Abstract
Discussing racial issues often makes Whites anxious, particularly when their conversation partners are Black. We theorized that Whites seek to avoid anxiety by suppressing thoughts of White identity prior to such interactions. In Study 1, White participants expected to discuss a race-related or nonracial topic with a Black or White partner. An Implicit Association Test (IAT) measured subsequent changes in the activation of participants’ White identities (i.e., self–White associations). The prospect of discussing race-related (vs. nonracial) topics with a Black partner reduced participants’ self–White associations, implying identity suppression. Moreover, participants’ nonverbal responses suggest that identity suppression functioned to mute participants’ anxiety. In Study 2, participants completed the identity activation measure only after learning that they would not interact with a partner. Consistent with “rebound” effects known to follow suppression, participants who previously expected to discuss a race-related topic with a Black partner showed heightened self–White associations.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 874-892 |
| Number of pages | 19 |
| Journal | Group Processes and Intergroup Relations |
| Volume | 21 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Sep 1 2018 |
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Keywords
- anxiety
- coping
- identity
- interracial interaction
- whiteness
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Psychology
- Cultural Studies
- Communication
- Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
- Sociology and Political Science
Cite this
White out of mind : Identity suppression as a coping strategy among Whites anticipating racially charged interactions. / Marshburn, Christopher K.; Knowles, Eric.
In: Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, Vol. 21, No. 6, 01.09.2018, p. 874-892.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
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TY - JOUR
T1 - White out of mind
T2 - Identity suppression as a coping strategy among Whites anticipating racially charged interactions
AU - Marshburn, Christopher K.
AU - Knowles, Eric
PY - 2018/9/1
Y1 - 2018/9/1
N2 - Discussing racial issues often makes Whites anxious, particularly when their conversation partners are Black. We theorized that Whites seek to avoid anxiety by suppressing thoughts of White identity prior to such interactions. In Study 1, White participants expected to discuss a race-related or nonracial topic with a Black or White partner. An Implicit Association Test (IAT) measured subsequent changes in the activation of participants’ White identities (i.e., self–White associations). The prospect of discussing race-related (vs. nonracial) topics with a Black partner reduced participants’ self–White associations, implying identity suppression. Moreover, participants’ nonverbal responses suggest that identity suppression functioned to mute participants’ anxiety. In Study 2, participants completed the identity activation measure only after learning that they would not interact with a partner. Consistent with “rebound” effects known to follow suppression, participants who previously expected to discuss a race-related topic with a Black partner showed heightened self–White associations.
AB - Discussing racial issues often makes Whites anxious, particularly when their conversation partners are Black. We theorized that Whites seek to avoid anxiety by suppressing thoughts of White identity prior to such interactions. In Study 1, White participants expected to discuss a race-related or nonracial topic with a Black or White partner. An Implicit Association Test (IAT) measured subsequent changes in the activation of participants’ White identities (i.e., self–White associations). The prospect of discussing race-related (vs. nonracial) topics with a Black partner reduced participants’ self–White associations, implying identity suppression. Moreover, participants’ nonverbal responses suggest that identity suppression functioned to mute participants’ anxiety. In Study 2, participants completed the identity activation measure only after learning that they would not interact with a partner. Consistent with “rebound” effects known to follow suppression, participants who previously expected to discuss a race-related topic with a Black partner showed heightened self–White associations.
KW - anxiety
KW - coping
KW - identity
KW - interracial interaction
KW - whiteness
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U2 - 10.1177/1368430216681178
DO - 10.1177/1368430216681178
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VL - 21
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EP - 892
JO - Group Processes and Intergroup Relations
JF - Group Processes and Intergroup Relations
SN - 1368-4302
IS - 6
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