Are You Minority Enough? Language Ability Affects Targets' and Perceivers' Assessments of a Candidate's Appropriateness for Affirmative Action

Abstract

In the present study, we focus on Spanish language ability as a predictor of the extent to which Latinos are viewed by both others and themselves as full-fledged minorities. Study 1 shows that perceivers viewed Latinos described as Spanish speakers as more appropriate for race-based affirmative action than Latinos who were unable to speak Spanish (controlling for intellectual competence evaluations). Moreover, the affirmative action advantage that the Spanish-speaking Latinos had over the non-Spanish-speaking Latinos was explained by perceivers viewing the Spanish speakers as having greater minority status. The results of Study 2 suggest that Spanish-speaking ability is related to self-perceptions of minority status among Latinos. Like their perceivers in Study 1, Latinos who have less Spanish-speaking ability feel less Latino and report reluctance to apply for race-based assistance in the form of academic minority scholarships.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Special thanks to Lee Jussim and Laurie Rudman for their helpful comments on earlier drafts of the article.

Notes

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Note. Each row represents the structural model performed. NFI = normed fit index; NNFI = non-normed fit index; CFI = comparative fit index; RMSEA = root mean square error of approximation.