Do the findings of this new study come as a shock to you? Or do you think that it is reasonable for children at this age to believe this? Either way, these are definitely some interesting findings, considering the racially charged political atmosphere in America currently.
A University of Michigan study found that some young white children believe a person’s race can change over time.
Researchers exposed test subjects to pictures of black and white children with either angry or happy facial expressions, and then pictures of adults – both black and white – with corresponding emotional expressions.
The subjects were then asked to point to the adult they believed each child would grow up to be.
The study’s lead author, doctoral student Steven Roberts, said white children aged 5 to 6 selected the ‘same-emotion’ and ‘same-race’ matches in almost equal measures, indicating that they believed a person’s race could change as they grow.
This was compared to the choices of white adults, white 9 to 10-year-olds, and ‘racial minority’ children aged 5 to 6. These test subjects tended to indicate that they believed a person’s race would remain the same over time.
‘These data suggest that beliefs about racial stability vary by age and race, and that at an early age, children do not have strong beliefs about race. They don’t even believe that race is stable,’ Roberts said.
Read more: Daily Mail
