Does teachers’ ethnic bias stress them out? The role of teachers’ implicit attitudes toward and expectations of ethnic minority students in teachers’ burnout

Research on diversity-related burnout has led to a variety of mixed findings. Several factors have been investigated that may come into play in this relationship (e.g., ethnic school composition). In this study, the hypothesis is that the experience of burnout may result from teachers’ own implicit attitudes and expectations towards ethnic minority students, which are usually negative, rather than explicit prejudices, which are found to be positive Two different implicit measures (Implicit Association Test and Relational Responding Task) and a scale to assess ethnic prejudices have been used. Implicit attitudes toward ethnic minority students and implicit expectations of students’ performance were both negative, but only implicit attitudes predicted teachers’ burnout. Explicit prejudice was low and did not predict burnout. These results highlight the role of teachers’ ethnic implicit attitudes towards ethnic minority students in their own well-being. Future research should further investigate this relationship to get a better understanding of how implicit aspects are involved in the development of burnout.     

Ethnic identity and close friendship in Chinese-American college studentsL'identité ethnique et l'amitié intime chez les étudiants chinoisaméricainsIdentidad etnica y amistad intima entre estudiantes chino-americanos

This article reports an empirical study on the relationship between ethnic identity and close friendship communication patterns in Chinese-American students. The friendship communication variables were: proximity, network size, frequency of interaction, perceived similarity, and degree of intimacy between subjects and close friends. Several hypotheses in this study were confirmed. Generation difference was a reliable predictor of ethnic identity on the 1st and 2nd generation subjects. Proximity was found to be a crucial factor that influenced the ethnicity of subjects' close friendship networks. All friendship variables were related on the zero-order correlation analyses. However, the relationship between ethnic identity and the ethnicity of subjects' friendship networks was not supported. This was explained in terms of sample bias, and the variable of friendship as a universal relational bond that transcends culture. The paper concludes with a set of research questions for future work on ethnic identity and cross-cultural friendship communication.     

Collective identity factors and the attitude toward violence in defense of ethnicity or religion among Muslim youth of Turkish and Moroccan Descent

Collective deprivation, connectedness to mainstream society (friendship and psychological closeness to majority individuals) and in-group identity factors (i.e. strength of in-group identity, and perceived in-group superiority) were investigated among Muslim Dutch youth of Turkish and Moroccan descent, in relation to their attitudes toward violence in defense of religion or ethnicity, and the willingness to use such violence. Data come from a sample of students (N = 398, age 14–18 years). Results show that perceptions of in-group superiority were predicted by higher connectedness to the in-group and lower connectedness to Dutch society in both ethnic groups and by collective relative deprivation among Moroccan-Dutch participants only. In both groups, attitudes toward violent in-group defense and violence willingness were predicted by perceptions of in-group superiority. Collective relative deprivation directly predicted more positive attitudes to violent in-group defense among Turkish-Dutch youth, as well as indirectly (via in-group superiority) among Moroccan-Dutch. Connectedness to the in-group directly predicted the willingness to use a violent in-group defense among the Turkish-Dutch participants and again indirectly (via in-group superiority) among Moroccan-Dutch participants. The results underline the relevance of collective identification processes to the attitudes of violent in-group defense among young Muslims of the second generation in a rather tensed socio-political climate. The study outcomes emphasize the importance of examining the dynamics between different Muslim groups, as their unique acculturation patterns yield particular pathways to the attitudes toward violent in-group defense and the willingness hereof.     

