Attitudes Toward Interracial Marriage and Factors Which

Influence the Choice to Enter an Interracial Relationship

Sociology 30.4April 29, 2005

Melinda HoneycuttRandi LaneUrsula Pea

Amanda TaylorJenna Vande Guchte

Introduction

To see a white woman and a black man walking down the street holding hands

used to be unheard of. It was a relationship that, for the few who engaged in it, was kept

as quiet as possible. During the fifties and sixties, interracial dating was not socially

acceptable and there were repercussions for those who were involved in such behaviors

because various laws, such as the Jim Crow laws, kept the different races/ethnicities

separate and it was seen as extremely socially deviant to go against these rules.

Interracial dating and marriage are fairly new socially acceptable concepts that have been

introduced into our society, but as time has progressed, more of these types of

relationships are being seen.

For many individuals there are multiple factors that play a significant role in

determining the types of people they will date or consider marrying, such as the other

person’s attractiveness, personality or personal preferences. The purpose of this study

was to see which factors, in particular, influence how a person feels towards interracial

relationships and whether or not certain factors influence a person’s decision to enter an

interracial relationship. Specifically, the research group felt that there were certain

factors that would be important in a person’s willingness to engage in an interracial

relationship. These factors consisted of parent/family input, age, race, gender, religion,

political affiliation, personal background and education level, with some of these factors

weighing more heavily than others.

The groups also examined the attitudes towards interracial dating, especially with

respect to how each individual perceived society’s view on interracial relationships, and

whether or not the views of society impacted each person’s individual dating behavior.

The purpose of the study was to get a better understanding of how college-aged students

felt about interracial dating and to see whether or not their opinions reflected many of the

general societal assumptions. At the conclusion of the study, the group hopes to

contribute to the existing literature regarding interracial dating and marriage. In addition

the literature will discuss more ways how people choose or do not choose to date/marry

interracially rather than just the patterns that are seen in marriage licenses, as in the

previous research. Overall, the research group hopes that the findings from this research

project will provide more diverse information than what is presently cited in the research

literature today, as they plan to investigate the factors that influence a person's

willingness to engage in an interracial relationship and not just the trends that have been

seen in interracial relationships.

Research Question/Hypotheses

The group was interested in determining what factors influence young people’s

attitudes towards interracial relationships. The experimenters felt that this question was

compelling because it would probably reflect a variety of different issues that have been

addressed throughout the semester, including family communication and functioning,

gender roles, the importance of education level and socioeconomic status in choosing a

mate, etc. The research group hypothesized that individuals would relate that the way

they felt about interracial dating and/or marriage was effected by: the opinions of their

parents and the pressures or restrictions that were placed on them regarding interracial

relationships, the age of the individual (the group assumed that younger people would be

more open to interracial relationships than older participants), their race (as was reflected

in our literature review, it appears as though some races are more likely to interdate than

others), their religion (the group theorized that deeply religious people would be less

likely to engage in interracial dating because it may contradict the teachings of their

religion), their political affiliation (the group thought liberals may be more open to

interracial dating than conservatives would be), their educational level (due to the

progressive ideas and environment experienced at most colleges, the group assumed that

those with a higher educational level would be more willing to interracially date), and

finally, their personal background. For this last factor the experimenters wanted to look at

a number of details, such as their hometown, the racial content of that setting, their

history of racial interactions (either positive or negative), and also the degree to which

they may have felt limited by social pressures in regards to who they should and should

not date.

Data and Methods

Initially, the research group thought it would be best to each interview one person

who had interracially dated and one who had not, in order to compare the two on these

dimensions and look for key distinctions. However, after the first few interviews, it was

decided that a broader ethnic sample might be more beneficial in helping the group

achieve our goals of determining areas of dissimilarity. So instead, the experimenters

tried to construct a sample population that was racially varied. In the end the group had a

reasonably varied sample, consisting of Caucasians, African Americans, Hispanics and

Native Americans. There is an admitted flaw in the research in that the group was unable

to speak with either an Asian individual or an Indian individual, but nevertheless the

group feels that our attempt to modify the set of participants was largely successful.

The table below contains the most relevant demographic information from each of

our participants. The sample was dominantly female (80%, males 20%) and white (50%).

