Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T16:37:40.343Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

ARE ASIAN AMERICANS WHO HAVE INTERRACIAL RELATIONSHIPS POLITICALLY DISTINCT?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 March 2018

Danielle Casarez Lemi  and
Augustine Kposowa
Danielle Casarez Lemi*
Affiliation:
Southern Methodist University
Augustine Kposowa
Affiliation:
University of California, Riverside
*
*Corresponding author: Danielle Casarez Lemi, Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Political Science, Southern Methodist University, PO Box 750100, Dallas, TX 75275. E-mail: [email protected].
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Research on interracial marriage and relationships uses the incidence of interracial romantic relationships to measure immigrant assimilation. Little attention, however, has been paid to the implications of interracial relationships for racial group politics. Are those who practice exogamy politically distinct from those who do not? We develop testable hypotheses from existing theories of and literature on interracial marriages/relationships. We test these hypotheses on several outcomes using the 2008 National Asian American Survey of Asian Americans, as this group has one of the highest rates of interracial marriage with Whites. We find that those with interracial partners are more likely to be concerned about racial issues, less likely to favor co-ethnic candidates and belong to ethnically concentrated civic groups, but are no more likely to be concerned about immigration or to favor a pathway to citizenship. We offer some theoretical reasons for these findings and discuss the implications of these findings for immigrant assimilation, interracial marriage, and the American racial order.

Keywords

Asian AmericansAssimilationPolitical AttitudesImmigrants
Type
State of the Art
Information
Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , Fall 2017 , pp. 557 - 575
Copyright
Copyright © Hutchins Center for African and African American Research 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Alba, Richard, and Nee, Victor (1997). Rethinking Assimilation Theory for a New Era of Immigration. The International Migration Review, 31(4 Special Issue: Immigrant Adaptation and Native-Born Responses in the Making of Americans): 826–874.Google Scholar
Anderson, Ashton, Goel, Sharad, Huber, Gregory, Malhotra, Neil, and Watts, Duncan J. (2014). Political Ideology and Racial Preferences in Online Dating. Sociological Science, 1: 28–40.Google Scholar
Angrist, Joshua D., and Pischke, Jörn-Steffen (2009). Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist’s Companion. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University press.Google Scholar
Berelson, Bernard R., Lazarsfeld, Paul F., and McPhee, William N. (1954). Voting: A Study of Opinion Formation in a Presidential Campaign. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo (2004). From Bi-Racial to Tri-Racial: Towards a New System of Racial Stratification in the USA. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 27(6): 931–950.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bratter, Jennifer L., and King, Rosalind B. (2008). “But Will it Last?”: Marital Instability Among Interracial and Same-Race Couples. Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Studies, 57(2): 160–171.Google Scholar
Bugelski, B. R. (1961). Assimilation Through Intermarriage. Social Forces, 40(2): 148–153.Google Scholar
Cain, Bruce E., Kiewiet, Roderick, and Uhlaner, Carole J. (1991). The Acquisition of Partisanship by Latinos and Asian Americans. American Journal of Political Science, 35(2): 390–422.Google Scholar
Campbell, Mary E., and Martin, Molly A. (2016). Race, Immigration, and Exogamy Among the Native-Born: Variation Across Communities. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, 2(2): 142–161.Google Scholar
Caprara, Gian Vittorio, Schwartz, Shalom, Capanna, Cristina, Vecchione, Michele, and Barbaranelli, Claudio (2006). Personality and Politics: Values, Traits, and Political Choice. Political Psychology, 27(1): 1–28.Google Scholar