Measuring the preconditions for a successful multicultural society: A barometer test of New Zealand

The study examined the preconditions for multiculturalism in the New Zealand context as enumerated by Berry, Kalin, and Taylor (1977) and Berry and Kalin (1995). Using data from a New Zealand national probability sample (n = 5862), we assessed ethnic group differences in: ethnic equality positioning as an indicator of support for diversity; race-based rejection as a measure of prejudice and intolerance; affective ratings of warmth as an indicator of positive ethnic attitudes; patriotism as an indicator of attachment to New Zealand society; and perceptions of realistic threat and expectations of economic security as indicators of a confident identity. Consistent with the preconditions for achieving a multicultural society, expectations of race-based rejection were uncommon, intergroup feelings were generally warm, perceived threat was moderately low, expectations for future security were moderate and fairly comparable across groups, and all groups expressed high levels of patriotism. However, New Zealanders resisted a resource-specific multicultural ideology that involves race-based interventions to reduce social inequality. There was also evidence that the level of warmth towards Asian New Zealanders, the most recent and rapidly growing immigrant group, was lower than that towards other ethnic groups. The findings are discussed in relation to socio-political issues, including tensions between biculturalism and multiculturalism, and the obstacles to reducing social inequality across ethnic groups.     

Moderating effects of educational standing on interethnic relations in the classroom

The study investigated the roles of ethnicity and educational standing as determinants of interpersonal acceptance among integrated Western and Middle Eastern junior high school students in Israel. A previous study found that often reported ethnic asymmetries were dissipated once educational standing of targets was controlled. The present study hypothesized that the use of sociometric formulations emphasizing self-initiated desire rather than acquiescent agreement would reassert the importance of ethnic biases alongside educational considerations. A sample of 1127 students completed two versions of the Interpersonal Relationship Assessment Technique, emphasizing either willingness to agree or desire to initiate relations with each classmate. Findings indicated that educational standing was the central determinant of relations. In the case of acquiescent acceptance a target's high educational status was found to ameliorate the impact of ethnicity which appeared at low status. In the case of self-expressed desire, ethnic effects appeared alongside the more prominent educational ones: Westerners exhibited same group preference across educational levels, whereas Middle Easterners displayed no group preference. These findings suggest that personalized considerations of educational status overshadow group ones of ethnicity, yet do not obliterate them when interpersonal stakes are high.     

Group status and attitude change in desegregated classrooms

One thousand thirty-three ninth-grade students from Western and Middle-Eastern ethnic background in 30 classrooms responded to a questionnaire assessing ethnic attitudes. The questionnaire was administered at the beginning and again at the end of these students' first year in ethnically desegregated classrooms. No marked changes in ethnic attitudes were noted as a function of the students' individual academic or social status in the classroom, but there were noteworthy changes associated with the relative status in the classroom occupied by the students' ethnic groups. Positive attitude change among Western (majority) students occurred when both ethnic groups in the classroom were of equal status, and when the MiddleEastern (minority) group was of superior academic status to the Western group. Positive change among the Middle-Eastern group occurred when it occupied superior status in the classroom.     

Ethnic identity: Myth and reality in Western Canada

The paper analyzes eleven research projects which have focused on the issue of ethnic identity. Each study addresses the question of how important ethnicity is to the individual. The results suggest that ethnicity, as measured in the present studies, is of little importance to Canadians. Ethnicity, however, should be viewed as an adaptive response to the conditions governing the context for acquisition of scarce and desired goods! What is clear is that assertions of the universal and constant import of ethnicity to Canadians are not true.     

The effects of affective and cognitive treatment on attitude change toward ethnic minority groups

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of cognitive and affective treatments on the attitudes of white university students in Hawaii (a place where many ethnic minority groups live with little overt discrimination and where no one racial group, such as the whites, is in the majority) toward ethnic minority groups. It was hypothesized that the rank order of the groups from most favorable to least favorable in social distance and attitude for and against ethnic minority groups, would be: Affective Treatment, Cognitive Treatment, Hawaii Control, and Mainland Comparison Group. The Social Distance Scale and Prejudice and Rationality Scale were used as pretest and posttest instruments in the Fall, 1980 with 94 Brigham Young University—Hawaii Campus (BYU—HC)and30 Brigham Young University (BYU) in Utah undergraduate students. Analysis of covariance led to supporting the three hypotheses at the 0.01 significance level. It was found that the Affective Treatment Group consistently had a greater change in attitude toward ethnic minorities followed by the Cognitive, Hawaii Control, and Mainland Comparison Groups. It was concluded that the affective treatment was the most effective in changing attitudes toward ethnic minority groups.     