All participants were either attending college or had graduated already. Questioning on

political affiliation revealed a large percentage of democrats (60%), as well as individuals

who were born in North Carolina (70%, as opposed to 30% born out of state). The mean

age of the respondents was 21.

Table 1

# Gender Race Age Religion Political Birth- Education Status Affiliation place

1 Male Black 20 Baptist None NC Sophomore Dating2 Female White 25 None Democrat NC BA Married3 Female Native

American21 Baptist Democrat NC Junior Single

4 Female White 20 Catholic None NC Junior Dating5 Female Hispanic 22 Catholic Republican NC Senior Dating6 Female White 21 Christian None TX Junior Single7 Female Native

American20 Christian Democrat NC Junior Single

8 Female White 21 Jewish Democrat MA Junior Single9 Female Black 21 Baptist Democrat NC Senior Dating10 Male White 23 Catholic Democrat NY BS Dating

The interviews were conducted either in person and recorded, or in an online

format. Most occurred in fairly public meeting places, such as the Student Union or

library, or in private residences. Early afternoon was the most common time for the

interviews to take place, although some were scheduled for later in the evening to best

accommodate the participants. The interview guide was quite structured, including

general questions as well as sets of questions for individuals who either had or had not

interracially dated in the past. While each question typically had a number of probes to

encourage participation, each interviewer also took the liberty to ask additional questions

that may have been more relevant to the conversation. Also, in the context of some

interviews, a number of the questions outlined on the interview guide came across as

somewhat redundant, so they were skipped to avoid annoying the respondent. The

average length of the interviews was 45 minutes.

To analyze the research results, a group meeting was held to review the completed

transcriptions and search for overall themes. The experimenters identified four key

concepts: family viewpoint, societal pressure/stereotyping of interracial couples, level of

experience with interracial relationships, and lastly the combined impact of a variety of

factors (including education, religion, political views, age and socioeconomic status).

After agreeing on these themes as our basic dimensions for examination, four group

members were each assigned a particular theme and were responsible for researching

previous literature that may help illuminate our findings in this area, and going through

each transcript and highlighting passages that pertained to our area of analysis. The group

felt this method of dividing responsibility would be helpful in making sure each group

member had a thorough understanding of the most significant results of the project. Also,

it relieved undue stress since one member did not become solely responsible for

conducting a broad literature review. The quotes each group member found can be seen

in the following sections of this paper.

Background and Past Research

With respect to the topic of interracial marriages, various researchers have

conducted investigations into the many facets of this type of relationship and have

concluded that as time has progressed, an increase in interracial marriages has occurred.

This increase may be the result of numerous factors, including the Supreme Court lifting

of the legal restrictions on racial intermarriage in 1967, the decrease in White prejudice

against Blacks, and the narrowing of the racial gap in education, income, and occupation

(Kalmijn, 1993). However, Kalmijn (1993) states that although these aforementioned

factors may have resulted in an increase in interracial marriages, other factors may

counter this effect. For instance, there has been an increase in Black unemployment, a

rise in the racial gap of college enrollment, and part of the Black income gain of 1960-

1970 has been lost (Kalmijn, 1993). In the end, because of the greater opportunities for

groups of different races to meet and interact with each other, there are more chances for

interracial relationships to develop. As a result of this heterogeneity in groups,

individuals are more likely to initiate contact with members of other racial groups, thus

causing them to consider out group members as potential mates (Blau et. al, 1982). In

addition, Blau et. al (1982) found that the smaller the group size, the more likely the

members would engage in relationships with out group members because of the limit of

potential mates. In the end, the phenomenon of interracial marriages has become more

present in American society today, mainly as a result of the closer interactions between

groups of different races/ethnicities and the assimilation that has occurred between these

groups.

