Through the (Funhouse) Looking Glass: Exploring Experiences of Racial Mismatch in Interactions
Racialized experiences in the USA are increasingly marked by how a person’s race is interpreted and whether that interpretation lines up with their identity. This dynamic marks the ways race is socially constructed through racial perception, shaping the racialized experience most often of some of the fastest growing groups (e.g., Multiracial, Asian, and Latinx). This experience, known as racial mismatch, is a site where racial schemas (i.e., the “rules” relating to the race that a person is classified as by outsiders) and the contextual characteristics shaping how these schema are deployed in interactions become visible. Additionally, racial mismatch significantly shapes one’s exposure to racialized advantages and disadvantages. While prior work has revealed various aspects of mismatch, there are notable gaps in our understanding of its frequency, the processes that facilitate it, and its consequences. This study utilizes unique survey and interview data from the 2020-2021 Racial Ascription and Assertion in Contextual Experiences Study (RAACES) to examine three questions. First, what contextual characteristics shape the likelihood of experiencing mismatch, and how does this vary across racial groups? Second, how prevalent are experiences of racial mismatch, and how do individuals interpret the significance of these encounters in their everyday lives? Finally, what strategies of action do individuals engage in response to racial mismatch? Results show that racial mismatch is best conceptualized as a series of experiences rather than as a discrete encounter and that all racial groups encounter some level of mismatch. Additionally, experiencing mismatch is only understood as an invalidation of one’s identity in certain circumstances, particularly if those circumstances are tied to racial discrimination. Finally, individuals use various strategies to avoid or minimize the likelihood of racial mismatch, such as avoiding spaces where it’s deemed likely or modifying one’s physical appearance. This work reveals that dynamics of racial perceptions and racial mismatch is a multifaceted experience with impacts on racialized experiences in everyday life.
Race, Identity, Racial Perception, Race and Ethnicity, Quantitative Methods, Social Psychology
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