Guess who? Interethnic Colorblindness Among White Dutch Adults

Research in the United States shows that mentioning skin color is taboo and strategically avoided. In a version of “Guess Who?” with skin color as a salient distinguishing characteristic of the pictured individuals, one of which needs to be ‘guessed’ by the players, White Americans clearly avoided mentioning skin color, employing “strategic colorblindness”, to elude appearing prejudiced. We examine whether such colorblindness strategies are also common in the Netherlands, a country with a substantial black minority, but with a very different history in race relations. Further, the most stigmatized ethnic group in the Netherlands is the Muslim minority, generally recognizable by their Middle Eastern appearance and women in headscarves. Are their ethnic features also subject to colorblindness in white participants? Two studies were conducted using adapted versions of “Guess Who?”. In Study 1, 136 mostly White (94%) and female (65%) participants played the Black-White “Guess Who?”, in which half of the pictured people were Black. Results showed that questions related to skin color were asked significantly less often than questions regarding gender or age. Additionally, women were more likely than men to avoid questions about skin color if their co-player was non-White. In Study 2, 148 White and mostly female (96%) participants played the Black-Muslim-White “Guess Who?”, in which two-thirds of the pictured people were Black or Muslim. The data of Study 2 will be analyzed and added to the results. Results regarding strategic “colorblindness” towards different ethnic features in the Dutch context will be discussed.