UC Irvine

Brewer and Campbell showed that stereotypes fall along dimensions of achievement and evaluation. This study examines individuals' personal beliefs about their own and other ethnic groups, along with indicators of in-group bias. Three hundred fifty-one college students who were members of six ethnic groups selected 4 traits from a list of 30 traits that best described each group. The six ethnic identities and the traits were represented in two dimensions using correspondence analysis. An achievement dimension emerged that we termed Collectivist Achievement Ethic, which contrasted three high-achieving Asian identities with three lower achieving non-Asian identities. The second dimension was linked with the socioeconomic status of the ethnic identities and had variable relationships with favorability ratings of the traits. In-group bias was found in five out of six cases; however, White Americans exhibited in-group derogation. © 2005 Sage Publications.