ABSTRACT
The Workforce Diversity study respondent’s experience of possessing a racial identity that is shaped by “others” is reinforced by the social science literature. Social behaviorist George Herbert Mead maintains that the “self is a reflection of the complete social process.” According to social identity theorists, “people tend to categorize themselves as similar or different from others based on shared identity-relevant traits, such as race and gender.” As young as three years old, a child is socialized or learns from his or her parents, teachers, and peers that race is pivotal to one’s definition of self and skin color will influence and effect the ways in which she or he may be treated. One way for race to be “subjectively perceived as a common trait” is by creating and delineating categories of physical appearance such as skin color and then oppressing people with the skin color deemed to be inferior.