Interracial marriages, in general, result from the involvement of two people of

different races/ethnicities who actively choose to begin a relationship together. Although

many people of different races/ethnicities decide to initiate a relationship, evidence has

shown that some combinations of races/ethnicities occur more often than others. For

example, Kalmijn (1993) found that in most cases of marriages with a Black spouse and a

White spouse, the husband was usually Black and the wife was usually White, rather than

the husband being White and the wife being Black. Kalmijn (1993) explained this finding

by stating that White women were engaged in a system of “status hypergamy”, where

they tended to marry up in status when choosing to marry a Black man. In fact, South

(1991) used similar reasoning in his study in which he used Exchange Theory to argue

that men tend to exchange their socioeconomic resources for women’s sexual and

domestic services. In effect, it is presumed that women are concerned with the

socioeconomic status of their potential mate, while men are concerned with the physical

attractiveness of their future spouse. Overall, men have been found to be more willing to

intermarry than women and along with this finding, another interesting relationship is

present: Blacks and Hispanics are found to be more willing than Whites to marry

someone of another race/ethnicity (South, 1991). Thus, within the discussion of

interracial marriage, both gender and race/ethnicity are important factors to consider

when investigating this topic as they both affect the dynamic of interracial relationships.

As stated in the introduction, the purpose of the current study was to investigate

the attitudes on interracial marriage of college-aged individuals and the factors which

influence the decision to initiate an interracial relationship. Factors such as amount of

education or income, society, place of living, and personal experience of interracial

relationships may all influence the choice to become involved with a person of another

race/ethnicity, and each one has a separate, unique effect on a person’s decisions. For

instance, in the context of Black Americans and the relationships they engage in, some

Black males choose to marry a White female, perhaps because of the “status hypergamy”

theory discussed earlier where Black males tend to choose a White female as their mate

because of the higher racial status that White females possess. However, this choice of

Black males with a high amount of education and socioeconomic resources to date

outside their race results in a reduction of potential mates for Black females. In fact,

interracial marriage of Black males is extremely detrimental for highly educated Black

females as they no longer have as large of a marriage market from which to choose their

mate; consequently, Black females tend to either postpone marriage or not marry at all,

especially if they live in urban areas (Crowder & Tolnay, 2000).

Another interesting finding concerning the influence of education on the decision

to intermarry is that Black college graduates are less likely to intermarry than Blacks with

some college, presumably because they interact in settings where opportunities to meet

people within their own group is limited (Kalmijn, 1993). In addition, for Whites, the

rates of interracial marriages decrease with an increase in educational attainment

(Kalmijn, 1993) and with respect to Exchange Theory, individuals with a large income

and more education are less willing to marry a person with undesirable traits as they tend

to initiate relationships with others who are similar to them (South, 1991). Therefore,

education is a major factor which influences people of different race/ethnicities to interact

with each other because it concerns the resources and goal achievement of each

individual involved.

In addition to education being a central factor impacting the ways in which people

of different races/ethnicities interact with each other, the social support a person receives

while in an interracial relationship can be either beneficial or detrimental. For those in

interracial marriages, most state that other individuals of the same race and gender of

either themselves or their spouse is usually the most supportive of the interracial

relationship, and those people who are of the same race, but of a different gender than

themselves or their spouse are usually the most opposed to the relationship (Zebroski,

1999). These findings emphasize the tremendous impact that other people have on a

person’s relationship with a significant other, as individual’s support of or opposition to a

relationship can produce either content or stress for the people involved. Along with the

factor of social support, the location of residence for an individual may also influence the

ways in which people of different races/ethnicities interact with each other. For instance,

the lowest proportion of Blacks with White spouses exists in the South, while the highest

proportion of this type of interracial marriage is in the West. However, the place in which

a person lives and the incidence of interracial marriage in that place are contingent upon

two things: the person must have been raised in an environment where either race

relationships were permissive or where he or she did not retain knowledge or American

race relations, and the intermarrying Black is more likely to move away from his or her

place of birth (Tucker & Mitchell-Kernan, 1990). Thus, despite the fact that racial

tensions have remained relatively higher in the South than in the Northern, Central, or

Western part of the United States, the main deciding factor on whether or not different

races feel more freedom in choosing a spouse of another race is not where they were live,

but where they were born and how they were reared.

