NOT EARNING? THE IMPACT OF JOB CORPS TRAINING ON HISPANIC YOUTH

Why did Hispanics who participated in Job Corps (JC) training not experience earnings gains like whites and blacks, despite achieving similar human capital gains? We find that the differential labor market outcomes of each group are related to the different levels of local labor market unemployment rates (LUR) they face. Furthermore, the groups exhibit differential impacts on their earnings from the LUR they face, which also vary by randomization status. We find that (a) blacks and Hispanics face higher LUR that mitigate their potential gains from JC and (b) JC “shields” whites from adverse LUR, but not blacks and Hispanics. (JEL J24, J13, J15)     

Adolescents' Willingness to Vote for a Woman for President:

During the past two decades there has been an increase in the number of women who campaign for and attain political office. This clearly has the potential to influence attitudes toward women in politics. In particular, it has the potential to influence the attitudes of adolescents, who, according to socialization theory, are especially affected by role models. In this study we used a quasiexperimental design to examine adolescents' attitudes toward female political candidates. We found that the junior and senior high school students we surveyed did not, as a group, use candidate sex as a voting cue. However, females were more willing than males and blacks were more willing than whites to vote for the female candidate.     

Race Differences in Selective Credulity and Self Esteem*

Despite a large number of empirical studies showing blacks to have higher levels of self esteem than whites, no adequate explanation for this difference has been developed. This paper proposes a theory dealing with differences in self-process and, in a related manner, self-esteem between blacks and whites, utilizing the concept of selective credulity (i.e., having relatively more faith in others' opinions of us who are relatively positive). Specifically, it is hypothesized that because blacks (as compared to whites) are more likely to focus on interpersonal relations and less likely to focus on internalized standards of comparison for purposes of self-enhancement, (a) blacks maximize the rewards of their interpersonal relations more so than whites (reflected by differences in selective credulity), and (b) levels of self-esteem between blacks and whites are no different when controlling the differential impact of selective credulity on self-esteem. Utilizing data from 1,560 high school students, evidence is presented which provides some initial support for the proposed theory.     

Gender,Race, Social Class,and Self-Evaluations among College Students*

The purpose of this study was to modify Heiss and Owens's (1972) formulation on trait differences in the self-evaluations of blacks and whites and integrate it with the literature on sex role socialization, thereby elaborating the instrumental-expressive dichotomy they proposed so as to generate and test hypotheses regarding race, gender, and SES differences in self-evaluations. University students rated themselves on a fifteen-item semantic differential scale. A principal component factor analysis with varimax rotations yielded five factors, three of the factors were seen as private-domain, one as public-domain, and one as mixed. A series of 2X2X2 ANOVAS indicated that (1) on the public-domain factor, black females rated themselves more positively than did the white females, while black males and white males did not differ; (2) blacks rated themselves more positively than did whites on two private-domain factors; (3) white females rated themselves more positively than did males on the private-domain factor indicative of a feminine stereotype; and (4) SES differences appeared on the private-domain factors in particular.     

OPTIMAL STRATEGIES FOR WORKERS ON TEMPORARY LAYOFF

In this paper we analyze the worker's behavior when faced with job offers which include possible temporary layoff spells of varying (known) durations. We show that of the three strategies which can be optimal, two involve search in all or part of the layoffs. We also show that the duration of any particular spell plays no role in determining which strategy is optimal to pursue. And finally, we develop an index for evaluating jobs with different wage and layoff probabilities and show that the worker's reservation wage monotonically increases, decreases or remains constant during the course of a layoff.     

The Portrayal of Blacks in Magazine Advertisements: 1950-1982

This article compares the frequency and social characteristicsof blacks and whites in advertisements in Time and Ladies' HomeJournal during 1950 and 1980. The occupational level of blacksportrayed has risen considerably, and blacks are no longer presentedas maids or servants. However, white authority figures are stillfrequently shown aiding poor blacks or supervising black children.Furthermore, ads show friendly and informal social relationshipsbetween individual whites much more frequently than they showsuch relationships between whites and blacks. Finally, in anextended analysis the frequency of black ads in 1980, 1981,and 1982 is examined for Time, Newsweek and LHJ. Blacks arestill somewhat underrepresented, and recent fluctuations inthe use of black advertisements are considered. The articlebegins and ends with a discussion of three different modelsthat might account for the way blacks are presented in advertisementsin the United States.     

DETERMINANTS OF SATISFACTION FOR BLACKS AND WHITES

The study analyzes the determinants of satisfaction for blacks and whites with data from the Quality of American Life survey conducted in 1971 and replicated in 1978. A domain satisfaction scale is the dependént variable and a series of demographic, social relationship, SES, and religion variables are used as independent variables. Separate regression analyses by race, and tests for the significance of the interaction of the independent variables with race reveal (1) perceived quality of important relationships (i.e., friends, neighbors, children, parents, and siblings) more strongly affects levels of satisfaction for both blacks and whites than demographic variables. SES, or religion; (2) black females report significantly lower levels of satisfaction than any other gender/race group; (3) blacks living in the East report lower satisfaction than any other region/race group; (4) feeling close to their parents more strongly impacts black than white levels of satisfaction; (5) religion is more important for blacks than for whites in producing satisfaction; and (6) SES is more important for whites than blacks in producing satisfaction. Theoretical interpretations are presented.     

