Testing for discrimination: Evidence from the game show Street Smarts

Shamena Anwar

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2012, vol. 81, issue 1, 268-285

Abstract: This paper conducts two alternative tests of discrimination in the game show Street Smarts, which both exploit the unique setup of the game to determine why discrimination occurs. The results indicate non-black contestants have a lower prior perception of the skill level of blacks relative to non-blacks in answering the average question in the game. When results are stratified by question category, one finds that non-black contestants perceive blacks and non-blacks to have equal ability in answering general knowledge questions. However, they perceive blacks to have a lower ability in answering miscellaneous, entertainment, and slang/common saying questions.

Keywords: Statistical discrimination; Racial prejudice; Inaccurate stereotypes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J7 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:81:y:2012:i:1:p:268-285

DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2011.10.008

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