Graduation Date

Spring 2023

Document Type

Thesis

Program

Master of Arts degree with a major in Psychology, option Academic Research

Committee Chair Name

Amber Gaffney

Committee Chair Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Second Committee Member Name

Maria Iturbide

Second Committee Member Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Third Committee Member Name

Brandilynn Villarreal

Third Committee Member Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Keywords

Ethnic identity, Intergroup relations, Social identity, Campus cultural groups, University, College students, Friendships

Subject Categories

Psychology

Abstract

Diversity has become a focal point in conversations in higher education in the United States (Nunes, 2021). University systems have employed Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives to recruit more diverse campus populations (e.g., University of California Board of Regents, 2007). However, this increased number of diverse students prompts the need to better define what diversity looks like on campus and factors that contribute to existing intergroup relations among Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC). Intergroup contact theory posits that prejudice can be reduced by having groups engage in contact under specific conditions. However, BIPOC have historically been segregated and forced into ethnic enclaves such as “Chinatowns” or “Little Saigons”, which created minimal contact across ethnic minorities. This study examines how student cultural groups, which provide cultural affirmation and representation, influence intergroup relations across BIPOC students. The current work (N = 183) examines how ethnic identity, ethnocentrism, and cultural group identification are related to friendship diversity in college and if these friendships are related to intergroup anxiety and bias among students of color. We predicted that high ethnic identity, ethnocentrism, and cultural group identification should be negatively correlated with friendship diversity and positively correlated with intergroup anxiety and bias. We also predict that friendship diversity and intergroup anxiety should mediate the relationship between ethnic identity, ethnocentrism, and cultural group identification on intergroup bias. Serial mediation results indicated mixed support for our hypotheses, suggesting that ethnic identity is more negatively correlated with friendship diversity and positively correlated with intergroup anxiety and intergroup bias compared to ethnocentrism and cultural identification. Friendship diversity and intergroup anxiety did not appear to mediate the relationship between ethnic identity, ethnocentrism, and cultural group identification on intergroup bias. The collective findings demonstrate the need to further examine how cultural identity and intergroup contact play a role in intergroup anxiety and bias among BIPOC.

Citation Style

APA

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