Geneva Cole, Ph.D.
genevacole@arizona.edu
Assistant Professor
The University of Arizona
Year of PhD: 2023
Country: United States (Arizona)
Research Interests
Public Opinion
Political Psychology
Race, Ethnicity and Politics
Identity Politics
Political Behavior
Whiteness
Transitional Justice
Policing
Human Rights
Housing Discrimination
Countries of Interest
United States
Publications:
Journal Articles:
This study contributes to the growing literature on white identity in American politics by examining how dominant in-group identification varies among individuals and how expressions of white identity respond to shifts in social and political context that disrupt the racial order. Drawing on three rounds of in-depth interviews with white residents of Minneapolis and Saint Paul in Minnesota from 2020 to 2023, I identify three ideal types of white identifiers: Type I (low awareness), Type II (disadvantaged awareness), and Type III (advantaged awareness). The findings suggest that the 2020 uprising constituted an epistemic disruption that heightened the salience of whiteness, prompting varied responses ranging from grievance to solidarity. While some participants reverted to prior identity expressions as the disruption faded, others maintained increased awareness and engagement. This study highlights the contextual nature of white identity and underscores the limitations of survey-based approaches in capturing its complexity. It offers a typology and framework for understanding how white Americans navigate racial identity amid sociopolitical change.
How are activists molded into middlemen in a polarized two-party system? Using the case of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), this paper examines the process of activist mobilization that occurs at political gatherings. Using two rounds of interviews and participant observation from CPAC in 2019 and 2020, I argue that contrary to popular media portrayals of CPAC as political theater now rooted in the spectacle of President Trump, the conference is an important site of mobilizing activists into party middlemen. This happens through three processes: first conference attendees are taught conservative policy stances and presented with a bundle of issue positions; second, they are provided with the tools for effective activism formally through provided training and informally through socialization; and finally, their conservative identity is continually defined and reinforced with cultural meaning-making practices throughout the conference.
Objective. Until recently, whiteness was not considered a politically significant social identity. This study builds on recent work and explores empirically the different ways in which white people understand their whiteness with the objective of recognizing how variations in white identification shape attitudes about the Movement for Black Lives. Methods. I use qualitative analysis of in-depth semistructured interviews to develop a theoretical framework for understanding how white Americans understand and identify with their whiteness and apply this typology to expressed attitudes about Black Lives Matter. Results. I find three distinct patterns of white identification that characterize how white people understand their own race and privilege. These patterns subsequently affect how white Americans understand the experiences of minorities, specifically analyzed through opinions about Black Lives Matter. Conclusion. Variations in the way that white Americans understand their whiteness have tangible effects on the way they approach racial politics, with this paper focused specifically on white attitudes about the Movement for Black Lives. As the movement engages a broad multiracial coalition it is very possible that those who were previously unaware of their whiteness will come to see it as important, with potentially wide-ranging impacts on the future of racial politics in the United States.
Other:
For white Minnesotans, the introspection that grew out of George Floyd’s murder helped create the conditions for the community response to ICE.
Can direct and indirect contact with police and immigration enforcement officials influence political participation?
Changing museums can change how people see the past – and the present.
My research investigated what pushed White people to join last year’s protests.
Here's what else my research found at CPAC.
A history of structural racism brought the Twin Cities to this boiling point. In my sample of white residents, even those who express understanding of white privilege tend to minimize the struggles of their black neighbors.
(with Evgenia Olimpieva and Ipek Cinar) mixed-methods analysis of how Russia Today (RT) covers police brutality in the United States.