Psychophysiology and racism.

Comments on the article by R. Clark et al (see record 1999-11644-001), which outlines a biopsychosocial model for perceived racism as a stressor among African Americans. This model and the questions it raises can and should inform empirical investigations of racism and health. The model can be situated in the debate over the diversification of psychology, the social meaningfulness of research, and bias in scientific research and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Political orientation and modern versus aversive racism: Tests of Dovidio and Gaertner's (1998) integrated model.

According to J. F. Dovidio and S. L. Gaertner's (1998) integrated model of racism, politically liberal European Americans tend to express racism differently than conservative European Americans, with liberals demonstrating aversive racism and conservatives, symbolic or modern racism. In support of the model, in Experiment 1 liberals showed bias in favor of a twice-prosecuted African American relative to a European American in their judgment of double jeopardy, whereas conservatives did the reverse. Experiment 2 replicated these effects while eliminating a confound in the design of Experiment 1. Experiment 3 found evidence for the intrapsychic conflict hypothesized to underlie aversive racism. Specifically, only liberals displayed greater physiological arousal to the touch of an African American versus a European American experimenter. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexism in Psychology.

The author discusses a recent experience reviewing resumes for a clinical psychologist position, which led to the conclusion that since there are more male than female psychologists, and since the proportion of applicants did not reflect this, there may be a higher proportion of unemployed qualified women psychologists than men. In addition, since the men appeared to be substantially less qualified than the women, there is reason to suspect that a great deal of discrimination exists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Women in prison: Sexism behind bars.

Identifies some problems experienced by women incarcerated in US prisons. Comparisons are made of the availability of occupational and educational programs in prisons for men and women. Problems of separation from families and the impact of inadequate health and mental health services on the lives of women prisoners are also examined. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Historical racism: Implications for Native Americans.

Comments on the article by R. Clark et al (see record 1999-11644-001), which outlines a biopsychosocial model for perceived racism as a stressor among African Americans. One long-standing example of intergroup racism that continues to have pervasive effects is historical racism. It is argued that historical racism has had and continues to have a profound impact on Native Americans. The authors outline some possible ways in which historical racism constitutes a stressor with biopsychosocial implications for American Indians. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"But it's racism I really hate": Young masculinities, racism, and psychoanalysis.

This article addresses the issue of how discursive analyses revealing the way personal accounts of masculinities are constructed can be supplemented by theories providing plausible explanations of how individuals take up particular subject positions. It is suggested that psychoanalytic concepts are helpful in this regard. An analysis is presented of material from a participant in a study of emergent masculinities among boys in London schools. This material concerns the cross cutting of gendered and racialized identity positions. The use of psychoanalytic constructs enables the production of an account of this boy's narrative in which reasons for his adoption and defense of particular positions, despite their contradictory and conflictual character, can be proposed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Deindividuation and anger-mediated interracial aggression: Unmasking regressive racism.

Investigated the effects of deindividuation, anger, and race-of-victim on aggression displayed by 96 White male undergraduates. Deindividuating situational cues produced an internal state of deindividuation that mediated aggressive behavior. Deindividuation theories are extended by the finding that the internal state of deindividuation was composed not only of the factors Self-Awareness and Altered Experience, but also Group Cohesiveness, Responsibility, and Time Distortion. As predicted, nonangered Whites were less aggressive toward Black than White victims, but angered Whites were more aggressive toward Blacks than Whites. Interracial behavior was consistent with new, egalitarian norms if anger was not aroused, but regressed to the old, historical pattern of racial discrimination if anger was aroused. This pattern of interracial behavior was interpreted in terms of a new form of racism: regressive racism. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Ambivalent Sexism Inventory: Differentiating hostile and benevolent sexism.

The authors present a theory of sexism formulated as ambivalence toward women and validate a corresponding measure, the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (ASI). The ASI taps 2 positively correlated components of sexism that nevertheless represent opposite evaluative orientations toward women: sexist antipathy or Hostile Sexism (HS) and a subjectively positive (for sexist men) orientation toward women, Benevolent Sexism (BS). HS and BS are hypothesized to encompass 3 sources of male ambivalence: Paternalism, Gender Differentiation, and Heterosexuality. Six ASI studies on 2,250 respondents established convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. Overall ASI scores predict ambivalent attitudes toward women, the HS scale correlates with negative attitudes toward and stereotypes about women, and the BS scale (for nonstudent men only) correlates with positive attitudes and stereotypes about women. A copy of the ASI is provided, with scoring instructions, as a tool for further explorations of sexist ambivalence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexism in graduate admissions: The letter of recommendation.

