Indiscriminate discrimination: A correspondence test for ethnic homophily in the Chicago labor market

an article by Nicolas Jacquemet (Paris School of Economics (PSE) and Université de Lorraine, BETA) and Constantine Yannelis (Stanford University) published in Labour Economics Volume 19 Issue 6 (December 2012)

Abstract

Numerous field experiments have demonstrated the existence of discrimination in labour markets against specific minority groups. This paper uses a correspondence test to determine whether this discrimination is due to prejudice against specific groups, or a general preference for the majority group.

Three groups of identical fabricated resumes are sent to help-wanted advertisements in Chicago newspapers: one with Anglo-Saxon names, one with African-American names, and one with fictitious foreign names whose ethnic origin is unidentifiable to most Americans.

Resumes with Anglo-Saxon names generate nearly one third more call-backs than identical resumes with non Anglo-Saxon ones, either African-American or Foreign.

We take this as evidence that discriminatory behaviour is part of a larger pattern of unequal treatment of any member of non-majority groups, ethnic homophily.

Highlights

► Correspondence test of ethnic homophily in hiring in the Chicago area
► Treatment variable is foreign sounding names, with no clear ethnic association.
► African-American sounding names elicit one third fewer callbacks than Anglo-Saxon ones.
► Foreign sounding names are treated in the same way as African-Americans.
► The result is robust across sectors and locations.

JEL Classification: J71, J64

Update:
Full text (PDF 20pp) is available to download from the Social Science Research Network

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