Department of Sociology, Harvard University, United States.
Department of Sociology, Harvard University, United States.
Soc Sci Med. 2018 Feb;199:19-28. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.03.010. Epub 2017 Mar 9.
This article advances the concept of racialized legal status (RLS) as an overlooked dimension of social stratification with implications for racial/ethnic health disparities. We define RLS as a social position based on an ostensibly race-neutral legal classification that disproportionately impacts racial/ethnic minorities. To illustrate the implications of RLS for health and health disparities in the United States, we spotlight existing research on two cases: criminal status and immigration status. We offer a conceptual framework that outlines how RLS shapes disparities through (1) primary effects on those who hold a legal status and (2) spillover effects on racial/ethnic in-group members, regardless of these individuals' own legal status. Primary effects of RLS operate by marking an individual for material and symbolic exclusion. Spillover effects result from the vicarious experiences of those with social proximity to marked individuals, as well as the discredited meanings that RLS constructs around racial/ethnic group members. We conclude by suggesting multiple avenues for future research that considers RLS as a mechanism of social inequality with fundamental effects on health.
本文提出了种族法律地位（RLS）的概念，将其视为社会分层中一个被忽视的维度，对种族/族裔健康差异有影响。我们将 RLS 定义为一种基于表面上无种族差异的法律分类的社会地位，这种分类对少数族裔产生了不成比例的影响。为了说明 RLS 对美国健康和健康差异的影响，我们重点介绍了现有关于两个案例的研究：犯罪状况和移民状况。我们提供了一个概念框架，概述了 RLS 如何通过以下两种方式塑造差异：（1）对持有某种法律地位的人的直接影响；（2）对种族/族裔同群体成员的溢出效应，而不论这些人自己的法律地位如何。RLS 的主要影响是通过对个人进行物质和象征上的排斥来发挥作用的。溢出效应源于与标记个人有社会关系的人的间接经历，以及 RLS 对种族/族裔群体成员构建的不可信意义。最后，我们建议进行多项未来研究，将 RLS 视为一种社会不平等的机制，对健康有根本影响。
