Ignorance of History and Political Differences in Perception of Racism in the United States

Abstract

According to the Marley hypothesis, White Americans are more ignorant of historical racism than Black Americans, which explains their greater tendency to deny racism in the present. We extended the Marley hypothesis by testing whether it explains political differences in perception of racism among White Americans in the United States. Two preregistered studies measured participants’ knowledge of historical racism as well as their perception of present racism in individual cases and in society (N = 463). White Republicans had less knowledge of historical racism and perceived less individual and systemic racism than White Democrats. Consistent with the Marley hypothesis, political differences in perception of individual racism were significantly mediated by knowledge of historical racism. These findings suggest that ignorance of historical racism may partly explain why White Republicans perceive less racism than White Democrats, and therefore extend the Marley hypothesis to the political realm.

Keywords

politics social perception racism racial identity

Anti-Black prejudice has a long history in the United States, originating with the institution of slavery, and continues to have profound adverse impacts on Black Americans today. Evidence of racism is found in individual cases, including the tragic deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and other Black Americans because of police misconduct. Furthermore, evidence of racism is found in society more broadly, including large disparities in criminal justice, education, employment, health, and housing (Alexander, 2010; Rothstein, 2017). Although evidence of racism abounds, there are vast individual and group differences in the degree to which people perceive racism as a lingering problem that necessitates action (Miller et al., 2021; Norton & Sommers, 2011). In the present research, we examine political differences in perception of present racism and whether knowledge of historical racism partly explains these differences.

Our work is informed by scholarship on the Marley hypothesis, which argues that ignorance of historical racism blunts perception of racism in the present (Bonam et al., 2019; Nelson et al., 2013). Specifically, White Americans are more ignorant of historical racism than Black Americans, which partly explains their tendency to perceive less racism in the present. Nonetheless, knowledge of historical racism among White Americans varies across contexts (Strickhouser et al., 2019). Thus, factors beyond race may contribute to such knowledge. Recent research indicates that political identity fundamentally shapes perception of racism, such that White conservatives perceive less racism than White liberals (Cooley et al., 2019). Here, we test for the first time whether (1) White Republicans are more ignorant of historical racism than White Democrats, and (2) political differences in perception of present racism are mediated by historical knowledge.

Political Differences in Perception of Racism

Racism persists in a variety of forms, including overt and covert, intentional and unintentional, as well as verbal and behavioral (Dovidio & Jones, 2019; Kite & Whitley, 2016). Addressing the myriad adverse impacts of racism requires perceivers to detect it and instigate corrective strategies. Nonetheless, many perceivers fail to detect racism and believe that it no longer impacts minority group members. Perceivers may fail to detect racism in individual cases or incidents, where one person treats another unfairly due to stigmatized group membership (e.g., a server ignoring a patron because they are Black; see Bonam et al., 2019; Nelson et al., 2013, for coverage of isolated incidents). Perceivers may also fail to detect racism in systemic manifestations or broader contexts in which institutions engage in unjust practices that have adverse impacts for members of stigmatized groups (e.g., racist depictions of Black people in the media at large).

Nationally representative surveys demonstrate that White Republicans and Democrats fundamentally disagree about the extent to which racism influences American life (Horowitz et al., 2019; Pew Research Center, 2019, 2020). In comparison with their White Republican counterparts, White Democrats are more likely to believe that the country has not done enough to address racial inequality, White people benefit from societal advantages, being Black hurts a person’s ability to succeed, and it is more difficult to be Black than White. In addition, White liberals perceive more racism than White conservatives in a case where an unarmed Black man was shot by a police officer (Cooley et al., 2019). More broadly, research indicates that political conservatives are more likely to believe that racism no longer exists (Sears & Henry, 2005), perceive the current racial hierarchy as fair and just (Jost et al., 2008, 2009), and report negative attitudes toward Black Americans (Brandt et al., 2014; Stern & Axt, 2019).

