The Positive Effect of Black Density on White Crossover Voting: Reconsidering Social Interaction Theory

Abstract

Objective. Social interaction theory has received considerable attention. One limitation of previous studies has been that they did not examine how the positive effect of racial interaction on white racial tolerance may be enhanced or reduced by other factors. This article tests five hypotheses derived from the basic assumption of social interaction theory. Methods. Employing EI procedure, a newly developed ecological inference method, this study uses the precinct‐level data from New Orleans' 29 biracial elections to estimate white crossover voting at the neighborhood level. The hypotheses are tested by both ordinary least squares and weighted least squares models. Results. White crossover voting is positively related to black density. The positive effect of black density, however, is relatively weak. Other factors such as the racial composition of candidate field and election type are more important. Conclusions. Caution needs to be exercised in accepting social interaction theory. The level of racial competition in biracial elections may reverse white support for black candidates.