UC Santa Barbara

Membership in a racial or ethnic minority group may increase the likelihood of being inappropriately classified or being denied the opportunity to accurately self-categorize. As a result, racial/ethnic minorities may feel less valued as members of the culture that denies these possibilities. This research explored whether giving racial/ethnic minorities the opportunity to self-categorize with their preferred racial/ethnic group affects minorities’ emotions, feelings of inclusion as U.S. Americans, and personal judgments about their social rank in relation to others. I predicted that being recognized as, and being able to choose, a preferred racial/ethnic identity provides both optimal identity distinctiveness and inclusion in the superordinate American group, and thus the most positive emotions, feelings of inclusion, and judgments of social rank.