Date of Award
August 2024
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Management Science
First Advisor
Romila Singh
Second Advisor
Belle Ragins
Committee Members
Timothy Haas, Keimei Sugiyama
Keywords
Diversity Equity and Inclusion, Non-Native accents
Abstract
Latinx represent the largest and fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, making them a significant segment of the next generation of American workers (Pew Research Center, 2022; USA Facts, 2021). Despite these trends, Latinx continue to face employment discrimination and glass ceiling barriers that prevent them from gaining leadership positions in the United States (Lu, Huang, Seshagiri, Park & Griggs, 2020).
Latinx employees face two significant advancement barriers: barriers related to their (a) ethnicity and (b) their accents (Purkiss, Perrewe, Gillespie et al., 2006). Both these attributes reflect stigmas that lead to discriminatory work outcomes (Hosoda, Nguyen, & Stone‐Romero, 2012; Purkiss et al., 2006). However, we know little about how accent and ethnicity combine to influence workplace discrimination. More importantly, we lack an understanding of the psychological processes underlying these biases.
In addressing these omissions, my dissertation integrated stigma theory (Goffman, 1963), intergroup threat theory (Stephan & Stephan, 1985; 2000), and intergroup contact theory (Allport, 1954; Pettigrew, 1998) to examine the independent and combined effects of Latinx ethnicity and Spanish accents on non-Hispanic White rater’s affective reactions and employment decisions. This dissertation includes two experimental studies that tested the integrated theoretical model using national samples of non-Hispanic Whites who constitute the predominant ethnic and linguistic group in the United States (US Census Bureau, 2021) and are more likely to make hiring and promotion decisions. The first study of 398 respondents examines the independent and interactive role of ethnic and accent cues by randomly assigning respondents to four experimental conditions involving a fictional non-Hispanic White or Latinx job applicant with a Spanish or Standard English accent. Analyses revealed that non-Hispanic White raters were less likely to want to work with a Latinx applicant with a Spanish accent. This effect was not found for conditions involving Latinx applicants with a Standard American accent. Further analyses revealed that this relationship was mediated by intergroup anxiety toward Latinx. Additionally, the study correlations found a direct effect of accent but not ethnicity on the desire to work with an applicant, i.e., the raters expressed a lower desire to work with a Spanish-accented target as compared to the Standard American-accented target. In sum, the findings suggest that accent plays a more significant role than ethnicity in predicting employment outcomes.
The second study of 326 non-Hispanic White respondents tested a practical strategy for addressing biases by examining the effects of an intervention that has been shown to reduce racial/ethnic bias: imagined positive contact (Crisp & Turner, 2009). In a multi-wave design, Study 2 investigated if imagining positive contact with a Latinx who spoke with a Standard American or Spanish accent had an impact on the rater’s anxiety and workplace evaluations of targets as compared to imagining contact with non-Hispanic White who spoke with a Standard American accent. Results indicated that those who imagined contact with a Latinx who speak with a Standard American accent were more likely to want to work with the imagined contact and saw both the imagined person and Latinx in general, as having more advancement potential. In contrast, imagining contact with a Latinx with a Spanish accent had no impact on these employment outcomes. Further, individual difference variables of political ideology and social dominance orientation moderated the relationship between imagined contact with Standard American-accented Latinx and intergroup anxiety such that raters who identified as conservatives and high on SDO exhibited higher intergroup anxiety compared to their liberal and low on SDO counterparts. Similarly, social dominance orientation also moderated the relationship between Spanish-accented Latinx and intergroup anxiety. Lastly, the study’s correlations found a direct impact of imagined contact with a Latinx with a Standard American accent (but not imagined contact with a Latinx with a Spanish accent) on willingness to work with the target. Overall, the results of both studies highlight that accent takes precedence over ethnicity in predicting non-Hispanic White reactions to those who speak with a non-native accent in the workplace.
This research offers both theoretical and practical contributions. From a theoretical perspective, the two studies investigate the independent and interactive role of ethnicity and accents in evaluations of Latinx applicants. From a broader perspective, this research offered needed insights on the synergistic effects of multiple stigmas on evaluations of job candidates and the role that anxiety played in these reactions. Taken together, this dissertation provides evidence-based practical strategies for creating inclusive and equitable workplaces for Latinx individuals.
Recommended Citation
Yadav, Megha, "UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF ETHNICITY AND ACCENT BIASES IN EVALUATIONS OF LATINX APPLICANTS" (2024). Theses and Dissertations. 3641.
https://dc.uwm.edu/etd/3641