Why do White Republicans perceive less racism than White Democrats? Divergent perceptions of racism across political and cultural groups fuel disagreements, protests, and civil unrest (Carter & Murphy, 2015). Consistent with the identity relevance explanation (Doosje et al., 1998; Knowles et al., 2014; Phillips & Lowery, 2018), White Republicans may identify more strongly with their racial group than White Democrats, which may exacerbate the denial of racism. Along these lines, White Americans are more likely to deny racism when they strongly identify with their racial group (Blodorn et al., 2016; Strickhouser et al., 2019) and less likely to deny it following values-affirmation techniques that lower defensiveness (Adams et al., 2006; Unzueta & Lowery, 2008; cf. Lesick & Zell, 2021). Furthermore, White Americans are more likely to deny systemic than individual racism (O’Brien et al., 2009; Unzueta & Lowery, 2008), because the acknowledgment of systemic racism induces greater self-image threat.

The Marley Hypothesis

Informed by the Marley hypothesis, we propose that White Republicans have worse knowledge of historical racism than White Democrats, which should also exacerbate the denial of racism. According to this hypothesis, impoverished knowledge of historical racism dulls people’s perception of racism in the present (Marley & Williams, 1983; Salter et al., 2018). An initial study on the Marley hypothesis, conducted in the Midwest, found that White students from a predominantly White university had less knowledge of historical racism and perceived less racism than Black students from historically Black universities. Furthermore, knowledge of historical racism mediated group differences in perception of individual and systemic racism (Nelson et al., 2013). Another study conducted at a single, integrated university in the Midwest (8% Black) found that knowledge of historical racism mediated group differences in perception of systemic but not individual racism (Bonam et al., 2019, Study 1). In both studies, the indirect effect of race ethnicity on perceived racism through historical knowledge obtained after adjustment for racial identity, which indicates that the Marley hypothesis is independent of identity-based explanations.

Together, research on the Marley hypothesis suggests that knowledge of historical racism mediates group differences in perception of present racism and, furthermore, that teaching White Americans about the history of racism may reduce these differences (Bonam et al., 2019, Study 2; Salter & Adams, 2016). Nonetheless, research at a diverse university in the Southeast (28% Black) failed to support the mediation pattern proposed by the Marley hypothesis (Strickhouser et al., 2019). That is, knowledge of historical racism was comparable across White and Black students, and differences in perception of racism were also relatively small. Thus, when viewed cumulatively, research suggests that White people’s knowledge of historical racism and perception of present racism vary considerably across contexts. Here, we explore whether political orientation is a critical factor that explains this variability.

No research has systematically compared knowledge of historical racism across White Democrats and Republicans. In surveys, however, White Democrats report that they are more likely to educate themselves about racism and engage in conversations with members of a different racial group than White Republicans (Horowitz et al., 2020). Furthermore, whereas media sources preferred by Democrats occasionally provide detailed coverage of historical and present racism (e.g., Hannah-Jones, 2019), media sources preferred by Republicans sometimes reject the existence of racism and instead argue that minority groups deserve blame for present inequities (e.g., Dorman, 2020; see Grieco, 2020). In short, versus White Republicans, the personal experiences and media diets of White Democrats may expose them to more information about the history of racism, resulting in a greater tendency to appreciate the lingering effects of racism today. Along these lines, an award-winning journalist who developed a series of articles on historical racism called the 1619 Project (Nikole Hannah-Jones), was initially denied tenure from her university, after objections to her work were raised by Republicans (Robertson, 2021).

The Current Research

White Republicans perceive much less racism than White Democrats, both in individual cases and in society (Cooley et al., 2019; Pew Research Center, 2019). Nonetheless, little is known about why these political differences in perception of racism occur. Informed by the Marley hypothesis, we propose that political differences in perception of racism are mediated by knowledge of historical racism and present two preregistered studies that test this hypothesis. Specifically, internet respondents who identified as White and either members of the Republican Party or Democratic Party completed measures assessing knowledge of historical racism, racial identity, as well as perception of individual and systemic racism.