Reciprocity of inter-ethnic attitudes in a multicultural society

A national survey of multicultural and ethnic attitudes in Canada was conducted in 1974 (n = 1849). Data were analysed for the 1244 respondents whose ethnicity could be determined as Angloceltic, French, German, Italian or Ukrainian Canadian, A five group by five group intergroup attitude matrix was created, with each group acting both as attitude object and as holder of attitudes. Analysis indicated the existence of reciprocity or balance in the matrix: groups tended to reflect the attitude held toward them back onto the group holding the attitude. However this structural balance was moderated by the existence of shared attitudes about the position of a group in the national ethnic hierarchy. Further analysis indicated the existence of ethnocentrism in the matrix: attitudes toward ingroup and positive reference groups were more positive than toward out-groups. Perceived intergroup similarity and familiarity were positively correlated with each other and with intergroup acceptance. Results were discussed in relation to attitude balance theory and ethnocentrism theory, and in their implication for intergroup research in multicultural societies.     

Ethnic identity and close friendship in Chinese-American college students

This article reports an empirical study on the relationship between ethnic identity and close friendship communication patterns in Chinese-American students. The friendship communication variables were: proximity, network size, frequency of interaction, perceived similarity, and degree of intimacy between subjects and close friends. Several hypotheses in this study were confirmed. Generation difference was a reliable predictor of ethnic identity on the 1st and 2nd generation subjects. Proximity was found to be a crucial factor that influenced the ethnicity of subjects' close friendship networks. All friendship variables were related on the zero-order correlation analyses. However, the relationship between ethnic identity and the ethnicity of subjects' friendship networks was not supported. This was explained in terms of sample bias, and the variable of friendship as a universal relational bond that transcends culture. The paper concludes with a set of research questions for future work on ethnic identity and cross-cultural friendship communication.     

Mutual attitudes among immigrants and ethnocultural groups in Canada

The domain of intercultural relations comprises two parallel sets of phenomena: acculturation and ethnic relations. These have usually been studied in isolation from each other, but their intersection is of increasing importance for understanding intercultural relations in plural societies. Although this mutual view of intercultural relations has long been recognised, there has been an imbalance in the research carried out: acculturation studies have been predominantly done with the non-dominant groups, and ethnic attitudes have been studied mainly among dominant populations. Beginning in the 1970s, we began a program of research to redress this imbalance with studies in Canada. We examined the acculturation expectations held by the dominant population with respect to immigrants and ethnocultural groups, using the concept of multicultural ideology; we also examined the ways in which dominant groups change and respond to the presence of such groups using concepts of security (both cultural and economic), tolerance, and ethnic attitudes. More recently, we have developed a research instrument to continue this program. The International Study of Attitudes Towards Immigration and Settlement examines the views of members of various ethnocultural groups in a number of countries. This paper reviews the research framework and some findings from these studies among various members of the larger society. The role of a number of demographic and psychological variables related to attitudes toward the kinds and numbers of immigrants are presented. Some conclusions and implications are then discussed.     

The effects of attitudinal versus religious similarity on the neighborhood preferences of Lebanese university students

The main purpose of the present study was to assess the relative importance of attitudinal versus religious similarity on the neighborhood preferences of Lebanese university students shortly after the 1975–1976 war in Lebanon.It was expected that neighborhood preference for a stranger would be affected by: (1) attitudinal similarity — dissimilarity on an important political issue and by (2) the number of strangers involved.The subjects were 169 Lebanese undergraduate students at the American University of Beirut (67 Christians, 96 Muslims, with six subjects not mentioning religious affiliation). In terms of political ideology, 38 subjects were conservative while 131 were liberal and, with respect to displacement during the war, 81 subjects stated that they were displaced while 88 subjects indicated that they remained in their original neighborhoods. Finally, with respect to ethnic (or national) origin, 118 subjects considered themselves as “Arabs” while 48 indicated that their origin was something “other” than Arab, with the remaining three subjects not responding to this item.The results showed that, irrespective of the background characteristics of the subjects, (1) strangers of a different religion who had the same attitudes on an important political issue were significantly more preferred as neighbors than coreligionist strangers who had opposite attitudes on the same issue, and (2) neighborhood preference was significantly greater for one than for many strangers. However, although one stranger was significantly more preferred as a neighbor than many, this preference was found to be stronger under the opposite attitude — same religion condition.     

