ABSTRACT
A growing body of research currently explicates the negative economic, social, and psychological implications of color discrimination. Social scientists in the United States (U.S.), for instance, have documented patterns related to occupation and educational attainment (Allen, Telles, & Hunter, 2000), romantic partnering (Hunter, 2008), psychological domains (Breland-Noble, 2013; Thompson & Keith, 2004), the justice system (Blair, Judd, & Chapleau, 2004), identity development (Elmore, 2009; Townsend,Thomas, Neilands, & Jackson, 2010), income (Goldsmith, Hamilton, Darity Jr., 2006;
Keith & Herring, 1991), and friendships/social relationships among schoolage youth (Hunter, 2016). Moreover, color discrimination is frequently gendered and classed, as complexion prejudice has been shown to affect men and women differently; likewise, socioeconomic class may be a key mediating variable (Thompson & Keith, 2001). For example, Robinson and Ward’s (1995) study of Black adolescents in the U.S. revealed that more male participants expressed a desire for lighter skin than female participants, although the difference was not statistically significant. Thompson and Keith’s (2004) research with Black adults also demonstrates that skin tone may have little bearing on self-esteem among women who are considered attractive and earn high incomes. Meanwhile, skin tone appears to be closely correlated with self-esteem among men who are overweight or underweight.
