Emotional Reactions to Non-Dominant Cultures

"White people are not white: part of the price of the white ticket is to delude themselves into believing that they are" (Jay & Jones, 2005, p.105). What is being white? We ask ourselves this question when analyzing the topic of whiteness studies. Whiteness can be thought of as very artificial, the slipperiness makes whiteness difficult to see, hard to pin down, and impossible to eradicate (Willette & Lasarow, 2003). Whiteness studies are part of the everlasting battle between races, classes, ethnicity and identity that exists each time we turn our heads. Our group will be exploring the "Whiteness Affects" in America and around the world incorporating how and why identity plays a role in this phenomenon. The focus for the paper will be to question whether White people in the U.S. will have a stronger emotional reaction when placed in a non-dominant situation than other ethnic groups. To explore this information further a focus will be placed on many different sources of previously researched information regarding whiteness that will provide a firm foundation to begin exploring our topic. This review of literature will also illustrate that although current research supports many aspects of the topic suggested, further research is necessary to specifically support the proposed hypothesis. First, some rationale will be given regarding the need for further research on this topic. Then, whiteness will be explored as it relates to invisibility, power and privilege. An examination of research involving management of non-dominant behavior in a predominately white environment will be explored. Next, decentering will be discussed as well as ways to accomplish decentering. Then, whiteness on defense will be reviewed.

Whiteness is important to investigate for a variety of reasons. These reasons will provide a rationale for further research of the proposed hypothesis regarding placement in non-dominant situations. First, examining how people react out of their comfort zones will be valuable in future studies regarding breaking racial barriers. By placing people in situations that may make them feel uncomfortable, we can observe and get a better understanding of what and how they are feeling. If why can begin to understand why interracial communication is so problematic, we may begin to move towards a more interculturally sound society. Another important issue that provides an excellent reason for further research on this subject is to help raise awareness, and to educate white individuals about the meaning of whiteness. Whiteness is a highly abstract idea that is subject to a great deal of interpretation. When it comes to the issue of race, white society members usually do not have to think about racism on a day-to-day basis. Since the more dominant group has always been the "white" culture, we tend not to think about race extensively. "Being white is a 'visible' qualification of what it means to be 'American.' To be white in America is to not have to think about it" (Jackson, Shin & Wilson, 2004, p. 71).

In order to understand how a reportedly white individual may react placed in a non-dominant situation in counteraction to other ethnicities, it is first important to examine previous research and studies regarding "whiteness." According to the United States 2000 census, 75.1 percent of respondents considered themselves white and nothing else (Wikipedia, 2005). Clearly, white United State Americans represent a large majority over other ethnicities throughout the United States. The power of being white does not only come from being the largest ethnic group in the United States, but derives from a history of dominance. White culture in the United States originated from a synthesis of ideas, values, and beliefs inherited from European ethnic groups. White culture became the foundation of this countries social norm (Jandt, 2004). "Whiteness functions as a visible qualification of social acceptance and power - it is the 'cold card' that permits its cardholders access to every area of American life" (Jackson et al., 2004, p. 71). Throughout American history, and starting with the institution of slavery, people of color have become marginalized within society due to the continuing unequal distribution of power favoring the white citizens (Jackson et al., 2000). It is important to understand how this power may effect a white individuals self image. This effect will play a strong role in how a white individual will react if placed in a non-dominant situation. In many cultures around the world, white individuals are considered the minority. Further research into how they may react in handling this shift of power would be useful. Examining research regarding whiteness as a societal norm will lend insight to a white individual's reaction, yet it will not lend any information that examines the emotional reactions of other ethnicities within a non-dominant environment. So long has whiteness been considered the center of our society that often white individuals do not even view their whiteness as an ethnicity (Hitchcock, 1998). It is in this case that we begin to view white privilege as invisible within our society.

