Faculty Publications

Why Are Asian Americans Silent? Asian Americans' Negotiation Strategies For Communicative Discriminations

Document Type

Article

Keywords

Asian Americans, Co-Cultural Theory, Negotiation Strategy, Racial Discrimination, Stereotype

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Journal of International and Intercultural Communication

Volume

5

Issue

4

First Page

329

Last Page

348

Abstract

This study explores two questions: (1) What types of racially discriminatory messages (RDM) target Asian Americans? (2) What communicative approaches do Asian Americans use to negotiate RDM? An analysis of 176 stories obtained through an online survey revealed seven RDM types (racial slurs, playground teasing, Asian Americans as eternal others, Asians as sexual objects, professional discrimination, Asians are all the same, and alienation within Asian groups). It was found that Asian Americans tend to utilize nonassertive approaches in responding to RDM due to internal/environmental factors including emotional shock and humiliation, a lack of knowledge of proper responses, peer pressure, and strategic intent. © 2012 Copyright National Communication Association.

Department

Department of Communication Studies

Original Publication Date

11-1-2012

DOI of published version

10.1080/17513057.2012.720700

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