University of Minnesota White Racial Identity Study.
Contents
Purpose of the Study
A study conducted by Professors at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities examined racial identity among white citizens. The study’s results were released by Paul R. Croll of the University of Minnesota on December 1, 2007. Croll, along with fellow Sociology Professor Doug Hartmann wrote the study. The study, which originally took place during the summer of 2003, examined white racial identity, due to its centrality to whiteness studies. More specifically, the results of the study were analyzed to look at how prejudice, views on diversity and beliefs about America impact the importance of racial identity for whites. The survey was in response to preconceived notions that white citizens lack social awareness.
How the study worked
The study used data gathered by the American Mosaic Project Survey, a nationally representative, random-digit-dial telephone survey with a sample size of 2,081 participants. The sample size included roughly 1,000 white participants, 500 black, 400 Hispanic and 100 other people from other racial minorities. Questions asked to participants focused around attitudes of race, religion, politics and American identity. This provided an opportunity to analyze the effects of diversity, prejudice and core American values including economic opportunity and individual rights on white racial identity.
Results of the study
The results of the survey showed that 37 percent of whites said their white racial identity was very important, compared to 72 percent of nonwhites who said their racial identity was very important. However, when looking at the percentage of whites who answered that their racial identity was very important or somewhat important, the percentage is raised to 74 for whites and 90 percent for nonwhites. The findings that one third of whites claim a strong racial identity is valuable because the majority of whiteness theory from the 1990s, predicted that whites were unaware of their own social identity.
Overall, the study showed that Caucasians were aware of the advantages their race brings them. In addition to finding persons from racial minorities held similar ideals to Caucasians to value the ideals of freedom and hard work.