Prior research on the Marley hypothesis indicates that racial identity and historical knowledge are simultaneous predictors of perceived racism and that the effect of historical knowledge remains after adjustment for racial identity (Bonam et al., 2019; Nelson et al., 2013). Furthermore, White Republicans may identify more strongly with their racial group than White Democrats. Therefore, we examined whether historical knowledge and racial identity are simultaneous mediators of the effect of political party on perception of racism. We did not preregister simultaneous mediation analyses involving racial identity but came to consider this strategy after the data were collected.

We report all measures, manipulations, and exclusions in this research. Sample sizes were determined before data analysis. This research was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the authors’ university. Materials, data, analyses, and preregistrations are publicly available at https://osf.io/rqj2c/?view_only=524fbb43544b4d1e892 aad7261961ad7.

Study 1

Method

Participants

The study was conducted on Mechanical Turk (MTurk) in December 2020. Data were collected until we exceeded a preregistered goal of at least 105 Democrats and Republicans, after exclusions. A power analysis indicated that a sample of this size would provide 95% power to detect a medium effect (d = 0.50), which was anticipated for the group difference in historical knowledge (Bonam et al., 2019, Study 1). Participation was restricted to White American adults who were born and resided in the United States, using a computer (not a mobile device), and had at least 100 approved hits with a 95% or higher approval rate. In total, data were collected from 273 participants, who completed the study in exchange for US$ 0.80. Data were excluded from 42 participants (see below), resulting in a final sample of 231 participants (121 Democrats, 110 Republicans, 119 women, M_age = 41.1). Results were very similar when excluded participants were retained.

Procedures

After demographic items, participants completed a Black History Quiz, which consisted of 16 items assessing knowledge of historical racism against Black Americans (Bonam et al., 2019; Nelson et al., 2013). For each item (e.g., The U.S. criminal justice system has historically delivered longer sentences to Black Americans than White Americans who commit the same crimes), participants indicated whether they believed it was true or false and the certainty of their response on a scale ranging from 1 (guessing) to 5 (certain).

Next, participants completed two measures of perceived racism by responding on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 7 (certainly) to indicate how certain they were that each of a series of items reflected racism (Lesick & Zell, 2021; Nelson et al., 2013). The first included nine items assessing perception of systemic racism (e.g., The portrayal of African Americans in U.S. entertainment media; α = .93), while the second included five items assessing perception of individual racism (e.g., Several people walk into a restaurant at the same time. The server attends to all the White customers first. The last customer served happens to be the only person of color; α = .89). Participants also completed a four-item measure of racial identity (e.g., I feel good about other members of my racial group; α = .77) using a scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). These items were adapted from the Collective Self-Esteem Scale (Private Regard subscale; Luhtanen & Crocker, 1992).

For exploratory purposes, participants completed measures of support for racial reparations, political ideology, and educational attainment. These measures were included for descriptive purposes and are not discussed further. Next, we asked participants, Did you look up any answers on the Black History Quiz? Note that you will receive credit either way. We excluded 32 participants (18 Democrats, 14 Republicans) who answered yes from data analyses. Finally, participants completed two attention checks. The first asked them to click the fifth circle among an array of seven circles. The second asked them to indicate, in an open-ended response, what they thought was the hypothesis of the study. Open-ended responses were coded to identify those that were irrelevant or incomprehensible. We excluded one participant for failing the first attention check and nine participants for failing the second.

Historical Knowledge Scoring

As in previous research (Nelson et al., 2013; Strickhouser et al., 2019), we used a signal detection approach to determine participant’s knowledge of historical racism. We calculated the hit rate as the percentage of true statements to which the participant responded true and confident (a certainty of 3 or higher on the 1–5 scale) and the false alarm rate as the percentage of false statements to which the participant responded true and confident. We then calculated the overall ability of participants to distinguish truthful signal from fictional noise as d′ = Z(hit rate) –Z(false alarm rate), where Z(p) is the Z score that has p percent of the standard normal distribution below it (Stanislaw & Todorov, 1999). In cases where the hit rate or false alarm rate was 0 or 1 (which corresponds to an infinite Z score), we recoded that score as half the distance between 0/1 and the next possible value before calculating d′. Exploratory analyses without the confidence criterion found that results were robust to different methods of scoring historical knowledge.

