Stephanie Martinez

Stephanie Martinez

335 Words

"Racial Prejudice and Spending on Drug Rehabilitation: The Role of Attitudes Toward Blacks and Latinos" analyzes the concept of "color coding" by whites towards drug rehab spending. This survey is done every year or every other year, using samples of whites 18 and over. They determined prejudice by the person's answers to questions about marrying interracially to a black or latino, living in neighborhoods primarily black or latino, and other such questions. Another part of the survey asked them to rate different races on their intelligence and how hardworking they were. They were also asked what race was more violence prone. They found that if people held prejudice attitudes towards minorities, it would lead to the thought that too much is being spent on drug rehabilitation. Even further, they blamed the individual for their position in society. As for the people that were less prejudice, they believed we needed to spend more on this area and they blamed society for the disadvantages. This finding held true after controlling for race, income, and even political party. These racial attitudes shape public opinion and public policy.

"Neighborhood Disadvantage and Adult Alcohol Outcomes: Differential Risk by Race and Gender" used random sampling through phone interviews. They sought to find out the relationship between neighborhood disadvantage and alcohol, focusing on the differences between race and gender. They studied neighborhood disadvantage through education, employment, and income. What they found was that there was a negative correlation between neighborhood disadvantage and drinking status but a positive one with alcohol problems. Some men of color experienced stress because of the disadvantages they had which led to their high levels of alcohol consumption. Also, while African American men had higher levels of drinking as neighborhood disadvantage increased, the opposite happened for white men. As for white women, they were more likely to use alcohol to cope challenges and had a history of family alcohol misuse. One thing they were unable to take note of was the length of their residency in these neighborhoods.