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Racism

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine

  • 68 Accesses

Synonyms

Racial/ethnic discrimination

Definition

Racism, rooted in the ideological belief that different phenotypic makeup (e.g., physical attributes) of racial groups makes them innately inferior or superior to others, is defined as a structured system that ranks groups based on their perceived value and used as a tool for justifying disparate treatment and allocation of resources, reinforcing unequal power relations, and maintaining structural inequalities (Golash-Boza 2016; Omi and Winant 2014; Wade 2014).

Description

Racism generates discriminatory practices and differential treatment toward those perceived as inferior (Golash-Boza 2016; Omi and Winant 2014). Historically, certain racial groups (e.g., Blacks, Hispanics/Latinos) have been regarded as biologically different compared to non-Hispanic/Latino whites, thereby innately, inferior (Golash-Boza 2016; Wade 2014). As a result, racial minorities are more likely to experience different forms of racism, including institutional and...

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References and Further Reading

  • Alvarez, A. N., Liang, C. T. H., & Neville, H. A. (2016). The cost of racism for people of color: Contextualizing experiences of discrimination. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

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  • Feagin, J., & Bennefield, Z. (2014). Systemic racism and U.S. healthcare. Social Science and Medicine, 103, 7–14.

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  • Golash-Boza, T. (2016). A critical and comprehensive sociological theory of race and racism. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, 2(2), 129–141.

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  • Jones, C. P. (2000). Levels of racism: A theoretical framework and a gardner’s tale. American Journal of Public Health, 90(8), 1212–1215.

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  • Kressin, N. R., Raymond, K. L., & Manze, M. (2008). Perceptions of race/ethnicity-based discrimination: A review of measures and evaluation of their usefulness for the health care setting. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 9(3), 697–730.

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  • Omi, M., & Winant, H. (2014). Racial formation in the United States: From the 1960s to the 1980s. New York: Routledge.

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  • Wade, N. (2014). A troublesome inheritance: Genes, race, and human history. New York: Penguin Press.

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  • Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2013). Racism and health I: Pathways and scientific evidence. American Behavioral Scientist, 57(8), 1152–1173.

    Article  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Twyla Blackmond Larnell

  2. University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, USA

    Kristine M. Molina

Authors
  1. Twyla Blackmond Larnell
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  2. Kristine M. Molina
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kristine M. Molina .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA

    Marc Gellman

  2. Campbell University School of Pharmacy, Buies Creek, North Carolina, USA

    J. Rick Turner

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Martica H. Hall

  2. University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO, USA

    Michele L. Okun

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Blackmond Larnell, T., Molina, K.M. (2018). Racism. In: Gellman, M., Turner, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_832-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_832-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

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