Despite the vast amount of research conducted concerning the aforementioned

factors of education, income, social support, and location, even more information is

available with respect to how a person chooses his or her potential mate. In essence, a

person utilizes his or her own personal opinion on which qualities or traits he or she

believes is the most important for a significant other to possess, and in the context of

interracial marriages, this specific way of choosing a mate involves both racial and

nonracial factors. In research conducted with couples in which individuals were of a

different race than their spouse, Lewis et. al (1997) hypothesized that nonracial factors

such as similarities in socioeconomic status, social interests, personal evaluation or

attractiveness, and entertainment interests were important factors with regard to spousal

selection and that racial factors were not as influential. For instance, Lewis et. al (1997)

discovered that 70% of respondents believed common interests and attractiveness of the

other person, irregardless of the race/ethnicity of the other person, were the most

important factors in choosing a spouse, and that 53% of those people who stated that

most of their dating involved people of a different race than them believed that the ease

of the ability to talk to another person was important. In fact, Lewis et. al (1997) also

found that for those individuals with a history of dating interracially, there was a higher

emphasis on racial factors rather than nonracial factors. All in all, past research shows

that many factors influence how a person chooses a potential mate, with many people

deciding to marry interracially choosing to base their decision on factors that do not

involve race/ethnicity.

Although much research has been conducted on the topic of interracial marriage,

most of it concerns the patterns or trends that are present in society with respect to the

number of people that have chosen to marry interracially. Each one of the research

findings presented above provides a tremendous amount of insight into the phenomenon

of interracial marriage and allows people to begin to understand how society has changed

from being intent on separating people based on race/ethnicity to one emphasizing the

importance of respecting and tolerating people of different cultures. Furthermore, these

research findings help in the overall goal of interpreting the ways in which the institution

of marriage has changed over time. However, the main criticisms of these studies are that

they do not investigate the rates of interracial relationships between groups such as

Asians, Hispanics, Native Americans or Indians. In addition, these studies only focus on

actual marriages between people of different races, and not the reasons that may underlie

how a person feels about interracial marriage and whether or not he or she would initiate

that type of relationship. In effect, the purpose of the current research study was to

examine how attitudes on interracial marriage are formed, and which factors impact a

person’s decision to potentially marry interracially. Perhaps by understanding the

underlying factors behind a person’s choice to marry interracially or not marry

interracially, a more complete analysis can be made concerning the complex issue of

interracial unions in general.

Findings

As stated earlier, four main ideas influencing one’s opinion on interracial dating

or choice to interracially date became clear in the interviews. It was determined that two

of these ideas - societal views and pressures and personal experience - could be

considered experience mechanisms/effects because it may be that the experience of being

in an interracial relationship or knowing someone who is and societal views on interracial

relationships affect whether or not a person is willing to enter this type of relationship. In

addition, it was concluded that two other factors - demographic factors and family of the

subject - could be considered selection mechanisms/effects because they may influence

the feelings that an individual has toward interracial relationships and their willingness to

enter this type of relationship. Moreover, these selection factors may influence a person’s

choice to enter this type of relationship in the first place. Thus, the findings from this

research project were divided into selection and experience mechanisms as the research

group decided that these four factors may all be influential in how willing a person is to

enter an interracial relationship. Essentially, it is not only the experience of having an

interracial relationship, knowing someone who has one, or society’s views on this type of

relationship that influence a person’s dating/marriage choices, but family and

demographic factors may also play a role.

Selection Mechanisms

Demographic Factors

One central theme that we examined was what influences who the individuals

dated or pursued as a potential mate.  The study focused on education, socioeconomic

status, age, race, religion, location and politics. 

The most common factor proved to be religious affiliation.  Six of the ten subjects

mentioned that someone whose religious beliefs were the same as theirs or their family’s

was ideal.  Not all of them stated that if a person they were interested in did not have

similar beliefs that it would stop them from pursuing that person.  Two of the four

Catholics that we interviewed, one male and one female, stated that their families

expected them to marry a Catholic. Another Catholic female that we interviewed stated

that, “If you marry someone non-Catholic you have to promise that your children will be

raised Catholic.” Religion was important for the parents of two subjects, as these

families were both Catholic and desired for their children, one subject being male and

one being female, to marry within their faith. 