Results

Group Differences and Correlations

We first examined political differences in perception of racism using a mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) with political party (Democrat, Republican) as a between-subjects factor and racism type (individual, systemic) as a within-subjects factor. This analysis yielded a significant interaction, F(1, 229) = 16.18, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .07. Republicans perceived significantly less racism than Democrats, but this gap was larger for systemic manifestations, F(1, 229) = 179.37, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .44, than individual cases, F(1, 229) = 80.96, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .26. Furthermore, both groups perceived more individual than systemic racism, but this gap was larger for Republicans, F(1, 229) = 119.76, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .34, than Democrats, F(1, 229) = 31.90, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .12.

For the historical knowledge test, analyses were consistent with the proposed extension of the Marley hypothesis to the political domain: Democrats tended to have higher hit rates but not higher false alarm rates than Republicans. That is, Democrats versus Republicans more often confidently responded true to true items (hits) but not false items (false alarms). Furthermore, the index of sensitivity referred to as reality attunement (d′) followed the same pattern: Democrats versus Republicans more often effectively discriminated truthful signal from fictional noise, d = 0.61 (see Table 1). There was also a significant difference in racial identity, such that Republicans identified more strongly with their racial group than Democrats, d = 0.84.

Table 1.

Means (SDs) Across Political Groups in Studies 1 and 2.

Measure	Democrats	Republicans	t (p)	d [95% CI]
Study 1
Perception: Individual	5.81 (1.01)	4.21 (1.64)	9.00 (<.001)	1.19 [0.93, 1.44]
Perception: Systemic	5.19 (1.24)	2.96 (1.29)	13.39 (<.001)	1.76 [1.50, 2.02]
Hit rate	0.77 (0.20)	0.60 (0.25)	5.91 (<.001)	0.78 [0.52, 1.04]
False alarm rate	0.22 (0.19)	0.21 (0.15)	0.74 (.461)	0.10 [−0.16, 0.36]
Reality attunement (d′)	1.75 (0.90)	1.20 (0.88)	4.62 (<.001)	0.61 [0.35, 0.87]
Racial identity	4.57 (1.35)	5.64 (1.17)	6.38 (<.001)	0.84 [0.58, 1.10]
Study 2
Perception: Individual	5.79 (1.00)	4.48 (1.43)	8.05 (<.001)	1.06 [0.80, 1.32]
Perception: Systemic	5.31 (1.06)	2.98 (1.30)	14.87 (<.001)	1.95 [1.69, 2.21]
Hit rate	0.73 (0.20)	0.58 (0.22)	5.26 (<.001)	0.69 [0.43, 0.95]
False alarm rate	0.19 (0.14)	0.18 (0.15)	0.34 (.733)	0.04 [−0.21, 0.30]
Reality attunement (d′)	1.67 (0.75)	1.23 (0.80)	4.33 (<.001)	0.57 [0.31, 0.83]
Racial identity	4.44 (1.20)	5.69 (1.01)	8.59 (<.001)	1.13 [0.87, 1.39]

Note. Hit rates and false alarm rates were calculated as “confident and true” versus “not confident and true.” CI = confidence interval.

Finally, perception of individual racism was positively associated with reality attunement (.33) and negatively associated with racial identity (−.37) (see Table 2). Furthermore, perception of systemic racism was positively associated with reality attunement (.19) and negatively associated with racial identity (−.56), but the former association was noticeably weaker than the latter. This suggests that perception of systemic racism is tethered more strongly to racial identity than reality attunement.

Table 2.

Correlations Between Measures in Studies 1 and 2.

Measure	2	3	4
Study 1
1. Reality attunement (d′)	.33**	.19*	−.04
2. Perception: Individual		.71**	−.37**
3. Perception: Systemic			−.56**
4. Racial identity
Study 2
1. Reality attunement (d′)	.25**	.20*	−.05
2. Perception: Individual		.70**	−.33**
3. Perception: Systemic			−.61**
4. Racial identity

p < .05. **p < .001.

