Do Hispanic and Asian Adolescents Practice Panethnicity in Friendship Choices?

Grace Kao, University of Pennsylvania
Kara Joyner, Cornell University

Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we examine the extent to which Asian and Hispanic ethnics prefer same-ethnic, different-ethnic (but same-race), and different-race friends. Panethnic sentiment is defined as the importance of maintaining racial boundaries, but relaxing ethnic boundaries within one's racial group. We examine descriptive tabulations of friendship choices of whites, blacks, Hispanics (Mexicans, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and South/Central Americans), Asians (Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, South Asian, Korean, and Vietnamese), and Native Americans. Because we are interested in the choice to cross both racial and ethnic lines, our analyses focus on Asians and Hispanics. We find strong effects of school racial and ethnic composition, immigrant status, and parental education on the likelihood of crossing boundaries in friendship choices. Our results show an overwhelming preference for same-ethnic peers, but no preference for different-ethnic peers, and no evidence of panethnicity among Asian or Latino youth.