Carney, Dana R., Jost, John T., Gosling, Samuel D., and Potter, Jeff (2008). The Secret Lives of Liberals and Conservatives: Personality Profiles, Interaction Styles, and the Things They Leave Behind. Political Psychology, 29(6): 807–840.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cutaia Wilkinson, Betina. 2015. Partners or Rivals? Power and Latino, Black, and White Relations in the Twenty-First Century. Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press.Google Scholar
Dalmage, Heather M. (2000). Tripping on the Color Line: Black-White Multiracial Families in a Racially Divided World. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.Google Scholar
Datzman, Jeanine, and Gardner, Carol Brooks (2000). “In My Mind, We Are All Humans” Notes on the Public Management of Black-White Interracial Romantic Relationships. Marriage & Family Review, 30(1–2): 5–24.Google Scholar
Dawson, Michael (1994). Behind the Mule: Race and Class in African-American Politics. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Davenport, Lauren D. (2016). Beyond Black and White: Biracial Attitudes in Contemporary U.S. Politics. American Political Science Review, 110(1): 52–67.Google Scholar
Eastwick, Paul W., Richeson, Jennifer A., Son, Deborah, and Finkel, Eli J. (2009). Is Love Colorblind? Political Orientation and Interracial Romantic Desire. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 35(9): 1258–1268.Google Scholar
Esarey, Justin (2015). Using Interaction Terms as Instrumental Variables for Causal Identification: Does Corruption Harm Economic Development? Working Paper, Department of Political Science, Rice University. <http://jee3.web.rice.edu/instrument-interact.pdf> (accessed January 22, 2018).+(accessed+January+22,+2018).>Google Scholar
Feliciano, Cynthia (2001). Assimilation or Enduring Racial Boundaries? Generational Differences in Intermarriage Among Asians and Latinos in the United States. Race and Society, 4(1): 27–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fu, Xuanning (2008). Interracial Marriage and Family Socio-Economic Well-Being: Equal Status Exchange or Caste Status Exchange? Social Science Journal, 45(1): 132–155.Google Scholar
Fu, Xuanning, and Heaton, Tim B. (2008). Racial and Educational Homogamy: 1980–2000. Sociological Perspectives, 51(4): 735–758.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
García-Castañon, Marcela (2017). Amor, Que Piensas? Spousal Political Socialization in Mexican Immigrant Communities. Paper presented at the 3rd New Research on Gender in Political Psychology Conference. New Orleans, LA, October 22–24.Google Scholar
Gay, Claudine, Hochschild, Jennifer, and White, Ariel (2016). Americans’ Belief in Linked Fate: Does the Measure Capture the Concept? Journal of Race, Ethnicity, and Politics, 1(1): 117–114.Google Scholar
Gerber, Alan S., Huber, Gregory A., Doherty, David, Dowing, Conor M., and Ha, Shang E. (2010). Personality and Political Attitudes: Relationships Across Issue Domains and Political Contexts. American Political Science Review, 104(1): 111–133.Google Scholar
Golebiowska, Ewa A. (2007). The Countours and Etiology of Whites’ Attitudes Toward Black-White Interracial Marriage. Journal of Black Studies, 38(2): 268–287.Google Scholar
Gonsoulin, Margaret, and Fu, Xuanning (2010). Intergenerational Assimilation by Intermarriage: Hispanic and Asian Immigrants. Marriage & Family Review, 46(4): 257–277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gordon, Milton M. (1961). Assimilation in America: Theory and Reality. Daedalus, 90(2): 263–285.Google Scholar
Gordon, Milton M. (1964). Assimilation in American Life: The Role of Race, Religion, and National Origins. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Herman, Melissa R., and Campbell, Mary E. (2012). I Wouldn’t, But You Can: Attitudes Toward Interracial Relationships. Social Science Research, 41(2): 343–358.Google Scholar
