Race, Gender, Class, and Perceived Everyday Discrimination

Philip Yang; Sharon Henderson

doi:10.29333/ejecs/1801

Authors

Philip Yang Texas Woman's University https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7454-2898
Sharon Henderson Texas Woman's University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejecs/1801

Keywords:

Perceived everyday discrimination, race, gender, class, intersectionality, the United States

Abstract

Everyday discrimination has been studied for the last three decades, but there is a lack of quantitative research on the effects of race, gender, and class, and especially their intersectional effects, on perceived everyday discrimination for the U.S. population as a whole, despite a few studies at the local or group levels. Using new data from the 2018 General Social Survey and multiple regression, this study investigates how race, gender, and class independently and intersectionally shape everyday discrimination experiences in the United States. The results indicate that, holding other variables constant, Blacks self-claimed a significantly higher level of everyday discrimination than Whites, but other races did not differ significantly from Whites in such an experience; class was inversely associated with the level of everyday discrimination, and gender did not have an independent effect. However, while Black men self-reported a higher level of everyday discrimination than White men, Black women self-reported a lower level of everyday discrimination than White women; higher-class Blacks tended to report a significantly higher level of everyday discrimination experiences than lower-class Blacks. The findings have significant implications for research and practice in the area of everyday discrimination.

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Author Biographies

Philip Yang, Texas Woman's University

Philip Q. Yang is Professor of Sociology at Texas Woman’s University. He is the author of three books, the editor of four books, and an author of more than 100 articles on race and ethnicity, immigration, citizenship, transnationalism, Asian Americans/immigrants, Chinese immigration and immigrants, and demography in numerous referred journals and edited volumes. His research has received funding from various sources including the National Science Foundation.

Sharon Henderson, Texas Woman's University

Sharon M. Henderson is a Ph.D. candidate in sociology at Texas Woman’s University. Her areas of research interests include Black/African American studies, race and ethnic studies, criminology, and political sociology. Email: SHenderson6@twu.edu.

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