Interest Convergence or Divergence? A Critical Race Analysis of Asian Americans, Meritocracy, and Critical Mass in the Affirmative Action Debate

Abstract

precollege characteristics, structural diversity of the student's high school and college, and peer interaction in student organizations (Greek, ethnic, and religious organizations) on the development of interracial friendships in college were explored through structural equation modeling. Structural diversity in college had both direct and indirect effects on the students' interracial friendships in college, having interracial friends in high school positively predicted structural diversity and interracial friendship in college, and the students of color were more likely than the White students to have interracial friendships in college. Participation in Greek and religious organizations in college had negative effects on interracial friendship in college, while belonging to an ethnic organization had no impact. Although interacting with peers in Greek organizations was negatively related to the development of interracial friendships in college, this relationship was mitigated by attending a more racially diverse institution.

How Meritocracy is Defined Today?: Contemporary Aspects of Meritocracy

“…One possible implication of this is that the concept of merit may vary from nation to nation and institution to institution according to the given circumstances (Park & Liu, 2014). So does meritocracy.…”

Toward a Critical Race Praxis for Educational Research

“…Nonetheless, at some selective institutions there is evidence of negative action, wherein Asian American applicants are held to a higher standard than whites in admissions, reducing the number of Asian American applicants admitted in comparison to white admits (Kidder, 2006). Drawing from critical race theory, scholars have identified how this emerging dominant narrative in the affirmative action debate seeks to create a wedge between Asian Americans and other communities of color, and to work in service of advancing white privilege (e.g., Chang, 2015;Park & Liu, 2014;Jayakumar & Garces, 2015). While still in early litigation phases, these cases are likely to make their way to the Supreme Court and impact institutional policy on a national scale.…”

Affirmative Action at a Crossroads: Fisher and Forward

“…After the elimination of affirmative action in California, Asian American students filled the gap, while White enrollment declined, a trend that has continued in this direction (Colburn et al., ). Nonetheless, research indicates that Asian Americans have been hurt by “negative action” through the greater likelihood of Whites with the same test scores and GPAs to gain admission to selective universities (see Park & Liu, , for review). With the advent of holistic notions of merit, Asian Americans are particularly susceptible to stereotypes and being held to a higher standard of excellence than other racial and ethnic groups, particularly on nonstandardized measures of achievement such as leadership and cocurricular activities (Park & Liu, ).…”

“…Nonetheless, research indicates that Asian Americans have been hurt by “negative action” through the greater likelihood of Whites with the same test scores and GPAs to gain admission to selective universities (see Park & Liu, , for review). With the advent of holistic notions of merit, Asian Americans are particularly susceptible to stereotypes and being held to a higher standard of excellence than other racial and ethnic groups, particularly on nonstandardized measures of achievement such as leadership and cocurricular activities (Park & Liu, ). The perception of “group threat” by Asian American students in the admissions process was confirmed in a study conducted by Frank Samson that highlights the fluidity in public perceptions of meritocracy (Samson, ).…”