Feelings of Discrimination Linked to Income

Feelings of perceived discrimination are linked to income for both whites and blacks, according to an analysis of survey data by Ana Hernåndez Kent of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Examining data from two surveys—the American Identity and Representation Survey (Resource Center for Minority Data) and the Americans' Changing Lives survey (National Institute on Aging), Kent compared the household incomes of whites and blacks after controlling for feelings of racial discrimination. While her analysis confirmed the fact that whites typically have higher household incomes than blacks, the within-race income comparisons offered some surprises...

• Whites who thought they had been discriminated against because of their race had a lower household income than whites who did not feel discriminated against, according to the results of the American Identity Survey. In fact, the "whites who did feel they were discriminated against had a median range of household income equivalent to the typical black who also felt discrimination," reports Kent. But the second survey—Changing Lives—showed no difference in the household incomes of whites based on perceived discrimination.
• The black pattern was different. "The pattern of results for blacks in both surveys turned these findings on their head," says Kent. "Blacks who felt they were discriminated against because of their race actually had higher median incomes than blacks who didn't feel racial bias."

"Looking at only blacks, felt discrimination appears to be related to improved financial outcomes," Kent concludes.

Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Perceived Bias and Income Patterns Differ by Race