Hirsh, Jacob B., DeYoung, Colin G., Xu, Xiaowen, and Peterson, Jordan B. (2010). Compassionate Liberals ans Polite Conservatives: Associations of Agreeableness With Political Ideology and Moral Values. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 36(5): 655–664.Google Scholar
Ho, Daniel E., Imai, Kosuke, King, Gary, and Stuart, Elizabeth A. (2007). Matching as Nonparametric Preprocessing for Reducing Model Dependence in Parametric Causal Inference. Political Analysis, 15(3): 199–236.Google Scholar
Hwang, Sean-Shong, Saenz, Rogelio, and Aguirre, Beningo E. (1997). Structural and Assimilationist Expalnations of Asian American Intermarriage. Journal of Marriage and Family, 59(3): 758–772.Google Scholar
Jacobs, Jerry A., and Labov, G. Teresa (2002). Gender Differentials in Intermarriage Among Sixteen Race and Ethnic Groups. Sociological Forum, 17(4): 621–646.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jann, Ben (2005). Making Regression Tables From Stored Estimates. The Stata Journal, 5(3): 288–308.Google Scholar
Jann, Ben (2007). Making Regression Tables Simplified. The Stata Journal, 7(2): 227–244.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jennings, M. Kent, and Niemi, Richard G. (1968). The Transmission of Political Values From Parent to Child. American Political Science Review, 62(1): 169–184.Google Scholar
Jennings, M. Kent, and Stoker, Laura (2001). Political Similarity and Influence Between Husbands and Wives. Working Paper 2001–14, Institute of Governmental Studies.Google Scholar
Jennings, M. Kent, Stoker, Laura, and Bowers, Jake (2009). Politics Across Generations: Family Transmission Reexamined. The Journal of Politics, 71(3): 782–799.Google Scholar
Junn, Jane, and Masuoka, Natalie (2008). Asian American Identity: Shared Racial Status and Political Context. Perspectives on Politics, 6(4): 729–740.Google Scholar
Kim, Claire Jean (1999). The Racial Triangulation of Asian Americans. Politics & Society, 27(1): 105–138.Google Scholar
Kposowa, Augustine J. (1998). The Impact of Immigration on the United States Economy. Lanham, MD: UPA.Google Scholar
Kuo, Alexander, Malholtra, Neil, and Mo, Cecilia Hyungjung (2017). Social Exclusion and Political Identity: The Case of Asian American Partisanship. The Journal of Politics, 79(1): 17–32.Google Scholar
Lee, Jennifer (2015). From Undesirable to Marriageable: Hyper-selectivity and the Racial Mobility of Asian Americans. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 662(1): 79–93.Google Scholar
Lee, Jennifer, and Bean, Frank (2010). The Diversity Paradox: Immigration and the Color Line in Twenty-First Century America. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation.Google Scholar
Lee, Jennifer, and Bean, Frank (2012). A Postracial Society or a Diversity Paradox?: Race, Immigration, and Multiraciality in the Twenty-First Century. Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race, 9(2): 419–437.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lee, Jennifer, and Zhou, Min (2014). The Success Frame and Achievement Paradox: The Costs and Consequences for Asian Americans. Race and Social Problems, 6(1): 38–55.Google Scholar
Lee, Jennifer, and Zhou, Min (2016). Unravelling the Link Between Culture and Achievement. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 39(13): 2404–2411.Google Scholar
Lee, Jennifer, and Zhou, Min (2017). Why Class Matters Less for Asian-American Academic Achievement. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 43(14): 2316–2330.Google Scholar
Lee, Sharon M., and Fernandez, Marilyn (1998). Trends in Asian American Racial/Ethnic Intermarriage: A Comparison of 1980 and 1990 Census Data. Sociological Perspectives, 41(2): 323–342.Google Scholar
Lee, Sharon M., and Yamanaka, Keiko (1990). Patterns of Asian American Intermarriage and Marital Assimilation. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 21(2): 287–305.Google Scholar
Liang, Zai, and Ito, Naomi (1999). Intermarriage of Asian Americans in the New York City Region: Contemporary Patterns and Future Prospects. The International Migration Review, 33(4): 876–900.Google Scholar
