Browsing by Author "Gorman, Quintin"

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    How Black Adults’ Belief in Systemic Racism Associates with the Perception Barack Obama’s Election Proved Blacks Enjoy Racial Equality
    (2021-03-23) Gorman, Quintin; Brown, Tony N
    Systemic racism implicates surface and deep structures of racial oppression incriminating anti-black practices, white privilege, legacies of economic and other racial disparities, and an ideological frame created by whites to rationalize their privilege. This study asks whether blacks’ belief in the significance of systemic racism (i.e., racial capital) associates with the perception Barack Obama’s 2008 election showed blacks now enjoy racial equality. I also ask whether exposure to institutional inequality (i.e., social dislocations) moderates the association between racial capital and blacks perceiving they now enjoy racial equality. With data from the Outlook on Life Surveys, 2012, I find racial capital associates inversely with perceiving blacks now enjoy racial equality. Additionally, social dislocations moderate the relationship, but in an unexpected way–when social dislocations increase, racial capital links less negatively with agreement blacks now enjoy racial equality.
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    The Sociopolitical Implications of Blacks' Belief in the Significance of Systemic Racism
    (2024-08-08) Gorman, Quintin; Brown, Tony N
    This dissertation project investigates the sociopolitical implications of racial capital, defined as Blacks’ belief in the significance of systemic racism. Prior racial attitude studies investigate Blacks’ tendency to endorse systemic (i.e., structural) versus individual (i.e., in-born ability, cultural, or motivational) explanations for racial inequality in U.S. society. Historically, Blacks overwhelmingly endorse systemic explanations for racial inequality. Yet, recent studies show increasing trends wherein Blacks endorse individual explanations for racial inequality. These recent findings expose heterogeneity in Black political thought. However, prior studies neglect the full implications of Blacks endorsing systemic explanations for racial inequality. To address this gap, this dissertation project analyzes a nationally representative sample of Black adults completing the Outlook on Life Surveys, 2012, to examine relationships between racial capital and perceptions of racial progress, political activities, and social capital. I address several questions: (1) Does racial capital associate with the perception Obama’s 2008 presidential election showed Blacks now enjoy racial equality? (2) Does racial capital associate positively with political activities? (3) Does racial capital associate positively with social capital? There are three broad takeaways from this dissertation project. First, Blacks gain capital from believing in the significance of systemic racism. It might be a new type of bonding capital. Second, there are capital, variously defined, disparities between high and low-SES Blacks. For example, racial capital’s benefits extend disproportionately to high-SES blacks. Stated differently, low-SES and dispossessed Blacks do not reap as much capital from believing in the significance of systemic racism. Third, racial capital merits further investigation. Not counting this dissertation project, few studies investigate racial capital. Capital gained from belief in the significance of systemic racism may extend beyond political activities and social capital. For example, racial capital may be consequential for Blacks’ mental health, psychological resources, physical health, and more.