Race, socioeconomic status, and psychological distress: an examination of differential vulnerability

Using data from a 1985 epidemiological survey of 2,115 adults in Florida, this research has two goals: it tests the proposition that race and SES jointly influence mental health, and it examines the contribution of undesirable life events and economic problems to psychological distress across SES groups. Using multiple indicators of SES and mental health, we found that the evidence for a model of joint influence of race and SES on mental health varied with the measures being used. The most general conclusion is that SES interacts with race to increase psychological symptoms of distress. Partitioning the sample into three SES categories (low, middle, high), we examined the contribution of stressors to the greater distress among lower-SES blacks compared to other blacks and lower-SES whites. Lower-SES blacks are more vulnerable than lower-SES whites to the impact of undesirable events, but they are less vulnerable than lower-SES whites to the impact of economic problems. Lower-SES blacks are more vulnerable than middle-SES blacks to the impact of both discrete events and economic problems. Limitations of the study indicate a need for future longitudinal studies with measures of coping resources and support networks to further our understanding of the race, social class and psychological distress relationship.     

RACE AND THE EDUCATIONAL EXPECTATIONS OF PARENTS AND CHILDREN: The Case of South Africa

South Africa, a country that is highly stratified by race, is an important location for studying the relationship between race and educational expectations. Using a longitudinal data set, we examine the educational expectations of black (African), colored (mixed race), and white (European ancestry) parents and children in Cape Town, South Africa. We find that parents and children have high educational expectations regardless of race, but black parents and children have higher educational expectations than coloreds and whites once socioeconomic and other factors are controlled. We also find that parents' and children's expectations tend to agree more and are more closely correlated among coloreds and whites than blacks. We test two explanations for the educational expectations of parents and children, finding more support for the status attainment perspective among coloreds and whites than blacks and support for the family social capital perspective among blacks and coloreds only.     

Social Identities in Black and White*

The theoretical usefulness of a convergence of symbolic interactionism and urban sociology is discussed. A method is proposed for the analysis of large numbers of social identities. Black racial identity, in particular, is considered. Racial identity is found to be far more salient for blacks than for whites, but even for blacks, a number of other identities are seen to be more frequently employed. The notion of a “standard package of identities” is developed, and the utility of such a model for understanding group differentiation and inter-group linkages is explored.     

The Distinction Between Social Distance and Stereotyping

An analysis of survey data from a large city in the Southwest shows that social distance and stereotyping are distinct components of prejudice in white attitudes toward both blacks and American Indians. Further, whites perceive more social distance between themselves and blacks than between themselves and Indians. There is evidence of a smaller difference in the levels of stereotyping of Indians and blacks by whites.     

THE EFFECTS OF THE RACE OF THE INTERVIEWER ON RACE-RELATED ATTITUDES OF BLACK RESPONDENTS IN SRC/CPS NATIONAL ELECTION STUDIES

Previous research found substantial effects of the race of theinterviewer on measures of civic attitudes and electoral participationof blacks in NES surveys from 1964, 1976, 1978, 1980, and 1984.This study extends the previous analysis in two ways: it usesdata from two additional NES surveys, 1982 and 1986; and itfocuses on the effects of the race of the interviewer on race-relatedattitudes. Blacks interviewed by whites were much more likelyto express warmth and closeness toward whites than were blacksinterviewed by blacks. But whereas there is no race-of-interviewereffect on blacks' expressions of warmth toward blacks, thereis a clear race-of-interviewer effect on blacks' expressionsof closeness toward blacks. The pattern of responses to thecloseness items appears to result from the format of the question.The observed trend of decreasing expressed closeness of blackstoward blacks in NES surveys between 1976 and 1984 is an artifactof changes in the racial composition of the interviewer staff.     

METAPHORS FOR PUBLIC OPINION IN LITERATURE

Previous research found substantial effects of the race of theinterviewer on measures of civic attitudes and electoral participationof blacks in NES surveys from 1964, 1976, 1978, 1980, and 1984.This study extends the previous analysis in two ways: it usesdata from two additional NES surveys, 1982 and 1986; and itfocuses on the effects of the race of the interviewer on race-relatedattitudes. Blacks interviewed by whites were much more likelyto express warmth and closeness toward whites than were blacksinterviewed by blacks. But whereas there is no race-of-interviewereffect on blacks' expressions of warmth toward blacks, thereis a clear race-of-interviewer effect on blacks' expressionsof closeness toward blacks. The pattern of responses to thecloseness items appears to result from the format of the question.The observed trend of decreasing expressed closeness of blackstoward blacks in NES surveys between 1976 and 1984 is an artifactof changes in the racial composition of the interviewer staff.     

Sexual orientation and full-time monthly earnings, by public and private sector: evidence from Swedish register data

In this paper we explore annual earnings as well as full-time monthly earnings differentials resulting from sexual orientation. We observe that gay males are at an earnings disadvantage compared to male heterosexuals regardless of which earnings measure we use. This earnings disadvantage is found to be larger when we compare gay and heterosexual males who are working full-time. In addition, the disadvantage is larger in the private than in the public sector. Lesbians, however, earn more than heterosexual females. This earnings advantage is considerably smaller when we study full-time monthly rather than annual earnings but an earnings advantage for lesbians at the top of the earnings distribution is documented regardless of which earnings measure we use. In addition, lesbians are doing better than female heterosexuals in the public sector. To sum up, the results indicate that gay males face obstacles on the labor market that hinder them from reaching top-level positions and high earnings. The earnings advantage observed for lesbians is likely to stem from the fact that lesbians devote more time to market work than heterosexual females do.