Doctoral Dissertation Research in Political Science: Identity Fluidity in the Voting Booth: The Influence of a Latino Social Group Cue on Vote Choice

本论文探讨了拉丁裔族群认同如何进入美国人（拉丁裔和非拉丁裔一样）的投票演算。在21世纪世纪，以种族为角度的竞选活动迅速增长，这要求考虑拉丁裔在拉丁美洲人和非拉丁美洲人中的作用。两个问题，特别是解决。首先，拉丁裔如何回应同种族候选人？第二，非拉丁裔候选人如何回应拉丁裔候选人？ 本文认为，个人水平的种族群体内的识别和种族线索的可能性种族发挥独立的影响，对拉丁美洲人的投票选择，影响种族的可能性，“王牌”党派。对于非拉丁美洲人，重点是非拉丁美洲人对拉丁美洲人（种族外群体）候选人的看法。什么样的种族暗示会引发对种族外群体候选人的拒绝，即使该候选人有相同的党派倾向？作为外群体成员，非拉丁美洲人如何对拉丁美洲人的种族背景作出反应，或者更简单地说，“多少”种族是一个非拉丁美洲人感到舒适？本论文利用认知情感模型的作用，社会群体的政治思维，了解机制链接共享的群体态度/取向，投票选择。本文采用了多方法的方法。然而，由于问题的性质和数据的限制，主要的方法是实验。一个实验设计允许测试的作用，不同的拉丁裔种族背景的投票选择为拉丁美洲人和非Latinos.The更广泛的影响，这个项目是将获得拉丁裔的政治行为的理解。拉丁美洲人现在是该国最大的少数民族群体，其增长率预计将继续保持不变（2000年人口普查）。今天，任何关于美国政治的讨论都需要对拉丁美洲人进行充分的了解。

This dissertation investigates how Latino ethnic group identification enters the voting calculus of Americans (Latinos and non-Latinos alike). The rapid growth of ethnically angled campaigns in the 21st Century demands a consideration of the role of Latino ethnicity both among Latinos and non-Latinos. Two questions in particular, are addressed. First, how do Latinos1 respond to co-ethnic candidates? Second, how do non-Latinos respond to Latino candidates? This dissertation argues that individual levels of ethnic in-group identification and ethnic cues condition the likelihood of ethnicity exerting an independent effect on vote choice for Latinos; affecting the likelihood that ethnicity "trumps" partisanship. For non-Latinos, the focus is on the perception of non-Latinos toward Latino (ethnic out-group) candidates. What type of ethnic cue triggers a rejection of the ethnic out-group candidate, even if that candidate has one's same partisanship? As out-group members, how do non-Latinos react to Latino ethnic contexts, or put more simply, "how much" ethnicity is a non-Latino comfortable with?This dissertation utilizes a cognitive-affective model of the role of social groups in political thinking to understand the mechanism linking shared group attitudes/orientations to vote choice. A multi-method approach is employed in this dissertation. However, given the nature of the question and data limitations, the primary methodology is experimentation. An experimental design allows for the testing of the role of different Latino ethnic contexts on vote choice for both Latinos and non-Latinos.The broader impact of this project is the understanding that will be gained of Latino political behavior. Latinos are now the largest minority group in the country and their growth rates are projected to continue unabated (Census 2000). Today, any discussion of American politics requires a well-informed treatment of Latinos.