The Relationships Among Multiracial Identity, Color-blind Racial Ideology, and Discrimination in Multiracial Individuals: Implications for Professional Counseling and Counselor Education

Due to the on-going growth of the Multiracial population in the U.S. (Rockquemore, et al., 2009; Shih & Sanchez, 2005, 2009) and the continuous struggle minorities face regarding racial attitudes, discrimination, and understanding their own racial identity, it is more important than ever for mental health professionals, including professional counselors and counselor educators, to work to further understand how these factors interact and ultimately impact Multiracial people. This study explored the relationships between the constructs of Multiracial identity, color-blind racial ideology, and discrimination in Multiracial individuals through data analysis including correlation, hierarchical regression, and moderation analysis. Participants (n = 287) were Biracial and Multiracial adults living in the U.S. Participants were recruited primarily through a southeastern university and through social media, and they each anonymously completed a questionnaire packet that included the following measures: demographic questions, the Multiracial Identity Integration Scale (MII; Cheng & Lee, 2009), the Color-Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (CoBRAS; Neville et al., 2000), the Brief Perceived Ethnic Discrimination Questionnaire – Community Version (PEDQ-CV; Brondolo et al., 2005), and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (short version) (M-C II; Strahan & Gerbasi, 1972). Bivariate correlations revealed significant relationships among the color-blind racial attitudes outcome factors of Unawareness of Blatant Racial Issues and Unawareness of Institutional Discrimination with Multiracial identity integration and all four subscales of the experiences of discrimination variable (Exclusion, Workplace Discrimination, Stigmatization, and Threat and Harassment) with Multiracial identity integration. Controlling for social desirability and gender, a blockwise hierarchical regression indicated that several subscales of the constructs contributed to Multiracial Identity Integration. Surprisingly, participants’ Unawareness of Blatant Racial Issues and experiences of discriminatory Exclusion, most significantly predicted Multiracial Identity Integration. A moderation analysis revealed that color-blind racial attitudes does not moderate the relationship between experiences of discrimination and Multiracial identity integration in Multiracial people. Implications for professional counselors and counselor educators working with Multiracial clients, students, and supervisees, as well as limitations, and future research are discussed