Of the factors focused on, education was the second most frequently mentioned

factor that people considered when pursuing a mate.  It is possible that the importance of

this factor may be skewed, as the majority of the subjects are students at the University of

North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  There was not a general consensus on what education

level was important just a general feeling of, “I couldn’t be with someone who like, you

know, is like stupid…(4)”

Location was a factor analyzed to examine its possible impact on people’s opinion

of interracial relationships. Seven of the ten people we interviewed were from North

Carolina, one was from Texas, one from New York and one from Maryland. All three

people who lived outside of North Carolina were open to interracial relationships; the

families of those who lived in North Carolina tended to have more issues with interracial

relationships. Most interviewees believed that the South had the hardest time accepting

interracial relationships more so then any other region of the country. One subject, who

was from Maryland, reported a situation her friend faced in Morehead City, NC:

I was working in Morehead City and there was this friend of mine who was looking for a house for her and her boyfriend who was living in California at the time and the woman pulled her aside and asked if her boyfriend was black because otherwise she couldn’t sell her the apartment…(8).

This subject expressed her shock at learning that prejudice was still so common. Another

subject stated that her father did not care if other people had interracial relationships, but

he cared greatly if his children did. She stated that her father’s family was not accepting

of it and described them simply as “Southern” (5). What is interesting to note is this

subject’s family is Hispanic; most of the subjects seemed to view Caucasians having

issues with interracial relationships. Our research also found that Blacks and Hispanics

are more open to interracial relationships then Caucasians. More so than any other

region, people perceive the southern United States as less accepting of interracial

relationships.

Socioeconomic status was mentioned by a couple of subjects, mainly in reference

to their families’ opinions.  Most parents only had concerns in reference to their

daughters being provided for and not having a mate that was dependent on them. Political

views were a factor for only one person who stated that it was important for her partner to

be in agreement with her. Furthermore, none of the subjects mentioned age as a factor in

the people they choose to date.

Only one person of the ten we interviewed stated that he would not date

interracially.  He did not have any problem with interracial dating, but he personally did

not think that he would ever pursue an interracial relationship. He also stated however

that his mother would most likely not support an interracial relationship.

After analyzing our interview results, it was apparent that the most important

aspect that influences people’s opinion on dating and marriage is one’s family’s opinion

on the matter.  In seven out the ten interviews the subjects knew of at least one family

member, mainly parents and/or grandparents, to whom race was considered important. 

Some stated that their family member would prefer that they date and marry within their

race, but their personal happiness was also important to the family member. This factor

proved to have the most impact on a person’s decision to pursue interracial relationships.

It is important to note that most people did not let their family’s opinion define their

opinion on this matter.

Despite most subjects’ parents or other family members’ unfavorable opinion of

interracial dating, all subjects stated they had no issue with people dating interracially. In

addition, all but one subject stated that they were personally open to interracial dating. 

Most expressed the opinion that interracial relationships were still viewed as politically

incorrect and that in many people’s eyes interracial dating and marriage was challenging

the social norm.  All subjects felt that interracial relationships were viewed negatively by

what many of them termed “the older generation”.  Many of the subjects think that

interracial couples still stick out more so than normal, especially older interracial couples:

“I would be surprised if there were older people interracially dating (5).” All of the

subjects felt that interracial relationships were becoming more accepted over time, mainly

due to the openness of the younger generation to this practice. The feelings of the

subjects’ families and the impact of these feelings on the subjects will be explored later in

the paper.

The Influence of Family

As stated earlier, one’s family has a very large influence on a person’s feelings

and decisions about interracial dating. There were a number of patterns which appeared

when the interviews were examined relating to what influenced the family’s feelings

about interracial relationships and how these feelings affected the feelings of their child.