Marley Hypothesis and Identity Relevance

We conducted parallel mediation analyses using Model 4 of the SPSS Process Macro (Version 3.4) with 10,000 bias-corrected bootstrap resamples (Hayes, 2017). This analysis tests (1) whether political party has an indirect effect on perception of racism through the reality attunement (d′) measure of historical knowledge (adjusting for racial identity) and (2) whether political party has an indirect effect on perception of racism through racial identity (adjusting for historical knowledge). We conducted two separate analyses that were identical, except one entered perceived individual racism as the outcome variable and the other entered perceived systemic racism. For indirect effects, a 95% confidence interval (CI) that excluded 0 reflects a statistically significant effect (p < .05). We preregistered simple mediation analyses with historical knowledge, but later decided to simultaneously test historical knowledge and racial identity as separable processes helping to explain group differences in perception of racism. Results were similar when examining simple mediation analyses.

Path estimates are provided in Table 3. Consistent with the identity relevance explanation, the political party → racial identity → perception of racism indirect path was significant when examining both perception of systemic racism, b = 0.47, SE = 0.10, CI = [0.29, 0.68], and perception of individual racism, b = 0.27, SE = 0.08, CI = [0.12, 0.45]. The political party → historical knowledge → perception of systemic racism indirect path was not significant, b = 0.03, SE = 0.05, CI = [−0.07, 0.13]. However, consistent with the Marley hypothesis, the political party → historical knowledge → perception of individual racism indirect path was significant, b = 0.20, SE = 0.08, CI = [0.07, 0.37].

Table 3.

Parallel Mediation Models for Perception of Individual and Systemic Racism.

Path	Study 1	Study 2
	b [95% CI]	b [95% CI]
Perception of individual racism
Direct effect	1.13 [0.75, 1.51]	1.01 [0.63, 1.39]
Political party to mediators
Reality attunement	0.54 [0.31, 0.77]	0.44 [0.24, 0.64]
Racial identity	−1.07 [−1.40, −0.74]	−1.25 [−1.53, −0.96]
Mediators to perceived racism
Reality attunement	0.37 [0.18, 0.56]	0.24 [0.04, 0.45]
Racial identity	−0.25 [−0.38, −0.12]	−0.16 [−0.30, −0.01]
Indirect effects
Reality attunement	0.20 [0.07, 0.37]	0.11 [0.01, 0.21]
Racial identity	0.27 [0.12, 0.45]	0.20 [0.01, 0.41]
Perception of systemic racism
Direct effect	1.74 [1.40, 2.07]	1.71 [1.37, 2.04]
Political party to mediators
Reality attunement	0.54 [0.31, 0.77]	0.44 [0.24, 0.64]
Racial identity	−1.07 [−1.40, −0.74]	−1.25 [−1.53, −0.96]
Mediators to perceived racism
Reality attunement	0.05 [−0.12, 0.22]	0.09 [−0.10, 0.27]
Racial identity	−0.44 [−0.56, −0.33]	−0.47 [−0.60, −0.34]
Indirect effects
Reality attunement	0.03 [−0.07, 0.13]	0.04 [−0.05, 0.12]
Racial identity	0.47 [0.29, 0.68]	0.58 [0.40, 0.80]

Note. Perceptions of individual and systemic racism were modeled separately. Political party was coded as 1 = Democrats, 0 = Republicans. Reality attunement was measured via d′ and reflects knowledge of historical racism. Higher racial identity indicates a more positive racial identity. CI = confidence interval.

In sum, Study 1 demonstrated there are robust political differences in perception of present racism. Political differences in perception of both systemic and individual racism were mediated by racial identity. Furthermore, consistent with the Marley hypothesis, political differences in perception of individual racism were mediated by knowledge of historical racism. That is, Republicans exhibited greater ignorance of historical racism than Democrats, which was associated with lower perception of racism in individual cases. Unexpectedly, the mediating effect of historical knowledge emerged when examining perception of individual racism, but not perception of systemic racism.

Study 2

In Study 2, we conducted a preregistered direct replication of Study 1 on Prolific—a crowdsourcing platform that provides data of comparable quality to MTurk (Peer et al., 2017).