"Whiteness is an invisible, unexamined, privileged state but rather an extremely visible and problematic condition" (Costello, 2004, p. 103). Researchers recently began examining whiteness as a specific position. White individuals think race is about "others" and rarely focus on whiteness itself as a race (Lewis, 2004). Another supporting researcher states that, "When white people…look at racism, we tend to view it as an issue that people of color face and have to struggle with, but not as an issue that generally involves or implicates us…Naming Whiteness displaces it from the unmarked, unnamed status that is itself an effect of its dominance" (in Jackson et al., 2000, p. 69). Ethnic minorities are forced by racial oppression to be aware of themselves as racial groups; white individuals have the luxury of feeling 'normal,' and not aware of their whiteness (Echois, Gabel, Landerman & Reyes, 1998). Whiteness is a relatively uncharted territory that has remained invisible as it continues to influence the identity of those in and out of its domain (Nakayam & Krizek, 1995). Nakayama and Krizek conducted a study that sought to understand the ways that the rhetorical construction of whiteness makes itself visible and invisible, eluding analysis yet exerting influence over everyday life. This study will be especially useful when examining how whiteness remains invisible as an ethnicity. This invisibility links to whiteness as a form of power, both of which will be useful when examining the reaction of white individuals in a non-dominant situation. "Too often research on race engages whites in conversations about race only to ask them about their opinions about others. Whites' own racial subjectivities, their very racial ness, have not been given nearly the same amount of attention as that of racial minorities" (Lewis, 2004, p.626) Being the invisible center of society creates a position of power and privilege.

Holding the power in society leads to greater returns of rewards. "Those who tend to ignore the issue of race either can afford to do so (because it does not effect their possibilities) or are naïve of the political implications of racism, believing that people of color have not been treated unfairly nor have suffered discrimination based on skin color" (Jackson et al., 2000, p. 70). Race is an easy subject to ignore when an individual is already in the power center. An interesting experiment was conducted at the University of Massachusetts in 2003. The Washington Post later referred to the experiment as a "privilege walk." Students lined up and were given an exercise with two rules: When the moderator read a statement that applied to you, you stepped forward; if it didn't apply to you, you stepped back. The moderator then proceeded to give statements such as, "I am certain I could get a bank loan." With each statement it became clearer and clearer that the white students were moving farther ahead then the other ethnicities. All of the students started together, but were now so separated. The purpose of this experiment was to illustrate to students that whites, by mere fact of existence, are generally granted privilege that non-whites do not have (Weinkopf, 2003). Due to the privileges rewarded to those in power, racial issues would not affect the future of a white person in the way it would affect a non-dominant race. Whiteness has come to signify elitism, normativity, appropriateness, privilege, and superiority (Jackson et al., 2000). That privilege should be followed with a responsibility to engage change. Examining whiteness in regards to the privilege will contribute to critically determining the emotional status of a white individual placed in a non-dominant situation. It is useful to understand the complexity behind whiteness in order to proceed with an examination of reaction to placement in non-dominant environments. Each of the articles reviewed thus far have focused all research on whiteness but have not explored emotional states of other ethnicities. Further study in this area will be required. After whiteness has been examined through the lenses of invisibility, power, and privilege, it is important to take this knowledge and examine how a white individual may feel if placed in a non-dominant situation.

A fascinating study was done examining the response to white Muslim women wearing the hijab (the veil) in Britain, a predominately white culture. In Britain, wearing Islamic dress is a sign of difference and non-conformity. The women who dress in the traditional hijab are met with scrutiny and stereotyped imagery. The women in this particular study met this experience with a sense of pride. They had strong beliefs that enabled them a sense of freedom in their non-dominant choice of dress. White women are usually associated with Christianity which suggests these women wearing the Islamic clothing crossed the border of whiteness (Franks, 2000). Encompassing research that has been discussed thus far leads to a curiosity as to whether these women felt this sense of freedom wearing the hijab because they were white. The study did not mention examining how Islamic women felt wearing the veil in a predominately white environment. Some would suggest that this is the result of whiteness forming the center of our society, and the only way to take whiteness out of the center is to replace the center with multiracial values (Hitchcock, 1998). One may wonder if the background of power and privilege attributed to being white allowed a different experience. In a study done by Lord and Saenz, they examined how minority individuals placed in a dominant situation will be seen as tokens, or minorities placed in a non-dominant group setting simply to provide an appearance of tolerance and multiculturalism. They found that minorities will perform more poorly when they are the only members of their social category, even when the majority members treat them no differently (Lord & Saenz, 1985). White individuals are so rarely placed in the recessive position that they would not have developed coping mechanisms. These individuals would have a more emotional reaction and do very poorly in any activities while placed in a non-dominant situation. This leads directly into the need for further study examining how white individuals react to non-dominant situations as opposed to other ethnicities in non-dominant situations. In order to understand the results of that further research it would be useful to understand the relationship between white individuals and individuals of other cultures.

