David Grusky Frank Samson Stanford University
Do whites' views about the importance of traditional meritocratic criteria become malleable when they are confronted with circumstances in which Asians appear to be surpassing whites under the current rules of the game? The relative success of Asians compared to whites in the United States on various socioeconomic status indicators (college degrees, median earnings, and professional-managerial occupational concentration) as well as the over-representation of Asians at elite higher educational institutions present an emerging social context in which to study commitment to the idea of meritocracy, as indicated by university admissions criteria. Using a survey-based experiment of a random sample of 1000 California adults, lab-based experiments of college students in various university settings, and in-depth interviews, this project tests sociological and political psychology-based theories about the relationship between race, public opinion, and public policy: here, public university admissions criteria. In a hyper-competitive undergraduate admissions context where standardized test prep courses and college application private tutors have become both big money and globalized businesses, and intense college preparatory instruction and planning can commence as early as pre-Kindergarten, this study sheds light on the ideational components (e.g. individualism and group attitudes) that constitute support for current academic university admissions criteria. If support for current admissions criteria, as indicators of meritocracy, have a basis in not only value commitments to individualism and fairness (e.g. rewards for hard work) but also serve as gate-keeping mechanisms amidst racialized groups vying in high-stakes competition for the scarce and valued resource of higher education, traditionally underrepresented groups should be compelled to participate in discussions that re-conceive of university admissions criteria that can reward hard work yet not be used to reproduce group disadvantages and inequalities.
The results of this research can provide a more certain footing for discussion and further research around group-based attitudes and inequalities, political values, and higher education policy.
