COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST

Too innocent for prejudice?

Shawna Ueyama investigates the racial biases of kindergarteners and how cultural diversity affects Japan's youngest generation

Pick a card: A kindergarten student takes part in a survey designed to assess racial bias, in this picture taken in July. The survey found that children who attend culturally diverse schools were less likely to discriminate based on race. | SATOSHI HATA

Dec 22, 2009

Are kindergarteners racist? Do they discriminate between children with different skin colors?

"Children are too innocent," one Japanese mother told me in a survey of parents' views. Her conclusion: "They do not hold racial prejudices."

As innocent as children may be, extensive research conducted in the United States and Europe has shown that children as young as three have the capacity to discriminate against others based on race. However, little research on this topic has been conducted in Japan, a more culturally homogeneous society than most in the West.

Too innocent for prejudice?

Shawna Ueyama investigates the racial biases of kindergarteners and how cultural diversity affects Japan's youngest generation

In your social network

In your inbox

In your social network

In your inbox