Observing racial socialization: How do White parent-child dyads talk about race?

Abstract

This paper explores the relationship among White parents’ racial socialization behaviors, their perceived socialization practices, and their children’s perceptions of those behaviors. In contrast with previous studies which have relied primarily on parental self-reports of socialization, I presented the parent-child dyad with two race-relevant news clips (i.e. NFL kneeling controversy and Confederate statue removal) and asked them to watch and discuss the clips. I then separated parent and child for independent interviews during which I asked what they had discussed, if they had talked about these or other issues before, and how the subject of race may be approached in their household. Participants were White parent-child dyads (N = 10) in Midwestern US college towns. Children were between the ages of 10-12. In addition to the observation and interviews, parents and children were also given racial socialization and racial bias measures. Results indicate that although parents express an interest and sense of comfort surrounding race-related conversations with their children, parents employed a combination of colorblind and color-conscious messages when discussing current events with their children. Other related themes also emerged in parent-child conversations about race, such as the role of the media, the current political climate, and race as a contemporary versus historical issue. This study uses a novel, mixed-methods approach to study how White parents discuss race, the messages they think they are sending, and ways in which their children perceive those messages. Little research has been done to look at the congruency between messages parents send and those the child perceives, especially with children in this age range.