African Americans Deemed More Attractive When Described As ‘Mixed-Race’ In Study
- 8 years ago
A researcher at Duke University tackled the issue of how much a descriptive label can influence perceptions, particularly as it applies to a person’s race or ethnicity.
A researcher at Duke University tackled the issue of how much a descriptive label can influence perceptions, particularly as it applies to a person’s race or ethnicity.
He found that identifying an individual as mixed-race rather than African American, even if that’s not true, makes people see them as being more attractive.
Said Robert L. Reece, the study’s author, “Being exotic is a compelling idea. So people are attracted to a certain type of difference. It’s also partially just racism – the notion that black people are less attractive, so being partially not-black makes you more attractive.”
For the study, Reece reviewed 3,200 interviews conducted as part of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.
Some participants asked others about their racial and ethnic backgrounds then ranked them on an attractiveness scale of 1 to 5.
Those who had described themselves as being of mixed origins rather than simply black were ranked more physically appealing overall.
A researcher at Duke University tackled the issue of how much a descriptive label can influence perceptions, particularly as it applies to a person’s race or ethnicity.
He found that identifying an individual as mixed-race rather than African American, even if that’s not true, makes people see them as being more attractive.
Said Robert L. Reece, the study’s author, “Being exotic is a compelling idea. So people are attracted to a certain type of difference. It’s also partially just racism – the notion that black people are less attractive, so being partially not-black makes you more attractive.”
For the study, Reece reviewed 3,200 interviews conducted as part of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.
Some participants asked others about their racial and ethnic backgrounds then ranked them on an attractiveness scale of 1 to 5.
Those who had described themselves as being of mixed origins rather than simply black were ranked more physically appealing overall.