An investigation of the Iranians' attitudes towards goals of education

This study investigated the attitudes of the Iranian people towards educational goals. The Ss were twelfth grade students, their parents and teachers (93, 58 and 85, respectively) from the middle class school districts of Tehran, Iran. The measure was an adaptation of the semantic differential consisting of 14 items representing educational goals of the new system of education in Iran. Thirteen bipolar adjectives were used for rating the goals.ANOVAS produced significant differences among the attitudes of the three groups against more than 6 of the 13 adjectival measures for the goals of training creative individuals, broadening people's minds, and the acquisition of knowledge, and significant differences against 12 of the 13 adjectival measures the goal of preparing the individuals for the acquisition of wealth. The Scheffe Multiple Comparison Procedure Technique showed that on most of the measures there is a close convergence between the attitudes of the students and teachers, and these two groups seem to be more idealistic in their educational views than the Iranian parents.     

Modes of victim blaming in a case of stabbing: Victim and offender ethnicity and observer ethnicity and religious affiliation

This study examined the effects of ethnicity on victim-blaming in a case of stabbing by addressing victim and offender ethnicity as well as observer ethnicity and religion. Jewish (n = 285), Muslim Arab (n = 249), and Christian Arab (n = 51) students from Israeli universities and colleges read a single stabbing scenario, in which we manipulated victim (Arab/Jewish) and offender ethnicity (African/Arab/Jewish). The results showed that participants blamed a Jewish victim more than an Arab victim. Also, our findings indicated that Christian Arabs expressed significantly higher victim-blaming than Jews. However, victim-blaming among Christian Arabs did not significantly differ from victim-blaming among Muslim Arabs, and victim-blaming among Muslim Arabs did not significantly differ from victim-blaming among Jews. Furthermore, the interactions between observer and victim ethnicity and between observer and offender ethnicity were significant. The discussion addresses the findings in the context of prejudice against members of African and Arab communities, the black sheep effect, and defensive attribution. In addition, the discussion suggests that observer ethnic and religious background may be related to blame-attribution mode: fixed (not affected by victim and offender ethnicity) or modular (affected by victim and offender ethnicity). From the practical standpoint, our findings suggest a need for further education on prejudice against minorities and promoting ethnic diversity among practitioners assisting and treating victims.     

Constructions of Japanese national identity: Host views using a social markers of acceptance framework

Social markers of acceptance (SMA) are socially constructed criteria (e.g., language skills, shared genealogy, or adherence to social norms) that receiving society nationals use in deciding whether to view an immigrant as a member of the national ingroup. This study had two objectives: 1. to identify the markers considered important by Japanese to accept immigrants in Japanese society, and 2. to examine the type of intergroup conditions that may shape immigrant inclusion by influencing the degree of emphasis placed on SMA: specifically, perceived immigrant threat, contribution, and social status, as well as intergroup boundary permeability and strength of national identification. Native-born Japanese (n = 2000) completed an online survey, where two latent factors emerged representing ethnic and civic markers—suggesting that national identity may have changed in the past 25 years, with Japanese developing a distinct civic conceptualization in addition to a previously existing ethnic one. Multiple hierarchical regressions found significant main effects of perceived immigrant threat, contribution, status, and boundary permeability for both civic and ethnic dimensions, as well as interactions between threat x status and threat x permeability. As hypothesized, threat had positive effects on SMA emphasis, and contribution exerted negative effects—indicating more exclusive and inclusive attitudes among Japanese, respectively. Results for national identity were inconsistent, complementing social identity theory for ethnic markers but contradicting it for civic marker importance. Consistent with social identity theory, immigrants perceived as “low status” triggered endorsement of more restrictive civic and ethnic benchmarks; however, contrary to expectations, increased threat under less porous intergroup boundaries predicted more restrictive civic and ethnic marker utilization.     

