How Do Asian Americans Interpret and Respond to "Everyday" Interpersonal Racism?

Abstract

Asian Americans are a diverse group that share the experience of racialization in the United States as both model minorities and perpetual foreigners. However, anti-Asian racism can be ambiguous and difficult to recognize, as it takes both subtle and overtly negative forms. In this qualitative study, I explored how Asian Americans interpret and react to so-called "everyday" racism in interpersonal scenarios. A sample of East Asian American adults (n = 239) responded to open-ended questions about two vignettes that depicted subtle and blatant racism. The research team used Consensual Qualitative Research-Modified (Spangler et al., 2012) to understand how the racism was interpreted and would be addressed. Racism was frequently acknowledged across scenarios. However, a notable number of participants were unsure if racism was present, while some recognized and then denied it, and others did not acknowledge it at all. Whereas challenging racism was frequent in blatant situations, accommodating the perpetrators by minimizing the impact of racism was more common in subtle racism scenarios. Participants reported a multitude of internal reactions: positive, negative, neutral, and uncertain. Given the importance of rejecting racial oppression for psychological health, this study highlights a need for clinicians and educators to work with Asian Americans to deconstruct Asian American stereotypes and critically examine interpersonal racial interactions.

Publisher

American Psychological Association

Publication Date

7-2026

Publication Title

American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Department

Psychology

Additional Department

Comparative American Studies

Document Type

Article

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000946

Keywords

Asian Americans, Microaggressions, Awareness of racism, Resistance to racism

Language

English

Format

text

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