Two experienced raters examined the letters of recommendation of 38 female and 85 male students admitted to graduate study for sexist comments. Examples of sexist statements made in regard to female candidates are presented. The effect of such statements on admissions and retention is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unreferred: a chance to air my prejudices?

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To discern the best method of wound closure after laparoscopy based on patient acceptability of pain, complications, and cosmetic result. DESIGN: Randomized, prospective study. SETTING: A university-affiliated hospital. PATIENTS: Fifty-four women. Interventions. The women received interrupted 3-0 nylon sutures, subcuticular 3-0 polyglactin 910 sutures, or adhesive strips for skin closure. At the umbilical port site the rectus sheath was closed with a single 0 polyglactin suture and then one of the three materials for skin closure. The lateral ports were closed with a combination of these materials, allowing each patient to act as her own control. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Pain was significantly less in wounds closed by subcuticular technique than in those closed by either transcutaneous suture or adhesive strips. This was seen for the 5-mm, 10-mm, and umbilical port sites. There was no statistically significant difference in the rate of reported complications or patient satisfaction between subcuticular and transcutaneous wound sites. CONCLUSION: We believe these results support subcuticular methods of wound closure after laparoscopic procedures.     

The origins of symbolic racism.

The theory of symbolic racism places its origins in a blend of anti-Black affect and conservative values, particularly individualism. We clarify that hypothesis, test it directly, and report several findings consistent with it. Study 1 shows that racial prejudice and general political conservatism fall into 2 separate factors, with symbolic racism loading about equally on both. Study 2 found that the anti-Black affect and individualism significantly explain symbolic racism. The best-fitting model both fuses those 2 elements into a single construct (Black individualism) and includes them separately. The effects of Black individualism on racial policy preferences are mostly mediated by symbolic racism. Study 3 shows that Black individualism is distinctively racial, with effects distinctly different from either an analogous gender individualism or race-neutral individualism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexism and beautyism in personnel consultant decision making.

Each of 72 professional personnel consultants rated the suitability of 1 bogus applicant for selected masculine, feminine, and neuter jobs, and for alternatives to employment. Each resumé was identical with the exception of the systematic variation of the applicant's sex and the omission or inclusion of a photo depicting the applicant as physically attractive or unattractive. As predicted, personnel decisions strongly reflected the operation of sex-role stereotypes. These factors similarly affected consultants' recommendations of alternatives to employment and consultants' causal attributions of applicants' projected occupational successes and failures. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Filipino Americans and racism: A multiple mediation model of coping.

Although the literature on Asian Americans and racism has been emerging, few studies have examined how coping influences one’s encounters with racism. To advance the literature, the present study focused on the psychological impact of Filipino Americans’ experiences with racism and the role of coping as a mediator using a community-based sample of adults (N = 199). Two multiple mediation models were used to examine the mediating effects of active, avoidance, support-seeking, and forbearance coping on the relationship between perceived racism and psychological distress and self-esteem, respectively. Separate analyses were also conducted for men and women given differences in coping utilization. For men, a bootstrap procedure indicated that active, support-seeking, and avoidance coping were mediators of the relationship between perceived racism and psychological distress. Active coping was negatively associated with psychological distress, whereas both support seeking and avoidance were positively associated with psychological distress. A second bootstrap procedure for men indicated that active and avoidance coping mediated the relationship between perceived racism and self-esteem such that active coping was positively associated with self-esteem, and avoidance was negatively associated with self-esteem. For women, only avoidance coping had a significant mediating effect that was associated with elevations in psychological distress and decreases in self-esteem. The results highlight the importance of examining the efficacy of specific coping responses to racism and the need to differentiate between the experiences of men and women. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

DSM-III: Sexism or societal reality?

