Question

Jeff says that he is not prejudiced against blacks. However, when he finds himself in a restaurant where a majority of the patrons are black, Jeff feels uneasy. We could classify Jeff as a(n)

a. aversive racist
b. explicit racist
c. closet racist
d. old-fashioned racist

Answer 1

Jeff can be classified as an aversive racist because he experiences unease in the company of a racial group he consciously claims not to be prejudiced against, due to unconscious negative feelings and biases.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct option : a

This term refers to individuals who possess egalitarian conscious beliefs but also hold unconscious negative feelings and beliefs about people of another race. Aversive racists often feel anxiety or discomfort in situations where they interact with people of the race they have unconscious biases against. This can happen despite them not showing any explicit racist attitudes and genuinely endorsing anti-racist norms.

An explicit racist openly holds and expresses negative beliefs and attitudes towards another race, often leading to discriminatory behavior. A closet racist has racist beliefs but hides them from others and may deny their racism even to themselves. An old-fashioned racist holds overt and traditional racist beliefs akin to those expressed in historical segregation and openly supports racial discrimination and inequity. Jeff's unease among a majority of black patrons, despite his claim of not being prejudiced against blacks, highlights his conflict between his conscious beliefs and unconscious prejudices, which is a hallmark of aversive racism.