Language attitudes and social group memberships

This study examined the saliency of two independent dimensions of group identity—gender and ethnicity—for attitudes toward different languages in an Israeli context. The study is presented within the framework of social identity theory and treats the implications of multiple group memberships for the interpersonal/intergroup continuum of social behavior. The sample included 343 ninth grade Jewish and Arab students in Israel who responded to semantic differential scales for each of three languages: Hebrew, Arabic and English. It was hypothesized that gender would be the relevant group category for attitudes toward English, which is considered to be “ethnically neutral”, but not for Hebrew and Arabic. For the latter two languages, the saliency of ethnic group membership was expected to override any gender-language link. The results basically supported the hypotheses with the exception that ethnic group membership was a relevant category for English in addition to gender.     

Social adjustment and dynamics of segregation in higher education – Scrutinising the role of open-mindedness and empathy

Earlier research has suggested that ethnic minority students have a significantly lower chance of attaining academic success compared to their peers without an ethnic minority background. Numerous research has also illustrated the importance of social capital for being academically successful. In two studies we examine the particular role of interethnic interactions in the social and academic adjustment of students in higher education. We use a Flemish university as a case study. Study 1 (N = 1549) uses mediation analysis, and Study 2 (N = 2479) replicates the first study using SEM (structural equation modelling). We first found that social adjustment is necessary for adjusting academically, and that it has a small, but positive effect on study success. While adjusting socially by interacting with students from other ethnic groups is of little benefit to native Flemish students, the opposite is true for students with a migration background. Furthermore, the more open-minded native students are, the less socially adjusted they tend to be, and they seem to benefit from a more close-minded stance than from open-mindedness in terms of adjusting to the social (and academic) context of a university.     

Symmetrical and asymmetrical interethnic perception in Israel

Asymmetrical ethnic perception within the Israeli population has been demonstrated by several past studies. Jews of Western origin generally revealed unfavorable attitudes toward Jews from Oriental origin, whereas the latter group revealed favorable attitudes toward Jews of Western origin and related less favorably toward themselves. The present study raises the question whether there exists an unequivocal assymmetry in interethnic perception in Israel, or whether under specific conditions, in which close contact between the groups exists, and where the status of Orientals is equal to that of the Westerners, asymmetry might not be found. Ethnic stereotypes were investigated among 463 students in vocational high schools. The findings show the emergence of symmetrical ethnic perception within that population. Symmetry has reached its optimal level among children of mixed parentage, who rated equally—Western or Oriental Israelis. In addition, contrary to previous results, students of Oriental origin did not differ from Western students in their attitudes toward Arabs. The difference between the present study and previous studies is discussed.     

Perception of value congruence and interethnic behavioral intentions

Two studies were conducted to investigate the effects of ethnocentrism, cognitive differentiation and extent of contact/information experienced with three stimulus groups varying in ethnicity on (a) respondents' perceptions of similarity in personal values between themselves and members of these ethnic groups, and (b) social distance orientations toward these groups. None of the predictor variables systematically induced differential attributions of value similarity. Ethnocentrism was found to be the most potent determinant of social distance, with low ethnocentric persons showing less social distance toward ethnic outgroups. The results were generally compatible with the notion of social competition proposed by Turner (1975) as a relevant factor in interethnic relations and are discussed in relation to the belief differences theory of prejudice (Rokeach, Smith & Evans, 1960) and the concept of positive prejudice (Dienstbier, 1970; Dutton, 1976).