Marcson, Simon (1950). A Theory of Intermarriage and Assimilation. Social Forces, 29: 75–78.Google Scholar
Masuoka, Natalie (2008). Political Attitudes and Ideologies of Multiracial Americans: The Implications of Mixed Race in the United States. Political Research Quarterly, 61(2): 253–267.Google Scholar
Masuoka, Natalie (2011). The “Multiracial” Option: Social Group Identity and Changing Racial Categorization. American Politics Research, 39(1): 176–204.Google Scholar
Masuoka, Natalie, and Junn, Jane (2013). The Politics of Belonging: Race, Public Opinion, and Immigration. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Min, Pyong Gap, and Kim, Chigon (2009). Patterns of Intermarriages and Cross-Generational In-Marriags Among Native-Born Asian Americans. International Migration Review, 43(3): 447–470.Google Scholar
Niemi, Richard G., Hedges, Roman, and Kent Jennings, M. (1977). The Similarity of Husbands’ and Wives’ Political Views. American Politics Quarterly, 5(2): 133–148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perry, Samuel L. (2013). Are Interracial Daters More Supportive of Same-Sex Unions? The Social Science Journal, 50(2): 252–256.Google Scholar
Pettigrew, Thomas E. (1998). Intergroup Contact Theory. Annual Review of Psychology, 49: 65–85.Google Scholar
Portes, Alejandro, and Zhou, Min (1993). The New Second Generation: Segmented Assimilation and its Variants. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 530(1): 74–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Price, C. A., and Zubrzycki, J. (1962). The Use of Inter-Marriage Statistics as an Index of Assimilation. Population Studies, 16(1): 58–69.Google Scholar
Qian, Zhenchao (1997). Breaking the Racial Barriers: Variations in Interracial Marriage Between 1980 and 1990. Demography, 34(2): 263–276.Google Scholar
Qian, Zhenchao (1999). Who Intermarries? Education, Nativity, Region, and Interracial Marriage, 1980–1990. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 30(4): 579–597.Google Scholar
Qian, Zhenchao, and Lichter, Daniel T. (2001). Measuring Marital Assimilation: Intermarriage Among Natives and Immigrants. Social Science Research, 30(2): 289–312.Google Scholar
Qian, Zhenchao, and Lichter, Daniel T. (2007). Social Boundaries and Marital Assimilation: Interpreting Trends in Racial and Ethnic Intermarriage. American Sociological Review, 72(1): 68–94.Google Scholar
Ramakrishnan, S. Karthick (2014). Asian Americans and the Rainbow: The Prospects and Limits of Coalitional Politics. Politics, Groups, and Identities, 2(3): 522–529.Google Scholar
Ramakrishnan, S. Karthick, and Espenshade, Thomas J. (2001). Immigrant Incorporation and Political Participation in the United States. International Migration Review, 35(3): 870–909.Google Scholar
Ramakrishnan, S. Karthick, Junn, Jane, Lee, Taeku, and Wong, Janelle (2012). National Asian American Survey, 2008. ICPSR31418–v2. Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor]. <http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/icpsrweb/RCMD/studies/31481/version/2> (accessed: January 22, 2018).+(accessed:+January+22,+2018).>Google Scholar
Reeves Kennedy, Ruby Jo (1944). Single or Triple Melting-Pot? Intermarriage Trends in New Haven 1870–1940. American Journal of Sociology, 49(4): 331–339.Google Scholar
Sanchez, Gabriel R., and Masuoka, Natalie (2010). Brown-Utility Heuristic? The Presence of Contributing Factors of Latino Linked Fate. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Scienes, 32(4): 519–531.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sanchez, Gabriel R., and Vargas, Edward D. (2016). Taking a Closer Look at Group Identity: The Link Between Theory and Measurement of Group Consciousness and Linked Fate. Political Research Quarterly, 69(1): 160–174.Google Scholar
Schildkraut, Deborah J. (2012). Which Birds of a Feather Flock Together? Assessing Attitudes About Descriptive Representation Among Latinos and Asian Americans. American Politics Research, 41(4): 699–729.Google Scholar
