Abstract

Race and ethnicity are often conflated in mainstream and scientific discourse, resulting in terminological confusion. This study defines race as a social construct categorizing people based on visible physical characteristics such as skin color, whereas ethnicity refers to a shared cultural heritage, values, tradition, and ancestry. This study examines the difference and the intersection of these concepts rooted in social identity within two groups in the Black population—Black Americans and Black immigrants. We believe racial identity is important to Black Americans due to the prevalence of racial discrimination in America; therefore, we make ethnic identity comparatively less central. We test this by evaluating naturally occurring racial and ethnic differences as well as by manipulating the salience of racial and ethnic identities. We propose that Black Americans will report more discrimination and attribute it to race. For Black immigrants, discrimination perception and attribution to race and ethnicity will be moderated by acculturation. These naturally occurring differences will be lessened in response to the salience manipulation. To assess these, a survey will be distributed to 400 Black Americans and 400 Black immigrants on Cloud Research Connect. Participants will be randomly assigned to an ethnicity or race social identity condition to prime either identity before administering the primary measure. Discrimination perception and attribution to race and ethnicity will be measured using ambiguous discrimination vignettes modeled from previous work.

By evaluating within-group differences and the intersection of race, ethnicity, and acculturation, this study will better inform our understanding of the discrimination experience. Findings are expected to inform culturally responsive counseling approaches and guide equity-focused policies tailored to the nuanced realities of marginalized populations.