Research Guides: Dimensions of Diversity: Race & Color

What is Race, Color and Ethnicity?

Race (from the Open Education Sociology Dictionary):

(n.) A socially created and poorly defined categorization into groups on basis of real or perceived physical characteristics

Racism (from the Open Education Sociology Dictionary):

(n.) Any attitude, belief, or behavior used to explain and justify prejudice and discrimination against racial or ethnic minorities, on the basis of perceived inferiority.

Race (from the American Psychological Association):

(n.) the social construction and categorization of people based on perceived shared physical traits that result in the maintenance of a sociopolitical hierarchy. The term is also loosely applied to geographic, cultural, religious, or national groups. The significance often accorded to racial categories might suggest that such groups are objectively defined and homogeneous; however, there is much heterogeneity within categories, and the categories themselves differ across groups and cultures. Moreover, self-reported race frequently varies owing to changing social contexts and an individual’s possible identification with more than one race.

Why do social workers need to understand race, color and ethnicity?

Social workers recognize that race and color play a critical role in shaping individual and collective experiences, with racialized individuals often facing prejudice, marginalization, and limited access to resources. Social workers are committed to understanding the complex ways in which race and color affect clients’ lives and to challenging the social structures that perpetuate racial inequalities. This includes advocating for policies and practices that promote racial equity, social justice, and the dignity of all individuals, regardless of race or color.

Readings on Race & Color

The Encyclopedia of Social Work

Critical race theory and macro social work practice For social work administrators, CRT provides a framework for identifying and assessing implicit and explicit racism in internal and external organizational policies, structures, and practices. In community work, CRT places race and racism at the center of localized patterns of disempowerment and inequality.

Additional Resources:

Adolescent Motherhood and Capital: interaction effects of race/ethnicity on harsh parenting Lee, Y. (2013). Adolescent Motherhood and Capital: interaction effects of race/ethnicity on harsh parenting. Journal of Community Psychology, 41(1), 102–116. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.21517.
Chinese and Indian International Students: Vital Components for Campus Life Coping and Adjustment Ma, K., Pitner, R., Sakamoto, I., & Park, H. Y. (2022). Chinese and Indian International Students: Vital Components for Campus Life Coping and Adjustment. College Student Journal, 56(1), 94–108.

Videos on Race & Color

The Urgency of Intersectionality

Now more than ever, it's important to look boldly at the reality of race and gender bias -- and understand how the two can combine to create even more harm. Kimberlé Crenshaw uses the term "intersectionality" to describe this phenomenon; as she says, if you're standing in the path of multiple forms of exclusion, you're likely to get hit by both. In this moving talk, she calls on us to bear witness to this reality and speak up for victims of prejudice.

How to Deconstruct Racism, One Headline at a Time

Baratunde Thurston explores the phenomenon of white Americans calling the police on Black Americans who have committed the crimes of ... eating, walking or generally "living while Black." In this profound, thought-provoking and often hilarious talk, he reveals the power of language to change stories of trauma into stories of healing -- while challenging us all to level up.

How Racism Makes us Sick

Why does race matter so profoundly for health? David R. Williams developed a scale to measure the impact of discrimination on well-being, going beyond traditional measures like income and education to reveal how factors like implicit bias, residential segregation and negative stereotypes create and sustain inequality. In this eye-opening talk, Williams presents evidence for how racism is producing a rigged system -- and offers hopeful examples of programs across the US that are working to dismantle discrimination.