There were several factors which influenced how respondents’ families’ felt about

interracial relationships. The interviews showed that families with a history of interracial

dating and marriage were more open to interracial relationships. For example, one

respondent who comes from a very diverse hometown stated, “…we have a lot of

interracial relationships in my family, so they’re pretty accepting (8),” while another, a

Native American female, said, “Well…my mother and father are very pro-Native. They

would rather me date a Native American, that shares the same ideals as myself…they feel

that the Native American community is losing presence more and more everyday…they

want to preserve our culture (7).” In a community lacking diversity and valuing the

promotion of culture, interracial dating is quite uncommon. The influence of a

background of interracial relationships can be seen by another respondent’s comment that

“…my grandmother doesn’t care, especially within the relationship that I am in now, just

because she tells me my great great grandmother was Polynesian, Dutch, and Black or

something to that nature… (9)”

This leads to the next pattern that appeared: the influence of culture on a family’s

ideas about interracial relationships. As stated by the respondent above, Native American

families have a strong cultural heritage and hope to preserve their culture. Another

example of the influence of culture came from a Caucasian respondent who is married to

an Arabic man. Speaking of her family’s opinions of her husband, she said, “…they were

concerned about him being Arabic and the stereotype of like the man being dominant…

(2)” One more example came from a Hispanic family who actually hoped their daughter

would not enter a relationship with a Hispanic man:

Respondent: I’ve actually been told not to date Hispanics.Interviewer: Why?Respondent: Because Hispanic men have issues with women, like everything I’ve been told, spousal abuse is very common and very acceptable. A lot of women are expected to do certain things, and that’s just not me (5).

Thus, a family’s culture has a very large degree of influence on how they feel about

interracial relationships, especially between certain races. These examples show that

some races prefer to date within their race, some prefer to avoid certain races, and others

even prefer interracial relationships to non-interracial relationships.

Our research showed that the educational level and character of someone’s

significant other tended to override their race, even in less accepting families. For

example, the Native American respondent described above said, “They [her parents]

would…rather see me with a successful Caucasian with a bright future than they would

with a no goal no drive Native American.(7)” Another respondent said, “They [her

parents] want me to date someone who is going to treat me right and wants to do

something with his life, they don’t care who (6).” Several other respondents also stated

that their parents would rather see them with someone successful of a different race than

someone unsuccessful from their own race.

It was also stated by a couple subjects that their parents would be okay with them

dating interracially, but they may not allow them to marry interracially. For example, one

subject said, “My parents are like fine with me dating Mark (her interracial boyfriend). I

don’t know if I came home and was like guess what we are getting married, I don’t know

what they would say about that. They might be a little more like, ‘Are you sure you want

to do that?’” Obviously interracial relationships are a serious subject for many families.

The interviews showed that the opinion of the subjects’ families affected them in

two major ways. First, the approval or disapproval of interracial dating by someone’s

family could determine how comfortable a person was in his/her interracial relationship.

One of our subjects, who came from a very accepting family, said: “…I’m not afraid to

bring anyone home. I know they’d be accepting of anyone I brought (8).” Another one of

our subjects, in contrast, told a story of an acquaintance who came from a family who

was not open to interracial relationships:

…during the summer I work at a restaurant…I see sometimes that one of the girls I work with, she was interested in this Black guy and she was terrified to bring him home. Like, they’ve been together for the longest, and he’s like, “Why haven’t I met your parents?” and then, she has been hiding him for the longest and she was like, “I just couldn’t do it. My parents would disown me”(9).

These examples show that it may be true that those who come from an accepting home

would be very comfortable being in an interracial relationship, while those who do not

may be afraid to stay in an interracial relationship or may be uncomfortable with their

relationship.

It was very common among interviewees to say that while they valued the opinion

of their family, they would not let it decide who they will date or marry. This is shown by

this correspondence:

Interviewer: How much do you value other peoples’ (family, friends, acquaintances, etc) opinions of who you marry or date?Respondent: I am very family oriented, so naturally I’m inclined to take to heart my family’s opinions. But at the same time, I have to do what’s best for me (7).

Several other subjects made similar comments regarding their family’s opinion. Thus, the

opinion of one’s family cannot be used as a determinant in whether they will choose to

interracially date or not. It can however, be very influential, as shown by this

correspondence:

Respondent: I probably value my family’s opinion the most, but I mean my friends’ opinions are pretty important.Interviewer: So if your parents, for instance, said that you couldn’t marry Mark (her boyfriend) or wouldn’t approve of it, would you still marry him?Respondent: I don’t know, but it would make it a lot harder (4).

Family can have a very big influence on one’s views on interracial relationships, but in

most cases, it will not be the determining factor.

