Inequality and Multiracial Gatekeeping

ABSTRACT

Theoretical propositions linking power and status relations are deeply rooted in classical sociological thought. Building on that tradition, this paper investigates the impact of racial status on a specific power relation, the relation between gatekeepers and their clients. Gatekeepers control access to “benefits” they do not own, benefits that are valued by “clients.” Seeking access to those benefits, clients assume obligations which may be discharged by a fee paid to the gatekeeper. The size of the fee paid is the amount of power exercised by the gatekeeper. Employment agents, car salesmen, real estate agents are gatekeepers because they control access to jobs, cars, and housing, respectively, as well as information about each. When clients are lower status, for example, African American, employment agents may steer them to lower-paid, less desirable jobs, car salesmen may ask for and receive higher prices, and real estate agents may show only segregated housing. Research reported here extends previous work on gatekeeping to multiracial (black-white) gatekeeping relations by jointly applying two theories. Network Exchange Theory (NET) models the gatekeeper–client relation, and Status Characteristics Theory (SCT) models the impact of racial status on that relation. The result is three theoretical predictions that are experimentally tested in the well-understood context of exchange networks. As a first replication of previous work on gatekeeping, a key finding is that gatekeeping does produce power differences, as theoretically predicted. Two new additional findings are that 1) whereas race does indeed undermine the effects of blacks’ gatekeeping of whites, 2) it does not amplify (significantly) the effect of whites’ gatekeeping of blacks. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.