Mentor: Dr. Tosen Nwadei
Assistant Professor
Project Description
It’s well documented that the most highly esteemed positions, occupations, and organizations in the U.S. and Canada are predominantly White. Across both countries, however, there have been concerted efforts to improve racial diversity in these employment contexts. But there’s an important dilemma: these employment settings generally maintain White-centric norms (i.e., appearance norms, styles of speech, values, etc.), even as they seek out more racial minority candidates. This poses an important question for these highly regarded organizations: Given the existing racial hierarchy in both the U.S. and Canada, do White audiences ascribe more status to organizations where White-centric norms are maintained (vs. violated)? I intend to explore this question through two closely related research projects. The student will be involved in several stages of the research, including but not limited to annotating literature reviews, programming studies in Qualtrics, data collection, and preliminary data analysis.
Does this project require the SROP Student to be in-person or remote? Either one
Mentorship Statement
Mentorship is potentially the most important aspect of my career. When I think about what drew me to this profession, and the impact I want to have, it’s not necessarily citations and publications (although I think those have their place, too). Realistically, one of the greatest opportunities to have an impact is in the interactions I have with students that leave them feeling equipped, more confident, and excited about their future (whether that future is in research or elsewhere). Throughout the last 13 years of my career, I’ve participated in programs and initiatives that have allowed me to mentor students at the high school, college, masters, and doctoral levels. I love these opportunities. I look forward to working with SROP students, regardless of their research experience, and doing excellent work in partnership with them over the course of the summer.