“Affirmative action” refers to formal efforts, including a broad range of policies and practices, that consider an individual’s membership in a protected group (such as one based on race, disability, and sex) to achieve diversity within an organization or for access to social goods and services (e.g., schools and occupations). These efforts seek to remedy and prevent discrimination as well as promote such societal goals as social stability, improved pedagogy, and a sense of equal justice. Because the actions involve positive steps, rather than simply not discriminating in a passive way, affirmative action seeks to promote equality in ways not required by antidiscrimination law. In the application of affirmative action, individuals from one of the select groups are preferred, when all things are equal, over individuals who do not have such characteristics. This approach tends to attract considerable controversy when framed in terms of being effected through quotas, but affirmative...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña. (1995). 515 U.S. 200.
Civil Rights Act of 1964. (1964). Pub.L. 88–352, 78 Stat. 241.
Gratz v. Bollinger. (2003). 539 U.S. 244.
Grutter v. Bollinger. (2003). 539 U.S. 306.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. (1978). 438 U.S. 265.
Sanders, S. R. (2003). Twenty-five years of a divided court and nation: “Conflicting” views of affirmative action and reverse discrimination. University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review, 26, 61–110.
Schwartz, D. S. (2000). The case of the vanishing protected class: Reflections on reverse discrimination, affirmative action, and racial balancing. Wisconsin Law Review, 2000, 657–689.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this entry
Cite this entry
Levesque, R.J.R. (2011). Affirmative Action. In: Levesque, R.J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Adolescence. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1695-2_749
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1695-2_749
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-1694-5
Online ISBN: 978-1-4419-1695-2
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science