A longitudinal examination of the role of stereotype threat and racial climate on college outcomes for minorities at elite institutions

Abstract

This paper employs hierarchical linear models to explore the long-term effects of stereotype threat on college outcomes for students in the National Longitudinal Survey of Freshmen. Performance burden was negatively related to both grades and social satisfaction with college. Social satisfaction with college was also significantly impacted by students’ perception of the campus racial climate. This paper examines the combined impact of performance burden, campus racial climate, cumulative GPA, and social life satisfaction early in college on 4 year graduation rates. Overall, while there are large initial differences in the likelihood of graduating on time for black and Hispanic students relative to whites, these differences are completely explained by assessments of campus racial climate, social life satisfaction, and grades. The findings suggest that interventions to reduce stereotype threat and improve the racial atmosphere on campus may go a long way towards reducing—and in some cases eliminating—disparities between racial/ethnic groups in college outcomes.