Verbal Dissimilarity Among Black and White Subjects: A Prime Consideration in Counseling and Communication

A report on research which evaluated the meaning of words within the language system to both black and white persons in order to determine whether substantively different meanings exist for people according to racial background. Forty-nine black Ss were selected randomly from senior classes at John Marshall High School in Richmond, Virginia, and 32 white Ss were selected from similar classes at Wilson Memorial High School in Fishersville, Virginia. Subjects were matched for socioeconomic stratum, age, sex, and length of time in school. None of the Ss in the study used a second language at home. The Gender Association Survey, based on the semantic differential, was administered to the Ss. The survey consisted of 50 English nouns (both abstract and concrete). The most interesting difference noted was a substantial difference in the interpretation of the meaning of abstract vs. concrete words. Abstract words such as guilt, story, work, cry out, hope, fear, respect, money, and theft were words on which the greatest differences appeared. In all cases, differences were significant on the words cited at the .01 level. The major implication of the study is that problems in communication between black and white persons may be more complex than generally believed. These problems may arise in particular when abstract symbolisms are used.