African American, Black Caribbean, and Non-Hispanic White Feelings of Closeness Toward Other Racial and Ethnic Groups

Abstract

This study examines African Americans’, Black Caribbeans’, and non-Hispanic Whites’ perceptions of closeness to other racial and ethnic groups. The study uses data from a national probability sample, the National Survey of American Life ( N = 6,082), and provides the first investigation of this topic among Black Caribbeans. Study findings reveal both similarities and significant differences between African Americans and Black Caribbeans in their levels of closeness to other groups. African Americans and Black Caribbeans were similar in their levels of closeness to Whites, American Indians, and Asian Americans. African Americans felt significantly closer to Black people in the United States than did Black Caribbeans. Conversely, Black Caribbeans felt significantly closer than African Americans to Black people from the Caribbean, Spanish-speaking people, and Black people in Africa. Non-Hispanic Whites felt significantly closer to Asian Americans than did either African Americans or Black Caribbeans. These and other findings are discussed in detail and reaffirm the continued importance of race in American life and intergroup relations.