Song, Dr. Miri (2009). Is Intermarriage a Good Indicator of Integration? Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 35(2): 331–348.Google Scholar
Sovey, Allison J., and Green, Donald P. (2011). Instrumental Variables Estimation in Politica Science. American Journal of Political Science, 55(1): 188–200.Google Scholar
Stout, Christopher T., Kretschmer, Kelsy, and Ruppanner, Leah (2017). Gender Linked Fate, Race/Ethnicity, and the Marriage Gap in American Politics. Political Research Quarterly, 70(3): 509–522.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Terracol, Antoine (2001, 2002). Sutex: Stata Module to LaTeX Code for Summary Statistics Tables. Statistical Software Components at Boston University. <https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:boc:bocode:s420102> (accessed: January 22, 2018).+(accessed:+January+22,+2018).>Google Scholar
Tesler, Michael (2013). The Return of Old-Fashioned Racism to White Americans’ Partisan Preferences in the Early Obama Era. Journal of Politics, 75(1): 110–123.Google Scholar
Tsunokai, Glenn T., Kposowa, Augustine J., and Adams, Michele A. (2009). Racial Preferences in Internet Dating. Western Journal of Black Studies, 33(1): 1–15.Google Scholar
Verhulst, Brad, Eaves, Lindon J., and Hatemi, Peter K. (2012). Correlation Not Causation: The Relationship Between Personality Traits and Political Ideology. American Journal of Political Science, 56(1): 34–51.Google Scholar
Wang, Wendy (2012). The Rise of Intermarriage: Rates, Characteristics Vary by Race and Gender. Social & Demographic Trends, Pew Research Center, Washington, DC: Pew Research Center. <http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/files/2012/02/SDT-Intermarriage-II.pdf> (accessed: January 22, 2018).Google Scholar
Waring, Chandra D. L. (2013). “They See Me as Exotic...That Intrigues Them:” Gender, Sexuality and the Racially Ambiguous Body. Race, Gender & Class, 20(3/4): 299–317.Google Scholar
Wilkins, Clara L., Chan, Joy F., and Kaiser, Cheryl R. (2011). Racial Stereotypes and Interracial Attraction: Phenotypic Prototypicality. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 17(4): 427–431.Google Scholar
Wing Sue, Derald, Bucceri, Jennifer, Lin, Annie I., Nadal, Kevin L., and Torino, Gina C. (2007). Racial Microagressions and the Asian American Experience. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 13(1): 72–81.Google Scholar
Wong, Janelle S. (2000). The Effects of Age and Political Exposure on the Development of Party Identification Among Asian American and Latino Immigrants in the United States. Political Behavior, 22(4): 341–371.Google Scholar
Wong, Janelle S., Karthick Ramakrishnan, S., Lee, Taeku, and Junn, Jane (2011). Asian American Political Participation: Emerging Constituents and Their Political Identities. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.Google Scholar
Yancey, George (2002). Who Interracially Dates: An Examination of the Characteristics of Those Who Have Interracially Dated. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 33(2): 179–190.Google Scholar
Yancey, George (2003). Who is White? Latinos, Asians, and the Black/Nonblack Divide. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers.Google Scholar
Yancey, George (2007a). Experiencing Racism: Differences in the Exeriences of Whites Married to Blacks and non-Black Racial Minorities. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 38(2): 197–213.Google Scholar
Yancey, George (2007b). Homogamy Over the Net: Using Internet Advertisements to Discover Who Interracially Dates. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 24(6): 913–930.Google Scholar
Zhenchao, Qian, Lee Blair, Sampson, and Ruf, Stacey D. (2001). Asian American Interracial and Interethnic Marriages: Differences by Education and Nativity. International Migration Review, 35(2): 557–586.Google Scholar
Zhou, Min (2004). Are Asian Americans Becoming “White?” Contexts, 3(1): 29–37.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: PDF

Lemi and Kposowa supplementary material

Tables A1-A3

Download Lemi and Kposowa supplementary material(PDF)
PDF 124.8 KB