Conceptualizing Race in Research

doi:10.1016/S0027-9684(15)31470-X

Journal of the National Medical Association

Volume 100, Issue 10, October 2008, Pages 1235-1243

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0027-9684(15)31470-X Get rights and content

Background:

The use of race as a variable in research continues to spark debate about whether it should be used, as well as the implications it has for research on health differences. Given this continued controversy, we examined how investigators interpret the concept of “race” and whether their views of race are reflected in their published work.

Methods:

Thirty-three semistructured interviews were conducted with investigators from 3 southeastern universities to discuss recruitment of participants, the use of race as a variable in research and analyses, and their assessment of the National Institutes of Health mandate on the inclusion of women and minorities. The interview data were analyzed using the principles of constant comparative method, theme identification and pattern investigation. Up to 2 publications for each respondent were also used to assess the use of race in their research.

Results:

Results reflect a spectrum of views on the definition of race, from biological to social. Findings also suggest that investigators think critically about the use and implications of using race in their research, although this is not consistently reflected in their published work.

Conclusion:

In our view, authors, journal editors and peer reviewers have an important role in moving this debate forward, and advocate that they engage more directly in shaping the process. When reporting results by race, investigators should provide a statement on the theory or conceptual framework underlying the hypothesized racial differences in health examined in the study. They should be also cautious in invoking either biological or social constructions of race, thus demonstrating an appreciation of the nuances and implications of using this variable.

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: Financial support: This project was supported by grants from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program, the National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities, and an unrestricted grant from Pfizer Inc.

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ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONConceptualizing Race in Research

Background:

Methods:

Results:

Conclusion:

AEP

Am J Hum Genet

Am J Hum Genet

Soc Sci Med

J Clin Epidemiol

On the study of race, racism, and health: A shift from description to explanation

Int J Health Serv

Unequal treatment: Confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care

Comment: Abandoning “race” As a variable in public health research—an idea whose time has come

Am J Public Health

Commentary: Considerations for use of racial/ethnic classification in etiologic research

Am J Epidemiol

Counting accountably: Implications of the new approaches to classifying race/ethnicity in the 2000 census

Am J Public Health

“Race” In the epidemiologic literature: An examination of the American Journal of Epidemiology, 1921-1990

Am J Epidemiol.

Race, Racism, and the practice of epidemiology

Am J Epidemiol

Beyond dummy variables and sample selection: What health services researchers ought to know about race as a variable

Health Serv Res

The use of race in medical research

JAMA

Genetic research and health disparities

JAMA

Race in epidemiology

Int J Health Serv

The medicalization of race: Scientific legitimization of a flawed social construct

Ann Intern Med

Use of race and ethnicity in biomedical publication

JAMA

The concept of race in health services research: 1966 to 1990

Health Serv Res

The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis

Force and influence in content analysis: The production of new social knowledge

Qual Quant.

Measuring the typicality of text: Using multiple coders for more than just reliability and validity checks

Hum Organ

ORIGINAL COMMUNICATION
Conceptualizing Race in Research