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Identidad social y estereotipos por color de piel: aspiraciones y desempeño en jóvenes mexicanos

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Listed:
  • Raymundo M. Campos Vázquez

    (El Colegio de México)

  • Eduardo M. Medina Cortina

    (El Colegio de México)

Abstract

This article analyzes the effect of skin color stereotypes on the performance and aspirations of young Mexicans. We conducted a field experiment with 1,092 students in middle schools in Mexico City. Each student solved a test to measure cognitive abilities and a questionnaire about future aspirations. The experimental design consisted of randomly revealing information before performing the test. The control group did not receive any information. Treatment 1 received twelve images of public characters with light or white skin color prior taking the test, treatment 2 received a color palette to self-assess skin color and treatment 3 received both the mosaic of images and the palette of colors. The results reveal that the group that received both the images and the color palette presented a lower level of aspirations towards the future (0.26 standard deviations) than the control group. These effects come from women suggesting they are more sensitive to the negative effect of stereotypes.

Suggested Citation

  • Raymundo M. Campos Vázquez & Eduardo M. Medina Cortina, 2017. "Identidad social y estereotipos por color de piel: aspiraciones y desempeño en jóvenes mexicanos," Serie documentos de trabajo del Centro de Estudios Económicos 2017-05, El Colegio de México, Centro de Estudios Económicos.
    • Handle: RePEc:emx:ceedoc:2017-05
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    File URL: https://cee.colmex.mx/dts/2017/DT-2017-5.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Luis Monroy-Gómez-Franco & Roberto Vélez-Grajales, 2021. "Skin Tone Differences in Social Mobility in Mexico: Are We Forgetting Regional Variance?," Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy, Springer, vol. 4(4), pages 257-274, December.
    2. Monroy-Gómez-Franco, Luis, 2023. "Shades of social mobility: Colorism, ethnic origin and intergenerational social mobility," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 247-266.
    3. Monroy-Gómez-Franco, Luis & Vélez-Grajales, Roberto & Yalonetzky, Gastón, 2021. "Layers of inequality: Unequal opportunities and skin colour in Mexico," MPRA Paper 106605, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    stereotype; school performance; aspirations; teenagers; gender; Mexico.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • D03 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Behavioral Microeconomics: Underlying Principles
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • O54 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Latin America; Caribbean

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