Date of Award
Summer 2014
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Sociology
First Advisor
Kevin Stainback
Committee Chair
Kevin Stainback
Committee Member 1
Rachel Einwohner
Committee Member 2
Robert Perrucci
Committee Member 3
Jacob Hibel
Abstract
What is the nature of White racial attitudes in the age of Obama? This dissertation project seeks to answer this question in three distinct ways. The first empirical chapter examines the role of economic insecurity and education on White racial attitudes. The second empirical chapter evaluates the relative importance of individual vs. contextual factors in shaping Whites' attitudes about race. The third empirical chapter seeks to evaluate the extent to which racial color-blindness (as opposed to other racial attitudes) motivates White opposition to race-targeted programs. Findings in empirical chapters one and two are conditional, while clear evidence is demonstrated that color-blindness does not predict white opposition to race-targeted programs in empirical chapter three. Implications for the future study of white racial attitudes are discussed.
Recommended Citation
LeCount, Ryan Jerome, "White racial attitudes in the age of Obama" (2014). Open Access Dissertations. 316.
https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/open_access_dissertations/316