Unaffirmed and color‐blind: Racial worldview and stigma experienced in interracial relationships

Abstract

Marginalization as an interracial couple has been associated with poorer relationship functioning and poorer mental health outcomes. However, what contributes to whether interracial relationship (IR) partners perceive their relationship as stigmatized is not fully understood.Using a racially diverse sample of over 200 participants in IRs, this study addresses group and individual differences in the experience of IR stigma. Results suggest that, despite literature on related constructs such as stigma consciousness (the extent to which one is aware that they face marginalization or discrimination), there were no race-based group differences in reports of experienced stigma. Instead, a more nuanced account of a person's understanding of the intrapersonal, interper-

Maybe, maybe not: Racial discourse and worldview in interracial relationships.

“…Finally, explicitly addressing partners’ understanding of racism can allow for an externalization of it as an institutional phenomenon. By acknowledging institutional racism, partners can forego the associated detriment in relationship quality (Brooks & Morrison, 2021) and engage in critical discussions about how racism affects the family system. As indicated here, interracial relationship partners do discuss individual experiences of discrimination and the topic of police brutality, a sort of color-blind approach, which dismisses experiences of racism, could invite the harming effects of victim blaming into the relationship and add stressors on the relationships from within (Mekawi & Todd, 2018).…”

Stigma and Relationship Quality: The Relevance of Racial-Ethnic Worldview in Interracial Relationships in the United States

“…The investigation of Research Question 1 offered a direct test of an association between REW and relationship quality, whereas prior studies have theorized about possible connections only indirectly (Brooks, 2022b ). The results concluded that participants' REW is associated with relationship quality.…”

“…As part of this special issue, we will ground the experiences of those in interracial relationships with attention to the race-based power structures that are characteristic of the United States, a western, educated, industrialized, rich, democratic (WEIRD) society. For the purposes of this study, interracial relationships are defined as intimate pairings of individuals in which a person's racial self-identification is different than their partner's (Brooks, 2022b ). Included in this group are mono-racial individuals of different group identifications and relationships in which one or both partners identify as multiracial but there is a difference in racial group heritage between partners (e.g., a person of Black/White racial background in a relationship with a person of Latinx/White background).…”

“…A recent study has connected a particular type of Racial-ethnic Worldview with greater perception and attribution of racism based on relationship type. Specifically, those that both minimize or dismiss the occurrence of racism and also hold below-average levels of positive affect for their identity experienced the greatest amount of discrimination and marginalization (Brooks, 2022b ). Collectively, the existing scholarship on REW supports the use of a person-centered approach as the conclusions drawn was only reached when the interaction among domains was assessed.…”

“…Prior research has connected felt stigma and experiences of marginalization with poorer relationship outcomes (Lehmiller and Agnew, 2006 ; Rosenthal and Starks, 2015 ). Brooks ( 2022b ) found that those who denied institutionalized racism and had poor intrapersonal feelings regarding their ethnicity reported greater stigma. As such, it is plausible that REW may be directly associated with reports of relationship quality.…”