Racial Threat, Residential Segregation, and the Policy Attitudes of Anglos

• DOI: 10.1177/1065912908320931
• Published date: 01 June 2009
• Date: 01 June 2009
• Subject Matter: Articles

Political Research Quarterly
Volume 62 Number 2
June 2009 415-426
© 2009 University of Utah
Racial Threat, Residential Segregation,
10.1177/1065912908320931
http://prq.sagepub.com
and the Policy Attitudes of Anglos
hosted at
http://online.sagepub.com
Rene R. Rocha
University of Iowa, Iowa City
Rodolfo Espino
Arizona State University, Tempe
The impact of racial context on the political behavior of Anglos has been a focus of social science research for well
over half a century. We suggest that a shortcoming of earlier work has been the failure to account for the levels of
segregation within a community. Relying on data from the Latino National Political Survey, our findings show that
Anglo attitudes toward English-language and immigration policies are significantly related to changes in the size of
the Latino population conditional on levels of segregation. We also find that Latinos elicit different reactions from
Anglos based on their fluency in English and nativity.
Keywords:
racial context; segregation; immigration; Latino politics
Alively debate exists within the social sciences Voss and Miller 2001). The austerity of this disagree-
regarding the determinants of racial attitudes
ment, however, may be partially caused by the nar-
among Anglos within the United States. Among the
row way in which scholars have interpreted the
most studied explanations of racial attitudes is the con-
racial-threat hypothesis.
textual hypothesis often referred to as racial threat. In
Read more broadly, Key argued that racial context,
its simplest form, the hypothesis suggests that “a super-
in some form, works to shape racial attitudes. Oliver
ordinate group (e.g., whites) becomes more racially
and Mendelberg (2000), for instance, maintain that
hostile as the size of the proximate subordinate group
Key’s argument is far more intricate than it has been
increases, which punitively threatens the former’s eco-
portrayed in subsequent scholarship. As commonly
nomic and social privilege” (Oliver and Wong 2003,
operationalized, a test of the threat argument involves
568). In the section of Southern Politics that gave rise
regressing some measure of Anglo attitudes against
to this theory, Key ([1949] 1984) observes that counties
the percentage of some minority group within a given
with substantial African American populations were
geographical unit. Indeed, this is the category into
also ones in which conservative gubernatorial candi-
which a large number, easily a majority, of studies
dates enjoyed the most support. This leads Key ([1949]
fall (e.g., Giles 1977; Giles and Buckner 1993; Glaser
1984, 43) to remark that “the backbone of southern
1994; Tolbert and Grummel 2003). The fact that the
conservatism may be found in those areas with high
results of many of these studies are mixed and often
concentrations of Negro population.” Other scholars of
contradictory (e.g., Voss 1996a; Hood and Morris
the era, such as Keech (1969), also noted similar rela-
1997) may be interpreted as an indication that the
tionships, further suggesting that racial context has an
phenomenon is more complex than early scholars ini-
impact on Anglo attitudes.
tially conceived it to be, and consequently, than how
Considering that the influence of racial context on
latter scholars attempted to test for it. It is difficult to
political attitudes centers largely on the racial-threat
believe that these differing results are entirely
hypothesis and its variants, null findings regarding the
because of methodological shortcomings or the dif-
effect of minority groups size on Anglo attitudes have
fering geographical units that scholars have focused
been interpreted in some settings as evidence that
on, a set of criticisms Voss (1996a) says explains
racial context is largely irrelevant. Other scholars have
gone so far as to claim that there is a significant rela-
Rene R. Rocha, Assistant Professor of Political Science,
tionship between minority population size and major-
University of Iowa; e-mail: rene-rocha@uiowa.edu.
ity attitudes, but the direction of the relationship
Rodolfo Espino, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Arizona
suggested by racial-threat studies is backwards (e.g.,
State University; e-mail: espino@asu.edu.
415

