Race and leadership suitability in multiracial churches: An experimental exploration

Abstract

Extensive research on multiracial churches highlights the predominance of White individuals in leadership roles. However, little is known about how leadership suitability is perceived in such multiracial contexts. This study employs a factorial conjoint survey experiment with 737 participants to investigate how participants' race/ethnicity, leadership candidates' race/ethnicity, and the racial/ethnic composition of churches influence perceived leadership suitability. The findings of this study provide evidence for multi-dimensional in-group favoritism, encompassing both personal in-group favoritism and group-oriented favoritism. Specifically, when these two types of favoritism compete, Black and Latino participants exhibit stronger personal in-group favoritism, favoring candidates from their own racial/ethnic groups. In contrast, White and Asian participants demonstrate stronger group-oriented favoritism, favoring candidates whose race/ethnicity aligns with the church's majority racial/ethnic composition. Additionally, this study identifies patterns of cross-minority solidarity among racial minority groups. While individuals generally favor candidates from their own racial groups, this preference is complemented by a broader tendency to support candidates from other racial minority groups over White candidates. Findings in this study do not support White privilege and superiority assumptions in leadership roles within multiracial church settings. Overall, this study underscores the interaction between personal identity and group dynamics in shaping perceptions of leadership, highlighting the multifaceted ways in which individual racial/ethnic identity and group racial/ethnic demographics influence perceptions of leadership suitability.