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Racial, Social and Biological Constructs

            Once widely referred to as a biological construct we can now show race to be a social construct due to discoveries in human biology. With these new biological understandings we have also learnt that intelligence cannot be definitively related to race scientifically. In the following it will be argued we can relate them socially and explore the differences of biological and social constructs. A social construct is a classification that society places on people according to a characteristic. There are many different methods or equally valid procedures for defining these classifications. (Diamond, 1994). Race is now widely recognized to be a social construct. The American Anthropological Association statement on race (1998) states that the concept of race was a social system created as a means of referring to populations brought together during the 18th century in colonial America. The variations of physical appearance of these populations was used to determine their race. During the 19th century the use of these differences amongst races reached its greatest divide where it was argued that Africans, Indians and Europeans were of different species (American Anthropological Association, 1998).
             A species is defined as a group of organisms that share the same genome and can only reproduce with each other (Bastin, n.d.). It was not until the application of Gregor Mendel's (1822-1884) discovery of genes that allowed the expansion of science in biology in the last century. With this, as stated in the American anthropological association (1998) statement on race came the knowledge that the human population are not biologically distinct groups. Physical differences in human appearance occur from allele combinations in our chromosomes but genetically we are the same. It was until this genetic understanding that race was perceived as a biological construct. It is important to understand where these classifications come from so we can learn from them and apply them to current social and economic problems.


Essays Related to Racial, Social and Biological Constructs

1. Social Constructing - Race and Disability

The ideas of disability and race (much like the idea of gender used in previous discussions) are socially constructed. ... Stepping back from the idea of disability, a few of the authors look into the idea of race as being a socially constructed issue. At first glance in the twenty-first century it is easy to say that race is obviously a biological issue and is not constructed by society as you can see the differences in individuals depending on color of skin, etc. ... And there is also an opposite temptation: to imagine race as a mere illusion, a purely ideological construct which some ideal ...

  • Word Count: 1608
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Gender and Race: The Difference Between Social Constructs

Race is not biologically real; it is socially and politically constructed through history, public policy, and law. Race, very much like other socially constructed categories such as class and gender is only an idea- but -it has a social reality. This means that after race is assigned to one, it produces very real effects to the person racialized. ... " touches on the similarities that race and gender have regarding to their status as a social construct. ... Social constructs such as race and gender would not exist if the world today was not built upon the need to categorize every being. ...

  • Word Count: 897
  • Approx Pages: 4

3. The Bridge over the Racial Divide

The author identifies two types of racism-biological racism and cultural racism. He states that hardly anyone today would endorse biological racism, that is, a categorical belief in the biological inferiority of African-Americans. ... Noted African-American social psychologist, Kenneth B. ... Of the American educational institution he writes: "To what extent are the contemporary social deprivation theories merely substitution notions of environmental immutability fatalism for earlier notions of biologically determined educational unmodifiability."... In South Bronx Rising, Jill Jonnes prov...

  • Word Count: 1618
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: Graduate

4. Definition of Race

Definition of Race Framing a definition of race is an intimidating task as both biological and social considerations factor into the concept. ... Thus, the social construction of race is presented and contrasted with biological implications of race. ... In this respect, race is determined more from a social perspective rather than a biological one (Lopez, 1994). ... However, race has no biological significance; but, it is richly conceptualized with social meaning (Lopez, 1994). ... Hinged on the ever-changing social effects of everyday choices, race can be defined as a social phenomenon and c...

  • Word Count: 945
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Race and Ethnicity

Sociology tells us that race is not determined by biological characteristics completely, but that race is socially constructed by how society treats the groups historically and socially based on bioligical characteristics that have been given some level of social importance. Adolf Hitler racialized an ethnic group, the Jewish, and considered them a race of people, based on the fact that in "his" society, the Jews were in his eyes a biologically inferior group of people in comparison to his "race," the Aryans, which were a biologically and idealogically engineered group of people formed to suit...

  • Word Count: 601
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. The Fallacy of Race and Modern Tyranny

This failure to distinguish cultural and biological factors still dictates much of our social behavior today. Without any scientific pretense whatsoever, the concept of race was constructed to classify people by arbitrary physical or geographical characteristics. ... The need to supplant the term race with something less volatile and more scientifically accurate is crucial in fostering a more advanced biological picture of reality as well as a more cohesive social vocabulary. ... To incorporate and give expression to race and racial characteristics in diagnostics within the mental health profe...

  • Word Count: 1166
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. The Need To Believe

"Race" had become a social phenomenon. ... From the mid-nineteenth century and on, science began to prove biological evidence further anchoring the belief of white superiority. ... This so-called science (phrenology) issued in a new era that granted "races" a biological reality. ... Once white superiority had anchored itself to the social construct, associations with it came into existence. ... This idea passed on through the school system to the children enforcing the idea of racial superiority further into the social culture of America. ...

  • Word Count: 1439
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. Racism and Ethnicity

The idea of "social Darwinism" has often been used as a general term for any evolutionary argument about the biological basis of human differences. Following Social Darwinism was eugenics. ... Ethnicity is a term which represents social groups with a shared history, sense of identity, geography, and cultural roots which may occur despite racial difference. ... Lastly, with an interactionist perspective, it is said that race is a social construct. ... Race is a social concept, not a biological concept. ...

  • Word Count: 925
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. Intelligence

Galton first derived IQ tests (1869) by utilizing an existing theory of intelligence to construct a test that was designed to measure "intelligent behavior." ... The recent interest in culture fair tests is derived from various sources including: research indicating racial differences in test performance on cognitive tests and research demonstrating test differences as a function of socio-economic levels; therefore, prior to more profound inspection of culture fair tests, the main ways in which cultural differences among racial groups may be reflected in psychometry should be examined. ... T...

  • Word Count: 2204
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

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