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Political Research Quarterly
some of the findings supporting the threat hypothesis.
composition can vary widely depending on what geo-
Rather, the “law” of racial threat may operate differ-
graphic unit or level is measured.”
ently in various settings.
An alternate and seemingly opposite explanation
Relatively little is known about how the applica-
of white racial attitudes is the social-contact hypoth-
bility of the racial-threat hypothesis varies by region.
esis. The literature on social contact contends that as
Key’s observation, of course, only applied to the
direct contact with a minority group increases, inter-
South. While the hypothesis has been extended to
racial affability likewise increases (Aberbach and
other regions, including the West, Northeast, and
Walker 1973; Ellison and Powers 1994; Meer and
Midwest (Huckfeldt and Kohfeld 1989), it is difficult
Freedman 1966; Schuman and Hatchett 1974;
to parse out any regional effects in these studies, as
Tsukashima and Montero 1976; Williams 1964;
few of them use multiregional or national samples.
Sigelman and Welch 1993; Welch and Sigelman
Typically, samples are drawn using respondents from
2000). This occurs because increased contact makes
the regions (Glaser 1994), single states (Tolbert and
it difficult for groups to accept typically negative
Hero 1996; Tolbert and Grummel 2003; Giles and
stereotypes and also increases the probability of both
Buckner 1993; Stein, Post, and Rinden 2000; Voss
groups’ holding shared values (Forbes 1997). Perhaps
1996a), or even single metropolitan areas (Welch
the most impressive feature of the social-contact
et al. 2001). For this reason, Voss (2000, 42) dis-
hypothesis is its consistency. Unlike the racial-threat
misses much of the research on the racial-threat
hypothesis, social contact is almost uniformly found
hypothesis, noting that “the few cases in which a
to reduce interracial hostility. Forbes (1997) counts
backlash pattern appears generally rely on Southern
more than thirty-eight studies that confirm the basic
data, and therefore cannot escape the historically
hypothesis. Social contact also appears to be a very
contingent nature of the findings.” However, excep-
powerful predictor of Anglo racial attitudes, often
tions to Voss’s objection do exist. For instance,
washing out the effects of sociodemographic vari-
Taylor’s (1998) study on threat concludes that the
ables such as education (Welch et al. 2001).
relationship between the size of the African American
While contact itself is not a contextual variable, it
population and Anglo negativity is actually strongest
is greatly influenced by contextual factors such as
outside of the South. Moreover, Quillian (1995) pro-
residential segregation. Welch et al. (2001) find that
vides evidence of threat in a comparative setting,1
individuals residing in racially mixed areas are sig-
further downplaying concerns that racial threat is a
nificantly more likely to report higher levels of inter-
unique historical and geographical phenomenon con-
racial contact than are those living in racially
fined to the American South and African Americans.
homogenous areas. Contradictory threat findings on
In their study of the relationship between Latino
the part of scholars may be expected considering that
population size and Anglo attitudes toward liberal
various other components of racial context, such as
immigration policies, Hood and Morris (1997) rely
the level of residential segregation, are likely to vary
on a national sample of respondents. Although they
greatly in different settings. Oliver and Wong (2003)
find no relationship nationally, they do find evidence
find that the attitudes of Anglos behave in a manner
of state-specific effects, especially in California. This
consistent with the racial-threat hypothesis at the
leads them to speculate that “living in a state with a
metropolitan level but not in neighborhood contexts.
sizeable and growing Hispanic population, but not in
When Anglos reside in homogenous neighborhoods
close proximity to these groups, may produce nega-
but heterogeneous metropolitan areas, hostility is
tive Anglo affect toward Hispanics” (315). Hood and
likely to be high. The reverse is true when they
Morris’s (1997) finding of state-specific effects also
reside in neighborhoods that are heterogeneous. This
coincided with work by Rodney Hero (1998), who
leads Oliver and Wong to stress the importance of a
developed a theory regarding social diversity and
second component of racial context, residential seg-
racial attitudes/public polices at the state level. In any
regation, for reducing levels of interracial hostility
case, it seems clear that the geographic units from
and facilitating social contact. Baybeck (2006)
which scholars draw their data are likely to bias their
makes a similar observation. Relying on a sample of
ability to either confirm or reject the racial-threat
residents from the St. Louis and Indianapolis areas,
hypothesis. For this reason, we echo Oliver and
he finds differing effects at the block-group and city
Mendleberg’s (2000, 577) sentiment that “identify-
levels regarding the relationship between racial con-
ing a context’s boundaries is essential for under-
text and Anglo...