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Affirmative Meritocracy
Author(s) -
Walton Gregory M.,
Spencer Steven J.,
Erman Sam
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
social issues and policy review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.798
H-Index - 35
eISSN - 1751-2409
pISSN - 1751-2395
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-2409.2012.01041.x
Subject(s) - meritocracy , affirmative action , stereotype (uml) , stereotype threat , social psychology , diversity (politics) , psychology , ethnic group , competition (biology) , political science , demographic economics , law , economics , ecology , biology
We argue that in important circumstances meritocracy can be realized only through a specific form of affirmative action we callaffirmative meritocracy.These circumstances arise because common measures of academic performance systematically underestimate the intellectual ability and potential of members of negatively stereotyped groups (e.g., non‐Asian ethnic minorities, women in quantitative fields). This bias results not from the content of performance measures but from common contexts in which performance measures are assessed—from psychological threats like stereotype threat that are pervasive in academic settings, and which undermine the performance of people from negatively stereotyped groups. To overcome this bias, school and work settings should be changed to reduce stereotype threat. In such environments, admitting or hiring more members of devalued groups would promote meritocracy, diversity, and organizational performance. Evidence for this bias, its causes, magnitude, remedies, and implications for social policy and for law are discussed.