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Public Opinion, Racial Bias, and Labor Market Outcomes

Author

Listed:
  • Kaveh Majlesi

    (Monash University, Lund University, CEPR and IZA)

  • Silvia Prina

    (Northeastern University, Department of Economics)

  • Paul Sullivan

    (American University, Department of Economics)

Abstract

The effect of negative shifts in public opinion on the economic lives of minorities is unknown. We study the role of racial bias in the U.S. labor market by investigating sudden changes in public opinion about Asians following the anti-Chinese rhetoric that emerged with the COVID-19 pandemic, and associated changes in employment status and earnings. Using Current Population Survey (CPS) data from January 2019 to May 2021, we find that, unlike other minorities, Asians who worked in occupations or industries with a higher likelihood of face-to-face interactions before the pandemic were more likely to become unemployed afterwards. Consistent with a role for public opinion affecting labor market outcomes, we find that the effects are larger in magnitude in strongly Republican states, where anti-Asian rhetoric might have had more influence. Additionally, we show that, while widespread along the political spectrum, negative shifts in views of Asians were much stronger among those who voted for President Trump in 2016 and those who report watching Fox News channel.

Suggested Citation

  • Kaveh Majlesi & Silvia Prina & Paul Sullivan, 2022. "Public Opinion, Racial Bias, and Labor Market Outcomes," Monash Economics Working Papers 2022-22, Monash University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:mos:moswps:2022-22
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alexander W. Bartik & Marianne Bertrand & Feng Lin & Jesse Rothstein & Matthew Unrath, 2020. "Measuring the Labor Market at the Onset of the COVID-19 Crisis," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 51(2 (Summer), pages 239-268;316.
    2. David Yanagizawa-Drott, 2014. "Propaganda and Conflict: Evidence from the Rwandan Genocide," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 129(4), pages 1947-1994.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Racial bias; Public Opinion; Minorities; Unemployment; Earnings;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • P16 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Capitalist Institutions; Welfare State

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