Method

Participants

The study was conducted on Prolific in February 2021. Data were collected until we exceeded a preregistered goal of at least 105 Democrats and Republicans, after exclusions. A power analysis indicated that a sample of this size would provide 95% power to detect a medium effect (d = 0.50), which was found for the group difference in historical knowledge in Study 1. Participation was restricted to White American adults, who were born and resided in the United States, were native English speakers, and had a study approval rate above 80%. In total, data were collected from 248 participants, who completed the study in exchange for US$1.00. Data were excluded from 16 participants (see below), resulting in a final sample of 232 participants (114 Democrats, 118 Republicans, 118 women, M_age = 38.7). Results were very similar when excluded participants were retained.

Procedures

Study 2 procedures were largely identical to those of Study 1. Specifically, participants first completed a Black History Quiz. Then, they completed measures of perceived systemic racism (α = .93), perceived individual racism (α = .85), racial identity (α = .77), and exploratory measures. As in Study 1, participants were asked whether they looked up any answers on the Black History Quiz. We excluded nine participants (four Democrats, five Republicans) who answered yes. Finally, participants completed the same attention checks as Study 1. No participant failed the standard attention check, but data were excluded from seven participants who failed the open-ended check.

Results

Group Differences and Correlations

Consistent with Study 1, a 2 (political party) by 2 (racism type) mixed ANOVA yielded a significant interaction, F(1, 230) = 48.93, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .18. Republicans perceived significantly less racism than Democrats, but this gap was larger for systemic manifestations, F(1, 230) = 221.16, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .49, than individual cases, F(1, 230) = 64.72, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .22. Furthermore, both groups perceived more individual than systemic racism, but this gap was larger for Republicans, F(1, 230) = 215.76, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .48, than Democrats, F(1, 230) = 21.43, p < .001, $η_{p}^{2}$ = .09. Results for the historical knowledge test were also consistent with Study 1: Democrats once again had higher hit rates but not higher false alarm rates than Republicans, resulting in superior reality attunement, d = 0.57. Republicans also identified more strongly with their racial group than Democrats, d = 1.13. Finally, as in Study 1, reality attunement was positively associated with perceived individual (.25) and systemic racism (.20), but racial identity was negatively associated with perceived individual (−.33) and systemic racism (−.61).

Marley Hypothesis and Identity Relevance

Parallel mediation analyses were again used to test our hypotheses. Consistent with the identity relevance explanation, the political party → racial identity → perception of racism indirect path was significant when examining both perception of systemic racism, b = 0.58, SE = 0.10, CI = [0.40, 0.80], and perception of individual racism, b = 0.20, SE = 0.10, CI = [0.01, 0.41]. As in Study 1, the political party → historical knowledge → perception of systemic racism indirect path was not significant, b = 0.04, SE = 0.04, CI = [−0.05, 0.12]. However, consistent with Study 1 and the Marley hypothesis, the political party → historical knowledge → perception of individual racism indirect path was significant, b = 0.11, SE = 0.05, CI = [0.01, 0.21].

In sum, Study 2 replicated key findings of Study 1. In comparison with Democrats, Republicans perceived less individual racism, perceived less systemic racism, and exhibited worse knowledge of historical racism. Furthermore, political differences in perception of individual racism were significantly mediated by knowledge of historical racism, after adjustment for racial identity. Once again, the mediating effect of historical knowledge obtained for perception of individual racism but not perception of systemic racism.

Combined Analysis

We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to conduct a relatively high-powered combined analysis across the two studies (N = 463). Specifically, perceptions of individual and systemic racism were modeled together in a single path analysis in R using lavaan (Rosseel, 2012), with 10,000 bootstrap resamples. Results were very similar to those reported above (see Table 4). That is, the indirect effect of political party through racial identity was significant for both perception of systemic racism, b = 0.53, SE = 0.07, CI = [0.40, 0.67], and perception of individual racism, b = 0.24, SE = 0.06, CI = [0.12, 0.37]. The indirect effect of political party through historical knowledge was not significant for perception of systemic racism, b = 0.03, SE = 0.03, CI = [−0.03, 0.10], but was significant for perception of individual racism, b = 0.16, SE = 0.05, CI = [0.08, 0.25].

Table 4.

Structural Equation Model for Perception of Individual and Systemic Racism.

Path	Individual racism	Systemic racism
	b [95% CI]	b [95% CI]
Direct effects
Political party	1.06 [0.78, 1.33]	1.72 [1.47, 1.98]
Study	0.12 [−0.11, 0.35]	0.05 [−0.15, 0.26]
Political party to mediators
Reality attunement	0.49 [0.34, 0.64]	0.49 [0.34, 0.64]
Racial identity	−1.16 [−1.37, −0.94]	−1.16 [−1.37, −0.94]
Study to mediators
Reality attunement	−0.02 [−0.18, 0.12]	−0.02 [−0.18, 0.12]
Racial identity	−0.04 [−0.26, 0.18]	−0.04 [−0.25, 0.18]
Mediators to perceived racism
Reality attunement	0.32 [0.16, 0.47]	0.06 [−0.06, 0.19]
Racial identity	−0.21 [−0.31, −0.11]	−0.45 [−0.54, −0.37]
Indirect effects of political party
Reality attunement	0.16 [0.08, 0.25]	0.03 [−0.03, 0.10]
Racial identity	0.24 [0.12, 0.37]	0.53 [0.40, 0.67]

Note. Perceptions of individual and systemic racism were modeled simultaneously. Political party was coded as 1 = Democrats, 0 = Republicans. Study was coded as 1 = Study 1, 2 = Study 2. Reality attunement was measured via d′ and reflects knowledge of historical racism. Higher racial identity indicates a more positive racial identity. CI = confidence interval.

General Discussion

Research on the Marley hypothesis indicates that White Americans perceive less racism than Black Americans and that racial-ethnic differences in perception of racism are mediated by knowledge of historical racism (Bonam et al., 2019; Nelson et al., 2013). However, there is substantial heterogeneity across contexts in White American’s knowledge of historical racism and perception of present racism (Strickhouser et al., 2019). Here, we tested for the first time whether there are political differences in White people’s knowledge of historical racism and perception of present racism. We anticipated that White Republicans would have greater ignorance of historical racism and denial of present racism than White Democrats, and that political differences in perception of racism would be mediated by historical knowledge.

Results from two studies and a combined analysis were broadly consistent with our novel extension of the Marley hypothesis to the political domain. Specifically, White Republicans perceived less individual racism, perceived less systemic racism, and had worse knowledge of historical racism than White Democrats. Furthermore, consistent with the Marley hypothesis, political differences in perception of individual racism were significantly mediated by historical knowledge. Finally, the indirect effect of political orientation on perception of individual racism through historical knowledge obtained after adjustment for racial identity. These data suggest that the Marley hypothesis is independent of identity-based explanations.

Although the proposed mediating effect of historical knowledge obtained for perception of individual racism in both studies, it did not obtain when examining perception of systemic racism. Rather, perception of systemic racism was strongly associated with racial identity, and racial identity significantly mediated political differences in perception of systemic racism. These findings are consistent with prior research indicating that perception of systemic racism is more threatening to dominant group members than perception of racism in individual cases (O’Brien et al., 2009; Unzueta & Lowery, 2008). Thus, perception of systemic racism may be connected more to the strength of White people’s racial identities than perception of individual racism.

Implications

The present research contributes to an emerging literature on political differences in perception of racism. Prior research examined political differences in response to a small set of survey questions about racism (Pew Research Center, 2019, 2020) or in response to a single racially charged incident (Cooley et al., 2019). Conversely, the present research systematically explored political differences across several individual cases and systemic manifestations. Our results yielded very large differences across political groups, such that White Republicans perceived much less racism both in individual cases and in society than White Democrats (ds > 1.05). Thus, the present findings reinforce the notion that there are robust political differences in perception of racism.

In addition, the present research examined whether political differences in perception of racism are mediated by knowledge of historical racism. Two studies on the Marley hypothesis suggest that ignorance of historical racism mediates racial-ethnic differences in perception of individual and systemic racism (Nelson et al., 2013) or systemic racism (Bonam et al., 2019) when comparing Black versus White Americans. The present research suggests that ignorance of historical racism mediates political differences in perception of individual racism when comparing White Republicans versus White Democrats. These data suggest that the Marley hypothesis helps explain not just racial-ethnic differences but also political differences in perception of racism. As such, these data enhance our understanding of vast political differences that exist in the perception of individual racism (e.g., whether a White perpetrator’s attack on a minority group member reflects racism). Moreover, the present research suggests that differences in White students’ knowledge of historical racism and perception of present racism across contexts (Strickhouser et al., 2019) may be due to political orientation (i.e., how conservative the campus is).

The present research also indicates that racial identification mediates political differences in perception of racism, after adjustment for historical knowledge. Specifically, Republicans identified more strongly with their racial group than Democrats, which in turn predicted lower perception of racism in individual cases and in society. These data support the argument that denial of racism is partly a function of identity-maintenance concerns (Blodorn et al., 2016; Knowles et al., 2014). That is, White Republicans may perceive relatively low levels of present racism in part because the recognition of racism threatens a valued (White) identity.

Limitations and Future Directions

As the first set of studies exploring the Marley hypothesis in political groups, the present research should inspire future work on this topic. Unexpectedly, the present research supported the Marley hypothesis only when examining perception of individual racism. Perception of systemic racism triggers greater defensiveness than perception of individual racism and is strongly tied to people’s racial identities. Nonetheless, future work should continue to explore political differences in perception of individual and systemic racism, and the unique mechanisms that contribute to these outcomes.

Because research on the Marley hypothesis has largely used correlational methods, experimental studies are needed to examine whether boosting knowledge of historical racism boosts perception of racism in the present. One experiment suggests that a brief historical knowledge intervention increased White Americans’ perception of present racism (Bonam et al., 2019, Study 2). Furthermore, interventions that raise awareness of White privilege (i.e., unearned advantages obtained merely from Whiteness) also boost perception of racism (Cooley et al., 2019). However, other research suggests that reminders of past discrimination may not impact dominant group members’ perception of present discrimination (Onyeador et al., 2021) and may even increase the defensive denial of discrimination (Hideg & Wilson, 2020). Thus, it remains unclear whether knowledge of historical racism has a causal effect on perception of racism. Furthermore, it is possible that perception of racism affects knowledge acquisition, such that people who defensively deny the existence of racism may fail to attend to historical information.

Finally, future research is needed to examine whether political identity (i.e., how favorably people evaluate their political group) moderates political differences in perception of racism. Whereas political identity may be negatively associated with perception of racism among Republicans, political identity may be positively associated with perception of racism among Democrats. That is, Republicans (Democrats) who identify strongly with their political group may exhibit greater (lesser) denial of racism. It is also important to note that the liberal-left versus conservative-right distinction exists in many countries across the world (Jost et al., 2009). Thus, future research should examine whether left–right differences in perception of racism occur outside the United States and whether they are mediated by historical knowledge.

Conclusion

White Republicans and Democrats strongly disagree about the lingering effects of racism on American life, with Republicans generally perceiving much less racism both in individual cases and in society than Democrats. The present research advanced our understanding of factors associated with political differences in perception of racism. Our data suggest that White Republicans have worse knowledge of historical racism than White Democrats. Furthermore, consistent with the Marley hypothesis, knowledge of historical racism mediated political differences in perception of individual racism. These findings are of considerable theoretical and practical value, given the tendency for divergent perceptions of racism to manifest in intergroup conflict (e.g., backlash to the 1619 Project). Additional research should explore the underpinnings of political differences in perception of racism and pursue interventions that alleviate them.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iD

Ethan Zell

Handling Editor: Margo Monteith

Author Biographies

Ethan Zell is an associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. His research examines self and social perception.

Tara L. Lesick is a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at Florida State University. Her research examines why prejudice exists, how people portray prejudice, and the impact prejudice has on interactions.

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