A comparison of skin tone discrimination among African American men: 1995 and 2003 - PubMed (original) (raw)

A comparison of skin tone discrimination among African American men: 1995 and 2003

Ekeoma E Uzogara et al. Psychol Men Masc. 2014.

Abstract

This study investigated perceptions of skin tone discrimination among adult African American men. Research suggests that through negative African American stereotypes, out-group members (Whites) perceive light-skinned African Americans favorably and dark-skinned African Americans unfavorably. However, it is unclear how treatment by in-group members (other African Americans) uniquely affects men. Using data from the 1995 Detroit Area Study and the 2003 National Survey of American Life, we investigated these relationships among African American men representing a wide range of socioeconomic groups. We found that African American men's perceptions of out-group and in-group treatment, respectively, were similar across time. Light-skinned men perceived the least out-group discrimination while dark-skinned men perceived the most out-group discrimination. In appraisals of skin tone discrimination from in-group members, medium-skinned men perceived the least discrimination while both light- and dark-skinned men perceived more in-group discrimination. Additionally, men of lower social economic groups were more affected by skin tone bias than others. Future research should explore the influence of these out- and in-group experiences of skin tone discrimination on social and psychological functioning of African American men.

Keywords: African American masculinity; colorism; intragroup discrimination; skin tone.

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Figures

Figure 1

Figure 1

Out-group appraisal of African American men in the DAS and NSAL (centered). In general, scores above 0 indicate perceived discrimination while scores below 0 indicate perceived favorable treatment.

Figure 2

Figure 2

In-group appraisal of African American men in DAS and NSAL (centered). Scores in out-group and in-group appraisals were centered at the respective means for the DAS and NSAL samples (0 = mean score for the respective sample). In general, scores above 0 indicate perceived discrimination while scores below 0 indicate perceived favorable treatment.

Figure 3

Figure 3

Mean standardized discrepancies of interviewer vs. respondent skin tone ratings across education level for African American men. The standardized discrepancies were determined by subtracting the _z_-score of the interviewer’s skin tone rating from the _z_-score of the self-rated skin tone; this value was then squared. Larger discrepancies indicate greater misalignment in self versus interviewer judgments of skin tone.

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