For years, predominantly White institutions have worked to etch out a space where students of color could assemble to discuss their issues and identify mentors. And for years, this space has come in the form ethnic-themed student organizations, cultural centers, fraternities, sororities and, in some cases, ethnic-themed dormitories.
And while ethnic-oriented student organizations on PWIs have been known to positively impact minority retention and graduation rates, these groups can also foster greater racial tension among racial groups and stifle social integration, says Dr. James Sidanius, a professor of psychology and African American studies at Harvard University, and his team of researchers in their book, “The Diversity Challenge: Social Identity and Intergroup Relations on the College Campus.”
“Diversity Challenge” is the largest and most comprehensive study to date on college campus diversity, the authors contend. The researchers followed 2,000 University of California, Los Angeles students for five years to see how diversity affects identities, sociopolitical attitudes, and group conflicts over time.
“Data from our study showed pretty conclusively that intergroup contact reduces ethnic tension and increases in friendship across ethnic lines,” says Sidanius. “Universities should do everything in their power to increase the level of contact between different ethnicities. They should make roommate assignments random and fight against the natural tendency for students to segregate themselves.”
Racial prejudice, in general, decreases with exposure to an ethnically diverse college environment, the report reveals. Students who were randomly assigned to a roommate of a different ethnicity developed more favorable attitudes toward students of different backgrounds, and the same associations held for friendship and dating patterns.
On the contrary, students who interacted mainly with others of similar backgrounds were more likely to exhibit bias toward others and perceive discrimination against their group.
“Ethnically oriented, student-based organizations such as the Afro-American Studies Association or the Latin American Student Association create more [racial] tension,” Sidanius says. “Once students joined these organizations, it increased their own ethnic identification and gave students the feeling that they were being ethnically victimized by other student groups.”
