The Politics of Respectability and Black Americans’ Punitive Attitudes

Article Title: The Politics of Respectability and Black Americans’ Punitive Attitudes
Author: Hakeem Jefferson, Stanford University, United States
DOI: 10.1017/S0003055422001289
Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Political Science Association
License: Open Access under Creative Commons Attribution license
Date of Publication: 2023

Research Gap: Existing research often overlooks Black Americans' support for punitive policies targeting their own group, which contradicts expectations of in-group favoritism and solidarity.
Concept Used: "The politics of respectability"—a framework that explains why identity-driven anxieties lead some Black Americans to support punitive measures against their own group.
New Measure: The Respectability Politics Scale (RPS) is developed to quantify adherence to respectability politics among Black Americans.

Support for Punitive Policies:
- Greater adherence to respectability politics correlates with feelings of shame about the racial group's public image.
- Individuals who endorse respectability are more likely to support punitive policies such as dress codes, tough-on-crime initiatives, and restrictive welfare provisions.
Key Statistics:
- 49% of Black respondents favor ordinances penalizing sagging pants, whereas only 34% oppose.
- 70% of Black Americans supported the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 despite its negative implications for racial equity.

Historical Context:
- Originated among Black women in the 19th and early 20th centuries as a strategy to counteract negative stereotypes and strive for equality in a racist society.
Motivations of Adherents:
1. Reform individual behavior as a moral imperative.
2. Utilize respectability as a strategy to improve the structural dynamics of race relations in America.

Social Psychological Lens:
- Identity-based concerns incite responses among stigmatized group members regarding perceived behavior threatening their collective image.
Emotional Responses:
- Feelings of shame can lead to a desire to police the behavior of in-group members, while in-group-directed anger may mobilize support for punitive actions.

Influence of Neoliberal Paternalism:
- Neoliberal narratives around self-discipline and individual responsibility underlie perceptions about welfare and criminal justice policies.
Support for Punitive Measures:
- Endorsements of tough-on-crime measures and the justification of extreme law enforcement tactics often stem from internalized negative stereotypes about fellow group members.

Sample Characteristics:
Survey conducted with 500 Black Americans in April 2019, covering demographic aspects like age, sex, education, and income.
Measure of Respectability:
- The Respectability Politics Scale consists of two subscales:
1. Attributional Dimension: Beliefs that the group’s social status relies on individual behaviors.
2. Concern Dimension: Awareness and care about in-group behaviors.

Correlational Findings:
- Higher respectability scores align with increased support for:
- Fines for sagging pants
- Tough-on-crime laws
- Mandatory work for welfare beneficiaries
Variable Controls:
- Results persist even when accounting for ideological affiliation, general authoritarianism, linked fate, and demographic factors.

Explore potential contexts where respectability may vary, particularly under different societal threats or movements like Black Lives Matter that challenge the foundations of respectability politics.
Investigate other marginalized groups and how similar dynamics of respectability politics may manifest in their beliefs and attitudes.

The study adhered to ethical guidelines and received Institutional Review Board approval from Stanford University.

Acknowledged contributions from dissertation committee members and peers who engaged with this research throughout its development.