Experience Mechanisms

Societal Views and Pressures

Another topic this study examined was society’s overall opinion on interracial

relationships. Subjects were asked about the media’s influence on societal views of

interracial marriage. Some people thought that the media places a negative impact on

society’s view of this topic:

They [the media] focus so much on, I guess, the hardships of it and I think that sort of gives off a negative perspective that it’s just so hard, you know, and I think that people might get the impression that it’s almost too hard to kind of go through that…I think when they put an interracially married couple in a movie, they do it on purpose, you know, and I think that they [the media] need to get past that and just, you know, the same as it would if it were two white people married…I think that sort of gives it a negative…negative feeling (10).

Media attention on interracial relationships was viewed as an “agenda”. Several subjects

felt that the media had motivations for the different ways interracial relationships are

portrayed. Common movies like “Hitch” and “Save the Last Dance” were mentioned in

media portrayal, but other than those two movies no other media source was specifically

mentioned. The general consensus of this opinion of media coverage can be summed up

in this quote made by one of our subjects: “They’re [the media] kind of irritating to me

because whenever they portray an interracial relationship, I understand there’s going to

be issues, but they never portray it as just another relationship (2).”

A couple of our subjects thought the media played a positive role in relation to the

public opinion of interracial relationships. There were also a few subjects who had

mixed feelings about the media’s portrayal of interracial relationships.

Finally, an interesting stigma that was referenced by several of the subjects was

the fact that they feel black women have the hardest time accepting interracial

relationships between black men and non-black females. This stigma was referenced

mainly as, “white women are taking all the good men.” This opinion seems to follow the

research of recent studies into why black women tend to marry later and at lower levels

then other races. Some people feel the black women have a lower marriage rate due in

part to interracial dating. It is more common for black men to pursue interracial

relationships then for black women to do so. Also, black men who interracially date and

marry tend to be the higher educated, upper class men. With stating that fact, black

women are less open to interracial dating according to our research and the research of

many other studies.

Most reactions to interracial relations in society today reflect an overall growing

acceptance. Interracial couples do tend to draw more attention, but not necessarily

negative attention anymore. Only one of our subjects stated being in a situation where

she was directly discriminated against because she was white and her boyfriend was

black. This insult, which came from her roommate, was the only discrimination that had

been vocalized to her about dating interracially. The situation was a traumatic one for

her, but has had no negative impact on her relationship or view of interracial

relationships. This subject, along with many others, simply ignores people who have

issues with interracial relationships. It is seen now as ignorance, instead of the

commonality to be against interracial relationships. Most of our subjects felt that the

majority of negative attitudes they have experienced as a result of their interracial

relationships were mainly from their parent’s generation and non-vocally expressed—

through stares, gawking, etc. Overall the general opinion was that interracial

relationships are becoming more accepted in society through time.

The Personal Experience Factor

Our research found that experience with interracial relationships made a large

difference in how people felt about interracial dating and marriage. A person with

experience was defined as someone who has been in an interracial relationship, or who

knows someone well who is or has been in an interracial relationship. The subjects

conveyed three general ways in which experience affected their feelings on interracial

dating and marriage. First, they realized that an interracial relationship is essentially just

another relationship. Second, they wanted others to be more accepting of interracial

dating and marriage. Finally, they realized that interracial relationships are very possible,

but can also be quite challenging. It became apparent throughout our interviews that the

more exposed one is or becomes to interracial relationships, the more accepting he or she

is.

Many of the respondents commented that they saw their interracial relationship or

that of their friend no differently than any other relationship. One respondent commented,

“I just think of it as a relationship with the person and not necessarily anything else. (5)”

This correspondence took place with one respondent when he was asked about someone

he knew in an interracial relationship:

Interviewer: What was the relationship like?Respondent: I mean, it seemed like they had a pretty good relationship, and I mean, both of them were happy so…it was not different than a relationship between two people of the same race (1).

While interracial couples do experience different challenges than non-interracial couples,

the basis of the relationship – the interactions and emotions between the two individuals

involved – is essentially the same.

Another feeling expressed by subjects who have experienced interracial

relationships is the desire for interracial dating and marriage to be more acceptable. Once

a person has experienced the scrutiny that can be felt by an interracial couple, he or she

desires approval instead of judgment. One respondent commented:

“I feel that, well I’ve noticed that a lot of people have trouble with it and I hope that it becomes something that is more accepted in society as a whole. I think that we should push towards it, if that’s something you want to do, go for it. Go for it wholeheartedly and eventually, I honestly feel like if people do decide to interracially date…eventually we will be what my grandmother said, mutts, and it will erase a lot of the stereotypes or the classifications that people are place in just on a daily basis and I think it will make everyone, make life a whole lot easier… (9).”

These words sum up feelings that were expressed by many other respondents as well.

People want to be free from the scrutiny that society places on interracial relationships.

Many of the people interviewed during our research process expressed the

challenges that come with an interracial relationship. None, however, said that it could

not or should not be done. Most made it quite clear, in fact, that it was a very positive

experience. One respondent’s roommate is in an interracial relationship.

Interviewer: How has this influenced your views on interracial marriage?Respondent: Um…I guess…I was impressed at how well they got along, but she’s also had a lot of problems with his family, who is Greek, kind of accepting her. So…and that’s a big obstacle for her, not being able to feel like she’s accepted. So I see that interracial marriages definitely have challenges (8).

When asked the same question about her own interracial relationship, she said, “…it

made me see that they are possible… (8)”

Through these common themes, it became apparent that the more experience a

person had with interracial relationships, the more open they were to them. For many,

this meant a greater degree of exposure once they came to college. Says one respondent,

“I’m probably more accepting of it just because I see more of it now than I used to…I would probably say that with more people that I meet now that are of a different race, I’m more accepting of it just because I’m sort of exposed to more of it (10).”

Those who have been in interracial relationships were also more accepting, as seen by

one respondent who said, “I definitely would say I’m more for it, just because I’ve

experienced culture and ways of life that I did not know existed (9).” Experience with

interracial relationships generally encouraged people to be more open to interracial dating

and marriage, made them desire more tolerance of interracial relationships, and helped

them to realize the possibility and the normality of interracial relationships.

Conclusion

The information obtained throughout the entire research project corresponded

with the experimenters’ initial theory. The research group had hoped to find similarities

with individuals who had previously interracially dated or who currently interracially

date in addition to those who chose to date within their same race. Between all of the

people the group interviewed only one person said that they would not interracially date,

but they found no problem with other people’s engagement in interracial relationships.

Many of the factors that influenced individuals who have or would consider interracially

dating were comparable to one another. Religion and education ranked the highest

among the group as the two factors that were most likely to influence a person’s decision

to date interracially. It was also interesting to see the type of societal views that made

concrete assumptions about interracial dating. The experimenters viewed that older

generations had a stronger opinion and perhaps disapproval. Furthermore, the idea of the

“Race Card” being mentioned within and outside of the relationship also played a role.

The research group also found that the location had a significant part in influencing the

decision. The findings at the conclusion of the study suggest that families do play a

crucial role on a person’s decision to engage in an interracial relationship. The study also

suggests that the more experience an individual has with interracial dating, whether it be

their own personal experience, or dealings with someone else’s, they are more open to the

idea in general. The experimenters then separated the findings into two specific groups;

the selection effects and the experience effects. A person’s background and family

experience fell into the selection effects category while society and personal experience

fell into the experience effects group.

There were also some limitations involved in the study. Although the

experimenters attempted to have a diverse group of interviewees, they were still limited

in selection. All of the interviewees were college-age students and he majority were from

North Carolina. Finally, the participants may have only given socially acceptable

answers rather than truthful ones. With these few restraints the research group still

attempted to gather as much beneficial information as possible. The research group

believes that future research on this particular topic should include a more diverse group

of people, rather than just Blacks and Whites. Many other ethnicities engage in

interracial dating outside of these two groups. In addition to the diversity that needs to be

supplemented into future research, the influence of location should also be added because

the researchers believe that the place where a person was born and his or her current

residence may have profound implications for which type of people they would like to

date and their preferences for certain groups of people. Finally, the researchers also

believe that the various factors seen in the research project should be investigated further

because present research only discusses the trends that have been seen in interracial

marriages and not the individual factors that may contribute to a person’s decision to

intermarry or interdate.

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