Biracial Individuals: A New Societal Challenge - Research Proposal

Introduction

Shifting from racial segregation to the creation of biracial attributes has led to a new societal problem. Donnella (2017) reveals that the creation of a profile as a racial imposter has ranked among the challenges faced by biracial individuals. Besides, the nature of the treatment they suffered from society has created an environment of self-doubt and affected their self-esteem. Also, Jackson (2010) examines the multiracial experience and reveals a significant complexity in handling this attribute and its effect on the creation of an identity. He argues that biracial children have faced self-esteem problems where when it decreases, it affects their ability to live normally. Jackson (2010) also reveals problems in being biracial by indicating that these suffer shifting racial or ethnic expressions, ambiguity, seeking community approval, racial resistance, and the feeling like one is an outsider. Each of these problems highlight the struggles of biracial children compared to their single-race counterparts, which is an area that this study seeks to examine. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to examine the influence of being biracial and the role it plays in affecting the identity of this race compared to single-race counterparts.

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Background Information

The creation of a multiracial society has yielded after the struggle with racism. Intermarriages and relationships between people of different races have led to children of biracial nature. Thus, an increasing number of intermarriages point towards an increasing biracial population that has further indicated the possibilities of more and related problems in society. The interaction between minority races and those considered superior has left many children wondering where they belong and how to respond to racial slurs from their peers. For example, a child of biracial nature mixing an African American and a white has struggled with identity, wondering if to respond to the racist treatments of pure African Americans or to carry the privilege of having the white race. Therefore, the creation of biracial individuals has contributed to further societal problems affecting the manner in which individuals are seen and coexist, among others.

Problems such as imposter syndrome have emanated from the creation of biracial individuals (Donnella, 2017, June 8). Further review of society and the existence of biracial children has also revealed that the experience of this racial mixture has created a shift in racial expressions, seeking community belonging and resisting race (Jackson, 2010). Such shifting racial expressions include the change from racial abuses to abuses targeting children of mixed race who led to additional negativity. In the same manner, the establishment of a sense of belonging has also become challenging for biracial children. Lastly, the selection of a community of belonging for biracial children has also proven challenging over the same posing the question of whether these children face identity struggles with higher magnitude compared to those of a single race. Therefore, this is the basis on which this study is conducted.

Independent and Dependent Variables

Evaluating the possibilities of biracial children struggling with identity compared to their single-race counterparts may work on two variables. They may either be dependent and independent variables. The dependent variable, in this case, is the identity struggles of the children with possibilities of these emanating from their biracial nature while the biracial attribute of the children presents the independent variable. The nature of influence exists in that being biracial would increase the potentials of children suffering from identity struggles compared to their single-race counterparts. Therefore, this study is based on the two variables biracial characteristic of the children and its effect on them that contributes to identity struggles.

Statement of the Hypothesis

This study evaluates attributes of influence and existence of a statistical relationship between the two variables identified in the above section. Therefore, the hypothesis of the research is based on the null and alternative hypothesis below:

H0: There exists no statistically significant relationship between being biracial as a child and the struggles exhibited with identity.

H1: There is a statistically significant relationship between the biracial attributes of a child and their struggles with identity compared to their single-race counterparts.

In this case, being biracial is evaluated based on the formation of an individual, including more than a single race.

Importance of Topic

Increasing cases of struggles among biracial children with their identity have created an influence on society. Besides, identity struggles have emanated from their racial formation and origin as factors of society that define individuals. Besides, this may help in the identification of the role of the society and community in defining biracial besides ensuring a better environment to help children with this attribute to deal with existing social negativities. It will be essential since it will significantly contribute towards creating a receptive society that has reduced negativities on this characteristic. The study will also contribute to understanding the aspects of racial diversity. Therefore, this will help in eliminating existing myths and stereotypes that affect biracial children negatively.

References

Donnella, L. (2017, June 8). 'Racial Impostor Syndrome': Here Are Your Stories. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2017/06/08/462395722/racial-impostor-syndrome-here-are-your-stories

Jackson, K. F. (2010). Living the Multiracial Experience. Qualitative Social Work: Research and Practice, 11(1), 42-60. doi:10.1177/1473325010375646