Many researchers focus attention on decentering whiteness in order to break down racial barriers (Hitchcock, 1998). Two aspects must occur in order to achieve a multiracial society. Whiteness must be taking out of the center; you can not leave it in the center and add multiracial values to it. Second, it is important that different ethnicities are not simply giving an external push in order to decenter whiteness, but that there be an internal push by white individuals to decenter whiteness (Hitchcock, 1998). This shows a strong connection to a previous discussion on whiteness as invisibility. If white individuals do not even fully recognize their power and privilege in society, there is no hope that the white individuals will come together to aim for a multiracial society. If one can not see a problem, why fix it. This ties into more need for further study on the topic of white individuals reactions when placed in a non-dominant situation. If this type of situation elicited a strong response in white groups, this may step the society closer to decentering whiteness. If examining the topic of whiteness in non-dominant situations is to be useful, it would also be imperative to address the backlash associated with white individuals who believe that white people are becoming the targets of unwarranted accusations.

Along with critical researchers who believe that whiteness and its connection with power and privilege are a negative aspect that needs attention, there are others who believe that white individuals are being unfairly targeted. According to David Ingram white people, especially white men, have been put on the defensive (Ingram, 2005). Some researchers even believe that when whiteness studies crowds speak of abolishing whiteness, they actually desire to place white individuals below other ethnic groups. Some believe that other ethnic groups do not want equality, but simply want to take the domination for themselves (Weinkopf, 2003). These researchers also consider white individual accomplishments to be an undeserved advantage of being born privileged (Ingram, 2005).This goes against other researchers who believe that "Whites are in denial about their participation in and perpetuation of racism. But there is a growing number of White authors who represent a segment of Whites who understand how their privilege undermines social cohesion and have joined other scholar-activists in seeking remedies" (Jackson et al., 2000, p. 79). Some researchers seem to be fighting to stay in the center of society, while others fight for equality for all ethnic groups. This backlash from groups who feel unfairly targeted is important to examine in connection to the topic selected because it may explain the emotional reactions of some individuals who share this belief. If a white individual does feel persecuted unjustly, they may portray a stronger emotional reaction to being placed in a non-dominant situation. Information exploring whiteness and ethnicity will contribute strongly to the topic presented for examination, but it is also useful to review some research on perceiving emotion.

Measuring emotional response will be a valuable tool when examining strength of emotion of individuals placed in non-dominant environments. This is one of the key aspects relating to the proposed hypothesis. While much of the deciphering of this particular measurement could be attained through self-reporting, it would be useful to have knowledge on decoding emotional cues. In addition to observations and individual self-reporting measuring actual emotional response would lend validity to further studies in this area. In a study done by Baum and Nowicki, the researchers set fourth to set up a system to judge emotion and expression. They developed the DANVA2-AP test which systematically the high and low intensity levels of the four basic emotions (happy, sad, angry, and fearful) based on vocal intonations (Baum & Nowicki, 1998). This would contribute to the topic proposed because it would allow a measure of validation to the hypothesis put forth. This test would also provide a more thorough reading of subjects used for examination. Each aspect of previous literature reviewed has contributed valuable foundational information for the hypothesis proposed. Each study has failed to place together the two ends of the spectrum between white individuals and other ethnicities. This leads to a need for further research to support the following hypothesis.

Hypothesis
White people in the United States will have a stronger emotional reaction when placed in a non-dominant situation than other ethnic groups.

Methods
In order to set forth specific methods for examining this hypothesis, it is important to first operationalize by clearly defining each term. For the purposes of this examination, white people will be defined as, any individual who considers themselves white or Caucasian based on self-report. The United States will include all states within the United States of America. Emotional reaction will be viewed as the physical and psychological manifestation of emotion developed from being placed in a certain situation. Other ethnic groups will be any individual who considers them selves to be not white based on self report. Now that a clear set of definitions has been issued, methods for examining this hypothesis can begin.
We propose to conduct a study involving thirty Arizona State University students between the ages of eighteen and thirty, fifteen males and fifteen females, each one being Caucasian/white. The sample will begin when we pass out a questionnaire pertaining to questions about ethnic background. (Attached you will find a copy of our questions for each participant who may qualify of this study). Students who have grown up in predominantly white parts of the country, with little or no experience with people of other cultures will be our main target. We only want people are truly willing to participate and plan to stay in their assigned country until the study is complete. Our sample will only contain participants who have no experience out of the United States and were born and raised here for their entire lives. Each participant cannot have more then two years of a foreign language from high school and college combine. This will ensure that we have participants who do not have much experience with cultures other then their own. The participants will be purely chosen by what they do not know about other cultures but are willing to learn, therefore not just anyone can be selected for the sample study.

