Pew Research and other surveys have painted millennials as a more inclusive demographic than their parents’ and grandparents’ generations, suggesting a post-racial America is on the horizon.
But actions speak louder than words. A new housing study by a white UCLA sociology professor S. Michael Gaddis suggests that notion may be a misconception.
Gaddis used a research method known as a “correspondence audit” to examine millennials’ decision-making in a deeply personal real-world scenario: picking a new roommate.
Gaddis and his co-author Raj Ghosal, a sociology professor at Elon University in North Carolina, sent over 4,000 emails replying to Craigslist “roommate wanted” ads posted by millennials in Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia.