Breaking the Cycle: Implicit Bias, Racial Anxiety, and Stereotype Threat Rachel D

January/February 2015 Volume 24: Number 1

Breaking the Cycle: Implicit Bias, Racial Anxiety, and Stereotype Threat Rachel D. Godsil

Our country is in the midst of a obstacles rooted in racial or ethnic dif- scribe, “Breaking the Prejudice Habit” racial cataclysm. Deaths of black men ference with alarming frequency. And (Devine 2014) and research identify- and boys at the hands of police, com- yet most Americans espouse values of ing best practices to prevent implicit bined with grand juries’ failure to in- racial fairness. How can we make bias from affecting decision-making dict, have spurred grief, rage and pro- sense of these seeming contradictions? and behavior. test across the country. The reactions And how can we work to change the Understanding implicit bias can to the events are not uniform, how- conditions that set the stage for daily help explain why a black criminal de- ever. A deep polarization along racial challenges and tragic endings that are fendant charged with the same crime lines has emerged that contributes to linked to race? as a white defendant may receive a the feeling among many people of In November 2014, the Perception more draconian sentence, or why a color that black lives don’t matter. Institute, along with the Haas Institute resume from someone named Emily Neither these tragedies nor the ra- for a Fair and Inclusive Society, and will receive more callbacks than an cial disconnect that followed occur in the Center for Police Equity, issued otherwise identical resume from some- isolation. People of color experience the first in a series of reports entitled, one named Lakeisha. This work con- The Science of Equality: Addressing firms that people of color whose ex- Implicit Bias, Racial Anxiety, and Ste- periences of the world make abun- Rachel D. Godsil (rachel.godsil@ reotype Threat in Education and dantly clear that “race matters” are not gmail.com) is the Eleanor Bontecou Health Care, co-authored by Rachel simply oversensitive, while also ex- Professor of Law at Seton Hall Law Godsil, Linda Tropp, Phillip Atiba plaining how whites who consider School and Director of Research for Goff and john powell. The goal of this themselves non-racist may be sincere, the Perception Institute, a national series of reports is to synthesize and even if their behavior sometimes sug- consortium of social scientists, legal make accessible the advances in neu- gests otherwise. academics, lawyers and social justice roscience, social psychology and other This is not meant to suggest that advocates focusing on the implications “mind sciences” that have provided racialized outcomes are only a result of the mind sciences for policy, cul- insight into otherwise confounding of individual actions; cumulative ra- ture and institutions. She also chairs contradictions between our country’s cial advantages for whites as a group the New York City Rent Guidelines stated commitment to fairness and the have been embedded into society’s Board.This article is a précis of a behaviors that lead both to tragic out- structures and institutions. However, longer Perception Inst./Haas Inst. for comes and day-to-day indignities (Please turn to page 2) a Fair & Inclusive Society/Ctr. for linked to race. Police Equity report by Rachel Godsil, Our report includes a lengthy dis- Linda Tropp, Phillip Atiba Goff & cussion of social psychological re- CONTENTS: john powell, The Science of Equal- search focusing on “implicit bias”— ity: Addressing Implicit Bias, Racial the automatic association of stereotypes Implicit Bias ...... 1 Anxiety, and Stereotype Threat in Edu- or attitudes with particular social §8 Landlords ...... 3 cation and Health Care. The Percep- groups. We place particular emphasis Resources ...... 10 tion Inst., http://perception.org/our- on new research on reducing bias or, publications as Patricia Devine and colleagues de-

Poverty & Race Research Action Council • 1200 18th Street NW • Suite 200 • Washington, DC 20036 202/906-8023 • FAX: 202/842-2885 • E-mail: [email protected] • www.prrac.org Recycled Paper (IMPLICIT BIAS: from page 1) how we navigate racial interactions. explored is the idea that whites can suf- These can translate into racial anxiety fer stereotype threat when concerned as john powell and I argued in these and stereotype threat which, indepen- that they may be perceived as racist. pages in 2011 ("Implicit Bias Insights dent of bias, can create obstacles for In the former context, the threat pre- as Preconditions to Structural institutions and individuals seeking to vents students from performing as well Change," P&R, Sept./Oct. 2011), adhere to antiracist practices. Indeed, as they ought, and so they themselves there are two key reasons why struc- research suggests that some forms of suffer the consequences of this phe- tural racism cannot be successfully anti-bias education may have detrimen- nomenon. Stereotype threat among challenged without an understanding of tal effects, if they increase bias aware- whites, by contrast, often causes be- how race operates psychologically. ness without also providing skills for havior that harms others—usually the First, public policy choices are often managing anxiety. very people they are worried about. affected by implicit bias or other Racial anxiety refers to discomfort Concern about being perceived as rac- racialized phenomena that operate im- about the experience and potential con- ist explains, for example, why some plicitly. As a result, the changes in sequences of inter-racial interactions. white teachers, professors and super- policy necessary to address institutional It is important to distinguish this defi- visors give less critical feedback to structures are dependent upon success- nition of racial anxiety from what so- black students and employees than to fully addressing implicit biases that can cial scientists refer to as “racial threat,” white ones (Harber et al., 2012) and affect political choices. Second, insti- which includes the anger, frustration, why white peer advisors may fail to tutional operations invariably involve uncertainty, feelings of deprivation and warn a black student but will warn a human behavior and interaction: Any white or Asian student that a certain policies to address racial inequities in Skills are needed for course load is unmanageable (Crosby schools, workplaces, police depart- managing racial anxiety. & Monin, 2007). ments, courthouses, government of- In other words, cognitive depletion fices and the like will only be success- or interference caused by stereotype ful if the people implementing the other emotions associated with concern threat can affect how one’s own ca- policy changes comply with them over loss of resources or dominance. pacity, such as the ability to achieve (Crosby & Monin, 2007). People of color may experience racial academically, will be judged; this Although implicit phenomena have anxiety that they will be the target of causes first-party harm to the indi- the potential to impede successful in- discrimination and hostile treatment. vidual whose performance suffers. stitutional change, implicit racial bias White people tend to experience anxi- However, as is explored in more de- is not the only psychological phenom- ety that they will be assumed to be racist tail below, stereotype threat about how enon that blocks society from achiev- and will be met with distrust or hostil- one’s character will be judged (i.e., ing racial equality. We risk being myo- ity. Whites experiencing racial anxi- being labeled a racist) can cause third- pic if we focus only on people’s cog- ety can seem awkward and maintain party harms when suffered by an indi- nitive processing, and we also risk unless eye contact with people of color, vidual in a position of power. intended consequences if we focus our and ultimately these interactions tend Implicit bias, racial anxiety and ste- interventions only on addressing im- to be shorter than those without anxi- reotype threat have effects in virtually plicit bias. Our experiences, motiva- ety. If two people are both anxious that every important area of our lives. In tions and emotions are also integral to an interaction will be negative, it of- the first report, we illustrate the inter- ten is. So racial anxiety can result in a related implications of the three phe- Poverty & Race (ISSN 1075-3591) negative feedback loop in which both nomena in the domains of education is published six times a year by the Pov- parties’ fears seem to be confirmed by and healthcare. Education and health- erty and Race Research Action Council, the behavior of the other. care are of critical importance for ob- 1200 18th Street NW, Suite 200, Wash- Stereotype threat refers to the pres- vious reasons, and an abundance of ington, DC 20036, 202/906-8023, fax: 202/842-2885, E-mail: [email protected]. sure people feel when they fear that research has highlighted the role race Chester Hartman, Editor. Subscriptions their performance may confirm a nega- plays in unequal outcomes in both do- are $25/year, $45/two years. Foreign tive stereotype about their group mains. postage extra. Articles, article sugges- (Steele, 2010). This pressure is expe- The report also emphasizes the in- tions, letters and general comments are rienced as a distraction that interferes terventions that are emerging in the welcome, as are notices of publications, conferences, job openings, etc. for our with intellectual functioning. Although research that institutions can begin to Resources Section. Articles generally stereotype threat can affect anyone, it use to prevent continuing racialized may be reprinted, providing PRRAC has been most discussed in the context obstacles. Ideally, this work will hap- gives advance permission. of academic achievement among stu- pen at the structural and institutional © Copyright 2015 by the Poverty and dents of color, and among girls in sci- level—but many of us don’t want to Race Research Action Council. All rights reserved. ence, technology, engineering and wait, and the social science research math (STEM) fields. Less commonly (Please turn to page 8)

2 • Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 Reverse Selection: Landlords and the Sorting of HCV Renters Eva Rosen Scholars of poverty and residen- ties for poor families to access new ants; 2) a matching process, where tial mobility have long been interested neighborhoods. Out of the five mil- landlords cherry-pick certain types of in how the choices and preferences of lion households across the country that tenants for certain types of units; and low-income families interact with hous- federal housing programs now assist, 3) the selective retention of tenants ing policy to create and reproduce high- over half are now housed in privately who do not have the means to leave. poverty and racially segregated neigh- owned properties (Schwartz 2010). These decisions can have an important borhoods (Massey & Denton 1993; But even though a voucher can be used impact on which voucher holders end Mayer & Jencks 1989; Wilson 1987). in any neighborhood with an afford- up in which properties and how long However, both of these explanations able unit (defined as 40-50% of Area they stay. ignore a critical intermediary force in Median Rent), voucher holders are distributing residents across urban concentrating in neighborhoods with space: the landlord. Recent research moderate to high poverty rates (Galster The Baltimore Study has revealed that landlords affect resi- 2005; Hartung and Henig 1997; Orr dential instability and the reproduction et al. 2003), and Black voucher hold- To explore this question, I lived in of poverty through eviction (Desmond ers live in poorer and more segregated Baltimore for 15 months between 2011 2012; Hartman & Robinson 2003). But and 2012, where I conducted ethno- how do landlord practices sort residents graphic fieldwork and in-depth inter- into homes across urban areas? Land- We must focus on those views with 20 landlords and 82 resi- lords function as gatekeepers, affect- supplying housing. dents. All landlord respondents own ing where people end up living. In my one or more rental units, though some work, I examine landlords as a miss- are also property managers (with ing piece of the puzzle, and find that neighborhoods than White voucher whom tenants often interact as the landlord practices combine with struc- holders (Devine 2003; Galvez 2010; landlord’s proxy), and I observed them tural forces and residential choices to Pendall 2000). This raises an impor- in this capacity as well. The sample unequally sort renters across urban tant puzzle: Why don’t renters move spans the range of types of landlords space. to better neighborhoods when they are who rent to voucher holders, and also To show how policy, preferences provided the financial assistance to do represents a significant portion of the and landlords meet, I consider the so? units rented through the HCV program transformation in housing policy over A rich body of research has con- in Baltimore at this time. Together, the past two decades, which has sidered the myriad obstacles to suc- these individuals and the companies brought about the demolition of large- cessful lease-up with a voucher, in- they represent own and manage over scale public housing and the shift to cluding bureaucratic barriers with the (Please turn to page 4) tenant-based housing subsidies. The HCV program and problems with Department of Housing and Urban De- landlords (Boyd et al. 2010; DeLuca, velopment (HUD)’s Housing Choice Garboden & Rosenblatt 2013; Edin, John Doar Voucher (HCV) program, formerly DeLuca & Owens 2012; Pashup et al. “Section 8,” has been expanded to 2005); discrimination (Freeman & Li We dedicate this issue of P&R serve over 2.2 million low-income 2013; Tegeler, Cunningham & Turner to John Doar, who passed away households nationwide (CBPP 2012), 2005); and social ties (Boyd 2008; in November, 2014 at the age of with the intent to provide opportuni- Boyd et al. 2010). However, in order 92. Doar, Director of the US to understand why voucher holders end Justice Department’s Civil Eva Rosen ([email protected]) up in the neighborhoods they do, I Rights Division, took coura- is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the argue that we must also look beyond geous and effective action in the Harvard College Fellows program, in those who are seeking housing, to fo- 1960s to utilize the federal the Dept of Sociology at Harvard Uni- cus on those who are supplying hous- government’s powers in the versity. ing. I find that landlord strategies are fight against racial discrimination A complete version of this article linked to residential sorting patterns and inequality in our nation’s appears in the December 2014 issue of through three steps: 1) selection, where South. City & Community. landlords favor certain types of ten-

Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 • 3 (LANDLORDS: Continued from page 3) I observed landlords interact with pro- Not only does renting through the spective tenants and carefully select voucher program provide a rent that is 3,000 units in Baltimore city, over which properties to show them and in paid reliably, there is also evidence that 1,600 of which are rented to voucher what order, I learned that there is no in some neighborhoods landlords can holders, meaning that they control over universally “good” tenant. As one charge more than they would be able 14% of the nearly 12,000 units rented landlord pointed out, it depends on the to obtain on the open market. In many through the HCV program at the time property: “The thing is, you don’t poor neighborhoods landlords are of the study (HUD 2009). Below I need a lot of help when it’s a good obliged to lower their asking rents for describe some of the key findings from area. But in the bad area, that’s when market-rate tenants in order to fill units a forthcoming paper in City & Com- it’s hard. The key is you got to under- and accommodate the incomes of the munity, entitled “Rigging the Rules of stand that everyone needs somewhere local population. The voucher rent the Game: How Landlords Geographi- to live. There’s a tenant for every ceilings are based on Fair Market Rent cally Sort Low-Income Renters” house. You’ve just got to find the right (FMR) for a much larger geographic (Rosen 2014). tenant.” area, and may indeed be higher than Landlords have an array of proper- other similar houses on the block or in ties located in different neighbor- the neighborhood. FINDINGS hoods, and a list of prospective ten- Landlords also match on race, but ants with varying traits and prefer- since Baltimore’s voucher holder The Appeal of the Voucher Program ences. We might think about landlords population is over 90% African- The city now has one of the highest responding to tenant demand by find- American (HUD 2009), landlords can- voucher rates in the country (HUD ing them a home that meets their needs. not practically use race as a criterion 2009; U.S. Census Bureau 2010). Bal- for selection if they want to have timore landlords face a common set voucher tenants. However, landlords of challenges in the local housing land- Landlords strategically do use race as a criterion for deter- scape: vacancies, high turnover and orient their businesses mining which property, and where, rent collection. Evolving HCV poli- toward the voucher they are likely to show homes to a pro- cies, coupled with the financial crisis market. spective tenant. One tenant placement of 2008 and subsequent changes to agent admits to this type of steering Baltimore’s housing landscape, mean based on race: that the HCV program now offers a But landlords have another, perhaps Now, I know—this may be dis- set of potential solutions to these prob- more pressing concern, which is to fill crimination and I must openly ad- lems. In particular, the burden of rent as many of their units as possible with mit that I may discriminate, but I collection is eased with voucher ten- tenants who are likely to stay over the won’t take a White client and put ants since the majority of their pay- long term. In a city with a high va- her right down in the middle of Park Heights… When we place Whites, ments are issues directly and depend- cancy rate like Baltimore’s, near 16 it’s Whites on Section 8, and we [do] ably to the landlord by the housing percent of unit are vacant (U.S. Cen- get Whites, but I’ll try to place them authority. sus Bureau 2010, includes available in a more safer type neighborhood and abandoned properties). Landlords … I won’t try to place a White down Matching: “A Tenant for Every engage in a matching game: they sort in the middle of the war zone. You House” residents into optimal units in order can call it discrimination, but to me, What constitutes an ideal tenant? As to minimize vacancies and turnover, it just wouldn’t be right. while they maximize profit. Finding the right tenant for a property means What this agent describes as a “war Are you a federal matching tenant characteristics—such zone” is a predominantly Black, mod- employee? as age, family size, race, voucher sta- erately poor neighborhood in North- Please consider tus and financial risk—To property west Baltimore. If landlords and agents characteristics—such as size, condition like this one are prioritizing the place- contributing to PRRAC and neighborhood location. ment of White voucher holders in the through the Combined The most important criteria upon limited units they have in White neigh- Federal Campaign (CFC). which landlords match are voucher sta- borhoods, they are de facto unable to Our CFC designation tus and geography. In disadvantaged place Black tenants in such neighbor- code is 117 10 . neighborhoods, it can be hard to find hoods. This may be one explanation and attract market tenants who pay for the disparate locational outcomes We appreciate your their rent reliably. This provides an we see for Black and White voucher support! incentive for landlords to find voucher holders in the quantitative research. tenants to occupy units in these areas.

4 • Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 Reverse Selection: Building a Better it’s beautiful… It’s like, if you build a in rental units with rodent infestations, Mousetrap better mousetrap, you know how they dysfunctional kitchens or persistent In some neighborhoods—particu- say that...” In other words, the land- water leaks might be more susceptible larly in disadvantaged or high-crime lord lures the tenant into the home, to the allure of a newly renovated neighborhoods—landlords have diffi- dazzles them with sparkling new reno- kitchen or the landlord’s offer of a culty attracting tenants with or with- vations, and proposes a rental contract dishwasher. Those with few resources out a voucher. Therefore, it is com- on the spot. The landlord’s financial for learning about new and different mon to actively recruit and target de- investment in the home is rewarded by neighborhoods are more likely to be sired tenants. For example, many the ability to attract a voucher tenant. swayed by the physical features of the landlords stand outside the Baltimore This same placement agent often unit than by the less tangible charac- Housing Authority office, recruiting advises landlords that offering tenants teristics of the neighborhood. Land- voucher tenants for their hard-to-rent enticements or “promotions,” on an lords capitalize on these vulnerabili- properties in disadvantaged neighbor- apartment in an unattractive neighbor- ties, attracting the tenants they want hoods. Thus, voucher holders with hood can help it to rent more quickly, by “building a better mousetrap,” in fewer resources to conduct indepen- and makes it easier to attract the cov- one landlord’s words. I call this pro- dent housing searches will be more eted voucher tenant: “I tell owners … cess “reverse selection,” where, rather likely to end up viewing these types look, you want to get your place than tenants selecting homes and of units. This is an important way in neighborhoods, landlords are select- which voucher holders are internally Landlords play a role in ing tenants. This has important impli- sorted within the voucher market. cations for where voucher holders end Another way to target desired ten- selective retention of up. ants is to compensate for the neigh- tenants. borhood by offering enticements to the Selective Retention: Leveraging the tenant. For example, a young Black rented. Okay. All right, now, this girl Voucher landlord says he can capitalize on a is on Section 8, okay? Her annual in- Previous research has demonstrated property that is still under renovation come is $6,000 a year. For real. You that eviction is a means through which in order to “lock down” the tenant: want a $1,000 security deposit? You landlords selectively purge residents You can … put the tenant in a want one sixth of her annual income.” (Desmond 2012; Edin, DeLuca & position where they are in control. The security deposit is not usually cov- Owens 2012; Hartman & Robinson So you come into a room and say, ered by the housing voucher, so waiv- 2003; Stegman 1972). I find evidence “What color do you want this that landlords also play a role in the room?” And they feel like now it ing the deposit is a particular entice- ment to voucher tenants and others on selective retention of renters. In a belongs to them, so it makes them majority of cases, landlords have a want the property even more. It fixed incomes for whom it would be strong financial incentive not to evict makes them do the things they very difficult to come up with a large need to do to qualify for the prop- lump sum of money. An understand- tenants (especially voucher tenants, erty and then we rent it a lot faster. ing of voucher holders’ financial cir- whose rent is paid mostly by the gov- cumstances allows landlords to make ernment). Eviction is costly to the land- Landlords have an arsenal of strat- offers that are so good, they are hard lord, and most go out of their way to egies to fill hard-to-rent properties. to refuse. Fifteen out of the twenty avoid it unless absolutely necessary. Another landlord takes the idea of landlords selectively used some form In fact, much of the time, landlords “locking down” a tenant a step fur- of “move-in special” or security de- are scheming of ways not to rid them- ther. When showing voucher holders posit waiver to entice desired tenants. selves of tenants, but to hold on to ten- properties, he picks up families at their Some landlords market properties ants, taking measures to discourage homes and personally drives them to specifically toward the “lower end” of and prevent them from leaving. Land- see available units. He shuttles them the voucher market. This less advan- lords have at their disposal a number directly in the door of the newly reno- taged segment is more susceptible to of strategies to get desirable tenants to vated home, emphasizing the quality landlord tactics: tenants who have bad stay in hard-to-rent units, ranging of the unit over its surroundings, and credit histories, unfavorable residen- from enticements and incentives, to effectively preventing prospective ten- tial references, or criminal records strategic implementation of the HCV ants from exploring the neighborhood. have fewer rental options, and are rules surrounding inspections and the Once the tenant gets in the door, it is more likely to accept the first unit a terms of the lease, to threats of voucher much easier to negotiate because the landlord offers them. Voucher hold- loss and financial entrapment. home is beautifully renovated with lots ers who have little money saved up for In this study, one of the biggest of amenities. “The house looks like a security deposit are more likely to challenges landlords face is tenant turn- anything that you might walk in in the accept a unit if the landlord offers to over. In one landlord’s perception: suburbs on the inside of the house, so waive it. Those who have only lived (Please turn to page 6)

Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 • 5 (LANDLORDS: Continued from page 5) one owes them money or if some- of the worst quality units in the poor- one doesn’t pay their $100 portion… est neighborhoods. “Every tenant wants to move all the [they] would let them not pay, and time. That is the one bad thing about then hold that over their head. So Section 8 ... They all want to move, when they say, “I want to leave,” IMPLICATIONS & all the time.” Turnover incurs signifi- “No, you owe me $1500.” And they CONCLUSION cant costs. Every time a tenant moves, are never coming up with $1500. expenses include repainting, re-carpet- There are several ways to improve This practice may serve as a broader ing, and the loss of valuable time and current policy and to address these mechanism that keeps tenants “stuck money looking for a new tenant. problems within the voucher system. in place” (Sharkey), preventing them The so-called “teeth” of the HCV Better information and housing coun- from moving on to newer homes and program can help landlords to combat seling for families, transportation for neighborhoods. this challenge. Landlords exploit the housing searches, and security deposit Landlords imagine the rental pro- intricacies of the voucher rules to at- assistance would all minimize the ef- cess as a game between landlord and tenuate the movement of voucher hold- fect of the landlord’s targeted recruit- tenant, in which the voucher is in jeop- ers out of their properties. The HCV ment tactics that attract and retain vul- ardy and can be used to manipulate program does not allow a tenant to be nerable voucher holders. It is essen- behavior. But the rules are rigged. issued a new voucher to move if the tial for families to be informed of their Landlords have superior access to in- landlord is owed any money, as ex- rights as tenants so they can report formation and resources, they know plained by one landlord: “If they owe necessary repairs or request to move the rules of the game and how to use money for damages, they can’t move without fear of losing their voucher. them. In contrast, many voucher hold- until they make good on it. The old Another potential area of interven- ers are not aware of their own bargain- way, they used to be able to just pack tion is in the calculation of Fair Mar- up, move, and be irresponsible… Es- ket Rent and the perverse incentives sentially, it’s not really that you’re that are created its definition. New holding them… [it’s] that they’re ac- The set of landlord research finds that when the FMR is countable.” Furthermore, by permit- practices described defined at the zip-code level rather than ting small, unpaid rental portions to here form a powerful at the metropolitan level, voucher accrue over time, landlords can facili- sorting instrument. holders move to better neighborhoods tate a situation where the tenant owes with no additional costs (Collinson & more money he or she can repay, and Ganong 2013). This has important im- therefore cannot leave the home with- ing power and do not have the resources plications for the cost effectiveness of out losing the voucher. A landlord ex- to employ it effectively. Landlord re- voucher administration. If housing plains how this works: tention tactics effectively hold the authorities spend less on rent, they [Certain landlords] game the Section most disadvantaged voucher holders— could help a larger number of fami- 8 system back to the tenant… If some- those behind on their rent—into some lies, which is key, since only one in four qualified families currently re- ceives housing aid (Turner & Kingsley 2008). New on PRRAC’s website The shift in American housing policy in the last two decades towards Amicus Curiae briefs in U.S. Supreme Court case of Inclusive Communi- individual subsidies has been touted as ties Project v. Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (rais- a way to let the private market solve ing question of availability of “disparate impact” liability under the Fair the problem of concentrated poverty— Housing Act) in which federal housing policy has Civil rights coalition comments on HUD’s “Moving to Work” program for been historically complicit—by pro- Public Housing Agency flexibility viding opportunities for poor families to move to neighborhoods of their Housing Justice Network comments on HUD’s proposed rule on public choosing. However, without studying housing demolition and disposition how landlords mediate market forces, we miss an important mechanism PRRAC comments on the Department of Transportation's metropolitan shaping residential inequality. Rather transportation planning guidance than providing low-income families National Coalition on School Diversity suggestions to the Department of with the opportunity to make informed Education for stricter civil rights standards for renewals of state “waivers” decisions about which neighborhood of “No Child Left Behind” requirements would be best for them, the system has

6 • Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 been turned on its head. Instead of ten- tually creates demand, landlords’ ac- entrenched social problem. The set of ants selecting neighborhoods, land- tions shape and constrain residents’ landlord practices described here form lords are recruiting, selecting, and then choices. This reversal illuminates an a powerful sorting instrument that sorting tenants into the units and neigh- important mechanism in processes of channels the most disadvantaged borhoods where the greatest profit can residential sorting and selection. The voucher holders into some of the worst be made. Despite its potential to fa- voucher case demonstrates the ways in neighborhoods, thus reproducing spa- cilitate the mobility of low-income which landlord practices intervene to tial inequality and concentrated pov- households, the HCV program has in pervert the process of residential erty. ❏ some cases done the opposite. In this choice, revealing the limits of a mar- process of reverse selection, supply ac- ket-based solution to a complicated and

Works Cited

Boyd, Melody. 2008. “The Role of Social Networks in Making huduser.org/portal/picture2000/index.html. Housing Choices: The Experience of the Gautreaux Two Resi- Jacobson, Joan. 2007. The Dismantling of Baltimore’s Public dential Mobility Program.” Cityscape 10(1): 41–63. Housing. Baltimore: The Abell Foundation. http://www. Boyd, Melody, Kathryn Edin, Susan Clampet-Lundquist & Greg abell.org/sites/default/files/publications/arn907.pdf. Duncan. 2010. “The Durability of Gains from the Gautreaux Massey, Douglas S. & Nancy A. Denton. 1993. American Apart- Two Residential Mobility Program.” Housing Policy Debate heid: Segregation and the Making of the Underclass. Cam- 20(1): 119–46. bridge, MA: Harvard Univ. Press. CBPP. 2012. Fact Sheet: The Housing Choice Voucher Pro- Mayer, Susan E. & Christopher Jencks. 1989. “Growing Up in gram. Washington, DC: Center on Budget and Policy Priori- Poor Neighborhoods: How Much Does It Matter?” Science ties. http://www.cbpp.org/files/3-10-14hous-factsheets/ 243(4897): 1441–45. US.pdf. Orr, Larry et al. 2003. Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing Collinson, Rob & Peter Ganong. 2013. “Incidence and Price Demonstration: Interim Impacts Evaluation. Washington, DC: Discrimination: Evidence from Housing Vouchers.” Work- U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, Office of ing Paper. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm? Policy Development and Research. abstract_id=2255799. Pashup, Jennifer, Kathryn Edin, Greg J. Duncan & Karen Burke. DeLuca, Stefanie, Philip M.E. Garboden & Peter Rosenblatt. 2005. “Participation in a Residential Mobility Program from 2013. “Segregating Shelter: How Housing Policies Shape the the Client’s Perspective: Findings from Gautreaux Two.” Residential Locations of Low-Income Minority Families.” An- Housing Policy Debate 16(3-4): 361–92. nals 647: 268–99. Pendall, Rolf. 2000. “Why Voucher and Certificate Users Live Desmond, Matthew. 2012. “Eviction and the Reproduction of in Distressed Neighborhoods.” Housing Policy Debate 11(4): Urban Poverty.” American Journal of Sociology 118(1): 88– 881–910. 133. Rosen, Eva. 2014. “Rigging the Rules of the Game: How Land- Devine, Deborah J. 2003. Housing Choice Voucher Location lords Geographically Sort Low-Income Renters.” City & Com- Patterns: Implications for Participant and Neighborhood Wel- munity 13(4). fare. U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development PD&R. Schwartz, Alex F. 2010. Housing Policy in the United States. Edin, Kathryn, Stefanie DeLuca & Ann Owens. 2012. “Con- 2nd ed. New York: Routledge. strained Compliance: Solving the Puzzle of MTO’s Lease-Up Sharkey, Patrick. 2013. Stuck in Place: Urban Neighborhoods Rates and Why Mobility Matters.” Cityscape 14(2): 163–78. and the End of Progress toward Racial Equality. Chicago: Freeman, Lance & Yunjing Li. 2013. “Do Source of Income University Of Chicago Press. Anti-Discrimination Laws Facilitate Access to Less Disad- Stegman, Michael A. 1972. Housing Investment in the Inner vantaged Neighborhoods?” Housing Studies 29(1): 88–107. City. Cambridge: The MIT Press. Galster, George C. 2005. “Consequences From the Redistribu- Tegeler, Philip D., Mary Cunningham & Margery Austin Turner. tion of Urban Poverty During the 1990s: A Cautionary Tale.” 2005. Keeping the Promise: Preserving and Enhancing Hous- Economic Development Quarterly 19(2): 119–25. ing Mobility in the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Pro- Galvez, Martha. 2010. What Do We Know About Housing Choice gram. Poverty and Race Research Action Council. Voucher Program Location Outcomes?. Washington, DC: Turner, Margery Austin & G. Thomas Kingsley. 2008. Federal The Urban Institute. Programs for Addressing Low-Income Housing Needs: A Hartman, Chester & David Robinson. 2003. “Evictions: The Policy Primer. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute. http:// Hidden Housing Problem.” Housing Policy Debate 14(4): www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/411798_low-income_housing. 461–501. pdf. Hartung, John M. & Jeffrey. R. Henig. 1997. “Housing Vouch- U.S. Census Bureau. 2010. American Community Survey, 2006- ers and Certificates as a Vehicle for Deconcentrating the Poor: 2010. U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey Evidence from the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Area.” Office. http://factfinder2.census.gov. Urban Affairs Review 32(3): 403–19. Wilson, William Julius. 1987. The Truly Disadvantaged: The HUD. 2009. A Picture of Subsidized Households. U.S. Depart- Inner City, the Underclass, and Public Policy. Chicago: Univ. ment of Housing and Urban Development. http://www. of Chicago Press.

Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 • 7 (IMPLICIT BIAS: from page 2) tact: Increased contact between about race, institutions can also estab- groups can ameliorate implicit lish practices to prevent these biases shows that we are not wholly without bias through a wide variety of from seeping into decision-making. agency or tools. The interventions de- mechanisms, including altering Jerry Kang and a group of researchers scribed below can, even in absence of their images of the group or by (Kang et al. 2012) developed the fol- wide-scale institutional change, help directly improving evaluations of lowing list of interventions that have individual teachers or medical provid- the group. been found to be constructive: ers begin at least to ameliorate implicit Doubt Objectivity: Presuming one- bias, racial anxiety and stereotype The data showing reduced bias from self to be objective actually tends to threat. Devine and colleagues “provide the increase the role of implicit bias; first evidence that a controlled, ran- teaching people about non-conscious domized intervention can produce en- thought processes will lead people to “Debiasing” and Pre- during reductions in implicit bias” be skeptical of their own objectivity venting Effects of (Devine et al. 2012). The findings have and better able to guard against biased Implicit Bias been replicated by Devine and col- evaluations. leagues, and further studies will be in Increase Motivation to be Fair: While the research on debiasing is print in 2015. Internal motivations to be fair rather fairly new, recent studies by Patricia than fear of external judgments tend Devine and colleagues have found suc- to decrease biased actions. Whites can also suffer Improve Conditions of Decision- cess in reducing implicit racial bias, stereotype threat. increasing concern about discrimina- making: Implicit biases are a function tion and awareness of personal bias by of automaticity (Daniel Kahneman’s combining multiple interventions to “thinking fast”—Kahneman, 2013). “break the prejudice habit.” The strat- Thinking slow by engaging in mind- egies quoted below (thoughtfully uti- Preventing Implicit Bias ful, deliberate processing and not in lizing findings from research by from Affecting Behavior the throes of emotions prevents our Nilanjana Dasgupta and others) in- implicit biases from kicking in and de- cluded: To the extent that debiasing is an termining our behaviors. • Stereotype replacement: Recog- uphill challenge in light of the tenac- Count: Implicitly biased behavior nizing that a response is based ity of negative stereotypes and attitudes is best detected by using data to deter- on stereotypes, labeling the response as stereotypical and re- flecting on why the response oc- Works Cited curred creates a process to consider how the biased response Crosby, J. R. & Monin, B. (2007). Failure to warn: How student race affects warnings could be avoided in the future of potential academic difficulty. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43, 663-670. and replaces it with an unbiased Dasgupta, Nilanjana, 2013 “Implicit Attitudes and Beliefs Adapt to Situations: A De- response. cade of Research on the Malleability of Implicit Prejudice, Stereotypes, and the Self- • Counter-stereotypic imaging: Concept,” in P.G. Devine & E.A. Plant (eds.), Advances in Experimental Social Psy- Imagining counter-stereotypic chology (Vol. 47, pp.233-79). others in detail makes positive Devine, P. G., Forscher, P. S., Austin, A. J., & Cox, W. T. L. (2012). Long-term exemplars salient and accessible reduction in implicit race bias: A prejudice habit-breaking intervention. Journal of Experi- when challenging a stereotype's mental Social Psychology, 48, 1267–1278 validity. Devine, Patricia, et al. Breaking the Prejudice Habit (Guilford Publications, 2014) • Individuation: Obtaining specific Erman, S. & Walton, G. M. (in press). Stereotype threat and anti-discrimination law: information about group mem- Affirmative steps to promote meritocracy and racial equality. Southern California Law bers prevents stereotypic infer- Review. ences. Harber, K. D., Gorman, J. L., Gengaro, F. P., Butisingh, S., William, T., & Ouellette, • Perspective-taking: Imagining R. (2012). Students’ race and teachers’ social support affect the positive feedback bias in oneself to be a member of a ste- public schools. Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(4), 1149-1161. reotyped group increases psycho- Kahneman, Daniel, Thinking Fast and Slow (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013) logical closeness to the stereo- Kang, J., Bennett, M., Carbado, D., Casey, P., Dasgupta, N., Faigman, D., Godsil, R. typed group, which ameliorates D., Greenwald, A. G., Levinson, J. D. & Mnookin, J. (2012). Implicit bias in the automatic group-based evalua- courtroom. UCLA Law Review, 59(5), 1124-1186. tions. Steele, C. M. (2010). Whistling Vivaldi: And other clues to how stereotypes affect us. • Increasing opportunities for con- New York, NY: Norton.

8 • Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 mine whether patterns of behavior are leading to racially disparate outcomes. Thanks for your contributions to PRRAC! Once one is aware that decisions or behavior are having disparate out- Thomas Arcury & Sara Quandt comes, it is then possible to consider James Liebman Michelle Aronowitz whether the outcomes are linked to Douglas Massey Susan Bennett bias. Roslyn Mickelson & Paul Birnberg Stephen Smith Joel Blau Nancy McArdle Rachel Bratt Interventions to Reduce S.M. Miller Rob Breymaier John & Sandra O’Donnell Racial Anxiety Tino Calabia Michael Paris Harry Carey Larry Pearl The mechanisms to reduce racial Amy Eppler-Epstein Allan Rodgers anxiety are related to the reduction of Paul Fischer Camille Rodriguez implicit bias—but are not identical. In Henry Freedman Rev. Henry Schriever our view, combining interventions that William & Zelda Gamson Tony Schuman target both implicit bias and racial Daniel Goldstein Susan Silverstein anxiety will be vastly more successful Alice Henkin Maddie Sloan than either in isolation. Helen Hershkoff Girardeau Spann Direct Inter-group Contact: Direct Betsy Julian David & Nancy Tegeler interaction between members of dif- Henry Kahn & Mickey Gillmor James Wilkinson ferent racial and ethnic groups can al- Ken Kimerling Howard Winant leviate inter-group anxiety, reduce Maria Krysan Jody Yetzer bias, and promote more positive in- Judith Liben ter-group attitudes and expectations for future contact. You can also donate online at www.prrac.org Indirect Forms of Inter-group Con- tact: When people observe positive interactions between members of their do not belong on campus due to their students to recall their values and rea- own group and another group (vicari- race and helped them develop resilience sons for engaging in a task helps stu- ous contact) or become aware that in the face of adversity. dents maintain or increase their resil- members of their group have friends Wise Criticism: Giving feedback ience in the face of threat. in another group (extended contact), that communicates both high expecta- Remove Triggers of Stereotype they report lower bias and anxiety, and tions and a confidence that an indi- Threat on Standardized Tests: Remov- more positive inter-group attitudes. vidual can meet those expectations ing questions about race or gender be- minimizes uncertainty about whether fore a test, and moving them to after a criticism is a result of racial bias or test, has been shown to decrease threat Stereotype Threat favor (attributional ambiguity). If the and increase test scores for members Interventions feedback is merely critical, it may be of stereotyped groups. the product of bias; if feedback is Most of these interventions were merely positive, it may be the product developed in the context of the threat of racial condescension. Interventions in Context experienced by people of color and Behavioral Scripts: Setting set forth women linked to stereotypes of aca- clear norms of behavior and terms of The fundamental premise of this demic capacity and performance, but discussion can reduce racial anxiety and report is that institutions seeking to may also be translatable to whites prevent stereotype threat from being alter racially disparate outcomes must (Erman & Walton, in press) who fear triggered. be aware of the array of psychological confirming the stereotype that they are Growth Mindset: Teaching people phenomena that may be contributing racist. that abilities, including the ability to to those outcomes. We seek to con- Social Belonging Intervention: Pro- be racially sensitive, are learnable/in- tribute to that work by summarizing viding students with survey results cremental rather than fixed has been important research on implicit bias that showing that upper-year students of all useful in the stereotype threat context employs strategies of debiasing and races felt out of place when they be- because it can prevent any particular preventing bias from affecting behav- gan but that the feeling abated over performance from serving as “stereo- ior. We also seek to encourage insti- time has the effect of protecting stu- type confirming evidence.” tutions to look beyond implicit bias dents of color from assuming that they Value-Affirmation: Encouraging (Please turn to page 10)

Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 • 9 (IMPLICIT BIAS: from page 9) of implicit bias and race as an emo- to institutions and individuals seeking tional trigger allow us to talk about to align their behavior with their ide- alone, and recognize that racial anxi- race without accusing people of “be- als. Yet for lasting change to occur, ety and stereotype threat are also often ing racist,” when they genuinely be- the broader culture and ultimately our obstacles to racially equal outcomes. lieve they are egalitarian. The social opportunity structures also need to We recommend that institutions work science described in this report helps change for our society to meet its aspi- with social scientists to evaluate and people understand why inter-racial rations of fairness and equal opportu- determine where in the institution’s dynamics can be so complicated and nity regardless of race and ethnicity. operations race may be coming into challenging for people despite their ❏ play. best intentions. The interventions sug- The empirically documented effects gested by the research can be of value

Resources Civil Rights History Most Resources are available directly from the issuing organization, either on their website (if given) or via • Angels by the River, James Speth (October 2014, 224 other contact information listed. Materials published by pp.), Chelsea Green Publishing Company, available for PRRAC are available through our website: purchase at http://www.indiebound.org/book/ www.prrac.org 9781603585859 Prices include a shipping/handling (s/h) charge when this information is provided to PRRAC. “No price listed” items often are free. Community Organizing When ordering items from PRRAC: SASE = self-ad- dressed stamped envelope (49¢ unless otherwise indi- • “The Problem of African American Under- cated). Orders may not be placed by telephone or fax. representation on Local Councils,” by Karen Shanton Please indicate from which issue of P&R you are order- (October 2014, 10 pp.), Demos, available at http:// ing. www.demos.org/sites/default/files/publications/ Underrepresentation.pdf

Race/Racism Criminal Justice

• “Ferguson In Focus” (October 2014, 8 pp.), NAACP • “DEATH ROW U.S.A.: Fall 2014,” by Deborah Fins Legal Defense and Educational Fund, available at http:// (October 2014, 64 pp.), NAACP Legal Defense and www.naacpldf.org/files/publications/Ferguson%20in%20 Educational Fund, available at http://www.naacpldf.org/ Focus_2.pdf files/publications/DRUSA_Fall_2014.pdf

• The Colorization of America, by Jeff Chang (2014, • “One Strike and You’re Out: How We Can Elimi- 416 pp.), has been published by St. Martin’s Press. nate Barriers to Economic Security and Mobility for People with Criminal Records,” by Rebecca Vallas • “A Concise History of U.S. Divestment in Black and Sharon Dietrich (December 2014, 79 pp.), Center for Men” is a 2014 video; inf. from colorlines@ American Progress, available at https://cdn. colorlines.com. americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/ VallasCriminalRecordsReport.pdf

Poverty/Welfare • “Skewed Justice”: Citizens United, Television Advertising and State Supreme Justices,” by Joanna • “Building Local Momentum for National Change: Shepherd & Michael S. Kang (2014), is available from Half in Ten Annual Poverty and Inequality Indicators [email protected] Report,” by Melissa Boteach, Shawn Fremstad, Erik Stegman, Sarah Baron & Rebecca Vallas (November 2014, 142 pp.), Half in Ten Annual Poverty and Inequal- ity Indicators Report, available at https:// Economic/Community cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/ Development HiT2014-final.pdf • “Credit Card Debt in the Latino Community,” by • “Sometimes the Poor Want to be Apart,” by Emily Amy Traub (October 2014, 30 pp.), Demos, National Badger, appeared in the August 3, 2014 Washington Council of La Raza, available at http://www.demos.org/ Post.

10 • Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 sites/default/files/publications/inos&CreditCardDebt Deborah Phillips & Carollee Howes (November 2014, _0.pdf 124 pp.). Center for the Study of Child Care Employ- ment, available at http://www.irle.berkeley.edu/cscce/wp- • Losing Our Way: An Intimate Portrait of a Troubled content/uploads/2014/11/ReportFINAL.pdf America, by Bob Herbert (October 2014, 304 pp.), Random House, available for purchase at http:// www.randomhouse.com/book/78802/losing-our-way-by- Housing bob-herbert • “Farmworker Housing Quality and Health: A • “The Wealth of Households: An Analysis of the Transdisciplinary Conference” was held Nov. 11, 2014. 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances,” by David Rosnick Inf. from Calif. Rural Legal Assistance (one of 3 conf. co- & Dean Baker (November 2014, 19 pp.), Center for sponsors—Farmworker Justice & Wake Forest School of Economic and Policy Research, available at http:// Medicine the other 2). Inf. from PRRAC Vice-Chair José www.cepr.net/documents/wealth-scf-2014-10.pdf Padilla, [email protected]

• “Homeowners Tap the Income in Their Homes: Education Sites Like Airbnb Turn Ordinary People into Land- lords, Altering Economics of Real Estate,” by Steven • The White House Summit on Early Education was Rosenbush, is a good long article that appeared in the held Dec. 10, 2014. Inf. from [email protected] Sept. 22, 2014 Wall St. Journal, p. R1 in the Wealth Management section. • “High-quality Kindergarten - What It Should Look Like” is a 3-part series from Foundation for Child Development. Inf. from [email protected] Immigration

• “One City” is the name of a San Francisco program • “The Latino Electorate: Latino Voters Want Action that places techy volunteers into public schools. The San on Immigration” (November 2014, 4 pp.), National Francisco Chronicle (9/30/14) has a good cover story on Council of La Raza, available at http://www.nclr.org/ it, by Joe Garfoli. More inf. at OneCitySF.org images/uploads/publications/thelatinoelectorate_11414. pdf • “Skills for Success: Supporting and Assessing Key Habits, Mindsets, and Skills in PreK-12,” by Melissa Tooley & Laura Bornfreund (November 2014, 50 pp.), Miscellaneous New America Foundation, available at http:// www.edcentral.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/ • “Retail Politics,” by Catherine Ruetschlin & Sean 11212014_Skills-for-Success_Tooley_Bornfreund.pdf McElwee (November 2014, 18 pp.), Demos, available at http://www.demos.org/sites/default/files/publications/ • “The Need to Address Noncognitive Skills in the RetailPolitics.pdf Education Policy Agenda,” by Emma García (December 2014, 36 pp.), Economic Policy Institute, available at • “What Counts: Harnessing Data for America’s http://s3.epi.org/files/2014/the-need-to-address- Communities,” Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco noncognitive-skills-12-02-2014.pdf and the Urban Institute (December 2014, 459 pp.), available at http://www.whatcountsforamerica.org/wp- • “A School Reform Initiative: A Community of content/uploads/2014/12/What-Counts-11.25.14.pdf Learners,” a Winter Meeting, will be held June 15-17, 2015 in Chicago. Inf. at schoolreforminitiative.org/ • How Human Rights Can Build Haiti Activists, winter-meeting/ Lawyers & Grassroots Campaigns, by Fran Quigley, has been published (2014) by Vanderbilt Univ. Press. Employment/Labor/Jobs Policy

• “Monthly Latino Employment Report: Elections Expose Anxiety about Wages,” by Catherine Harvey (November 2014, 3 pp.), National Council of La Raza, available at http://www.nclr.org/images/uploads/publica- To subscribe to tions/mler_election_11714b.pdf Poverty & Race, go to Families/Women/Children www.prrac.org/ • “Worthy Work, STILL Unlivable Wages: The order.php Early Childhood Workforce 25 Years after the National Child Care Staffing Study,” by Marcy Whitebook,

Poverty & Race • Vol. 24, No. 1 • January/February 2015 • 11 Poverty and Race Research Action Council Nonprofit U.S. Postage 1200 18th Street NW • Suite 200 PAID Washington, DC 20036 Jefferson City, MO 202/906-8023 FAX: 202/842-2885 Permit No. 210 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.prrac.org

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POVERTY and RACE RESEARCH ACTION COUNCIL Board of Directors/Staff

CHAIR John Brittain Demetria McCain Philip Tegeler John Charles Boger University of the District of Inclusive Communities President/Executive Director University of North Carolina Columbia School of Project School of Law Law Dallas, TX Chester Hartman Chapel Hill, NC Washington, DC S.M. Miller Director of Research Sheryll Cashin The Commonwealth Institute Megan Haberle Georgetown University VICE-CHAIR Cambridge, MA Policy Counsel José Padilla Law Center ReNika Moore California Rural Legal Washington, DC NAACP Legal Defense Fund Gina Chirichigno Assistance Craig Flournoy and Educational Fund Co-Director San Francisco, CA University of Cincinnati New York, NY One Nation Indivisible Cincinnati, OH Don Nakanishi SECRETARY Rachel Godsil University of California Michael Hilton john a. powell Seton Hall Law School Los Angeles, CA Policy Analyst Haas Institute for a Newark, NJ Dennis Parker Fair and Inclusive Society Damon Hewitt American Civil Liberties Etienne Toussaint University of California- Open Society Union Law & Policy Fellow Berkeley Foundations New York, NY Berkeley, CA New York, NY Gabriela Sandoval Sarah Clayman David Hinojosa Insight Center for Administrative Assistant TREASURER Mexican American Legal Community Economic David Loesberg Spence Limbocker Defense and Educational Development Law & Policy Intern Neighborhood Funders Fund Oakland, CA San Antonio, TX Anthony Sarmiento Group Kamisha Cassidy Camille Holmes Senior Service America Annandale, VA Policy Intern National Legal Aid & Silver Spring, MD Defender Assn. Theodore M. Shaw Washington, DC University of North Carolina Olati Johnson School of Law [Organizations listed for Columbia Law School Chapel Hill, NC identification purposes only] New York, NY Brian Smedley Elizabeth Julian National Collaborative Inclusive Communities for Health Equity Project Washington, DC Dallas, TX