9/20/13
Most black and Hispanic Americans don’t have a preference about terminology used to describe their racial/ethnic groups, according to Gallup. (See Research Alert, July 5, 2013, and June 15, 2012) Almost two-thirds of blacks (65%) say it doesn’t matter to them whether they’re called “black” or “African American.” Those who do express a preference are equally divided between the two terms: 17% each prefer “black” or “African American.”
Similarly, seven in 10 Hispanics (70%) say it doesn’t matter whether they’re called “Latino” or “Hispanic.” Those who do have a preference are more likely to prefer “Hispanic” than “Latino” (19% vs. 10%). It’s worth noting, however, that other studies examining how Hispanics prefer to be identified have found that their top choice is country of origin identifiers, such as Mexican American (see Research Alert, July 5, 2013, and June 15, 2012).
Among Hispanics, men (74%) are more likely than women (67%) to say they have no preference for “Latino” or “Hispanic.” Women also prefer “Hispanic” over “Latino” by a larger margin than men do-22% of women and 15% of men prefer “Hispanic,” while 10% of each prefer “Latino.” There are no significant gender differences in terminology preferences among black Americans.
Older Hispanics are more likely than their younger counterparts to prefer the term “Hispanic.” Older blacks are more likely than younger blacks to say they have no terminology preference.
SOURCE: “U.S. Blacks, Hispanics Have No Preferences on Group Labels,” July 2013, Gallup, Jeffrey Jones, Analyst, 502 Carnegie Center, #300, Princeton, NJ 08540; 609-924-9600; www.gallup.com. Price: Available online at no charge.
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