Argues that the debate about sexism in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) is misdirected and probably involves a social artifact rather than a true labeling problem. Men who are troubled are more likely to act out in antisocial ways, while women are more likely to turn problems inward. We are more likely to label women who cannot adapt as sick and men who cannot adapt as criminal, but both groups are out of step with the social system and are being pressured to make behavioral changes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Condemning and condoning racism: A social context approach to interracial settings.

Campus racial harassment provided the context for an experiment, replicated over 3 different campus samples, regarding the effects of social influence on Whites' reactions to racism. Hearing someone condemn racism led Ss to express significantly stronger antiracist opinions than occurred following exposure to a no-influence control condition. Furthermore, hearing someone condone racism led Ss to adopt significantly less strong antiracist positions than when no other opinions were introduced. The robust social influence effects were obtained regardless of whether the source was White or Black or whether Ss responded publicly or privately. A social context approach to interracial settings is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexism in the theory and practice of clinical psychology.

Examines the major schools of clinical psychology with regard to implications for the psychology of women. Theoretical orientations are compared in terms of the emphasis placed on biographical vs social determinants of personality development and psychopathology. It is concluded that a purely psychological approach is indadequate and that a model integrating sociological and psychological factors is necessary for understanding and treating mental health problems in women. The attitudes and values of individual professionals will be a major influence in maintaining or eliminating sexism in clinical psychology. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexism in research is not only sexism.

Problems of gender bias and sexism in research cited by F. Denmark et al (see record 1988-34553-001) illustrate violations of general principles of sound scientific formulation, data collection, data analysis, interpretation, and reporting. Social bias is the content of these violations rather than their substance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Addressing clients’ racism and racial prejudice in individual psychotherapy: Therapeutic considerations.

Psychotherapists lack clear guidelines regarding how to address clients’ racist and prejudicial comments in clinical work. The authors explore the contributions of multicultural, social justice, feminist, and ethical theories to the field of psychotherapy and apply these theories to 2 clinical vignettes in which clients made racially charged statements. These clinical examples highlight the importance of using racial, in addition to traditional, theories to decipher the clinical meanings of racial comments and dynamics in clinical work. The article provides therapeutic conceptualizations regarding how to address clients’ racist and prejudicial comments in psychotherapy and elaborates on the complex meanings that might arise from engaging in racially charged discussions with clients depending on the racial composition of the therapeutic dyad. In addition to highlighting how social justice, multicultural, and feminist lenses are necessary to fully understand the meaning of clients’ comments, the argument is made that addressing clients’ racist and prejudicial comments is at once a clinical and a social justice issue. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prejudice and politics: Symbolic racism versus racial threats to the good life.

Although theories of prejudice have been extensively catalogued, empirical confrontations between competing theories are rare. The present study tested 2 major theoretical approaches to prejudice by Whites against Blacks: realistic group conflict theory, which emphasizes the tangible threats Blacks might pose to Whites' private lives; and a sociocultural theory of prejudice termed symbolic racism, which emphasizes abstract, moralistic resentments of Blacks, presumably traceable to preadult socialization. The main dependent variable was suburban Whites' voting behavior in 2 mayoral elections in Los Angeles, both strongly influenced by racial issues, that matched the same 2 candidates, 1 Black and 1 White. In both elections, symbolic racism (sociocultural prejudice) was the major determinant of voting against the Black candidate for people removed from possible personal threats posed by Blacks as well as for those at risk. Direct racial threats to Whites' private lives (to their jobs, their neighborhoods, their children's schooling, their families' safety) had little effect on either anti-Black voting behavior or symbolic racism. Implications for theories of prejudice and for interpretations of the effects of voters' private lives on their political behavior are discussed. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychosocial costs of racism to whites: Exploring patterns through cluster analysis.

Participants (230 White college students) completed the Psychosocial Costs of Racism to Whites (PCRW) Scale. Using cluster analysis, we identified 5 distinct cluster groups on the basis of PCRW subscale scores: the unempathic and unaware cluster contained the lowest empathy scores; the insensitive and afraid cluster consisted of low empathy and guilt scores, with the highest score on fear; the fearful guilt cluster exhibited elevations on guilt and fear; the empathic but unaccountable cluster reflected high empathy with low guilt and fear; and the informed empathy and guilt cluster represented those high on empathy and guilt in conjunction with low levels of fear. Groups were validated on an additional sample (n = 366) and were found to differ significantly on theoretically related measures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)