Ethnic Preferences

Understanding the development of identity in Bolivian children

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to analyze the evolution of ethnic preferences in preschool and school-level children in multicultural social contexts and explore their characteristics and particularities. In the first instance, it was sought to verify whether the ethnic preferences of preschoolers followed the same pattern verified by studies carried out in other latitudes. Secondly, the variations of these preferences were explored according to the age, gender, ethnicity and residence of the participants. The results clearly show that the preferences of Bolivian children in the sample who are between 3 and 9 years of age generally follow the patterns observed in other countries. The preferences expressed before the age of 7 showed a poor development of the ethnic identity of children of both Aymara and non-Aymara origin. This deficiency seemed to decrease as we children increased their age; the variables gender, ethnicity and residence by themselves did not affect children's preferences unless they are mediated by age. The results also suggest the importance of cognitive variables in the development of ethnic identity.