Funding will be provided by ASU. Every year ASU issues a research grant to a professor with experimental ideas on cultural studies. This year the funding will be granted to ASU professor Dr. Kelly Washburn, a Cultural studies expert who is researching whiteness. Dr. Washburn has selected us to assist her in gathering information on whiteness studies. Dr. Washburn will be a part of the planning, but she will leave it to us to collect the data. The sample will begin when each participant will be flown to either the Dominican Republic and/or Costa Rica where Spanish is the main language spoken. When arriving they will be placed with a host family where they will only be spoken to with minimal English. Each student will be placed with these families during the summer of 2006 from June 30 to August 15. We found thirty host families who have participated in foreign exchange programs with Dr. Washburn in the past and are affiliated with Arizona State University. During their month and a half stay participants will have to learn everything they can about their new family and culture. They will have to completely assimilate into the culture by learning the language, customs and values. Students will live in the everyday life of their host families, whether it's helping cook and clean or to travel and help with daily activities. We hope they will take some time on their own to also travel without their host family and observe their surroundings. We encourage that participants should gain understanding of the people in Dominican Republic and Costa Rica by doing their own question polling and interviewing.

The data collecting procedure will begin when each participate is given a video recorder to record personal diary entries each day. They will be provided with six video tapes and six stamped envelopes where they are required to either speak fifteen minutes in the morning and evening or a total of a half an hour each evening listing their daily activities. They should find a quiet place in their new home where they can talk freely about experiences and their feelings. At the end of week, each video tape will be sent back in the stamped envelopes and that way we can begin to see the progress they have made with their host family as far as assimilation. Essentially we want to gain understanding if in fact they feel a stronger emotional reaction being the non-dominant culture in this Spanish speaking society. A list of generic questions will be provided with each video recorder so if participants are unsure on what to talk about they can look at questions to review their experience. An example of a question is how do you feel when no one is speaking to you in English? Or if you tried a new dish at dinner and didn't prefer to eat it, what was the reaction from the host family? Questions such as who, what, where, why, and how will be answered from the perceptions held by each individual. Each participant will be required to talk about the experience they are having in the foreign countries such as how they feel not knowing a word of Spanish and how it makes them feel. They will have to learn how to communicate with their temporary family any way that they can. We hope that by the end of the study, the participants will some understanding of the Spanish language and feel comfortable in any vulnerable situation.

We believe that students will be willing to participate because there are beneficial incentives available. By participating and answering the questions through out the study each participant will first have the whole trip paid for by Arizona State University as a research assignment participant. On completion of this study they will each be able to choose where they would like credit hours or internship credit towards their degree. Besides these scholastic incentives, they are given the chance to leave their comfort zones, and gain real life experience which is more valuable in the future when looking for careers and figuring out who they are and what they want out of life.

Upon receiving each video diary back, small focus groups will be formed at ASU under the direction of Dr. Washburn. The focus groups will begin to analyze the experiences each participant encounters and note the differences between each participants individual experience. We plan to cluster the similarity and differences that the participants are encountering. We will be able to analyze any emotional reaction they may feel being from a different ethnic background then their new experience with a Spanish speaking culture. Through the weekly tapes we hope to see more similarities between the participants as to how they learned to become a part of the new culture. We hope to gain an understanding of why whiteness studies plays an important role in the development of the people who have no cultural experience, who stay within their own culture. We want to understand why there is a continuing border between cultures and how cultures can better learn how to connect with each other.

Why is it important to understand why white people will have a stronger emotional reaction when placed in a non-dominant situation then other ethnic groups? This can be answered in that we will be able to listen to the tones in their voices and witness the transformation of negative or positive reactions. Facial gestures, body language, language spoken, temperament and emotional distress will gain the understanding as well. These reactions will have tested the individual to and step out of their comfort zone to release the possible ethnocentrism that they may have felt upon arriving.

Questionnaire
1) Were you born in the United States? If yes, where? (Short answer)

2) What is your age and ethnicity? (Short Answer)

3) Did you grow up in the suburbs or a city? (Short Answer)

4) Did you go to a predominately "white" high school? (Short Answer)

5) What is the status of your family's social class? (Lower, middle, etc.)
(Short Answer)

6. Do you have a background in any languages besides English? (Short Answer)

7. Have you ever lived outside of the US for any period of time? (Short Answer)

8. Where were your parents born? (Short Answer)

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