Race and Ethnicity Reporting and Presentation
Ethnicity is a term that refers to social groups with a shared history, sense of identity, geography and cultural roots which may occur despite racial differences. Ethnicity shapes a group's culture - food, language, music, and customs. We all have an ethnicity, but the term is often used in reference to persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity versus those of non-Hispanic/Latino ethnicity.(2)
1. National Standards for Race Reporting (Collection of Race/Ethnicity Information)
The U.S. Census Bureau collects race and Hispanic ethnicity as separate constructs. As a result, an individual has both a race and an Hispanic ethnicity designation (e.g., White Hispanic, White, non-Hispanic, Black Hispanic). This excerpt from the Federal Register (3) describes the OMB's intent.
Federal Register Notice October 30, 1997, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
To provide flexibility and ensure data quality, separate questions shall be used wherever feasible for reporting race and ethnicity. When race and ethnicity are collected separately, ethnicity shall be collected first. If race and ethnicity are collected separately, the minimum designations are:
To provide flexibility and ensure data quality, separate questions shall be used wherever feasible for reporting race and ethnicity. When race and ethnicity are collected separately, ethnicity shall be collected first. If race and ethnicity are collected separately, the minimum designations are:
Race:
- American Indian or Alaska Native
- Asian
- Black or African American
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
- White
Ethnicity:
- Hispanic or Latino
- Not Hispanic or Latino
1977 Federal Office of Management of Budget (OMB) Standard
Prior to 2000, the standard for collection of race data was to ask for the individual's primary race. This standard was released in 1977 in DIRECTIVE NO. 15, RACE AND ETHNIC STANDARDS FOR FEDERAL STATISTICS AND ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTING (4).
Race Categories in the 1977 OMB Standard
- American Indian or Alaska Native
- Asian or Pacific Islander
- Black
- White
1997 OMB Standard
In 1997, the OMB released a new minimum standard (3) for maintaining, collecting, and presenting data on race and ethnicity for all Federal reporting purposes, effective October 30, 1997. The new standard, implemented in the 2000 decennial census, requires that individuals be asked to check all racial and ethnic categories that apply to them. In addition to multiple reporting, the "Asian or Pacific Islander" group was separated into two categories, "Asian" and "Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander." The "Black" category was renamed, "Black or African American" and the term "Hispanic" was to be changed to "Hispanic or Latino." The OMB defines the race and ethnicity categories as follows:
Race Category Definitions
- American Indian or Alaska Native. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment.
- Asian. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
- Black or African American. A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. Terms such as "Haitian" or "Negro" can be used in addition to "Black or African American."
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
- White. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.
- Hispanic or Latino is defined as follows: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. The term, "Spanish origin," can be used in addition to "Hispanic or Latino."
Race data that have been collected using the 1997 standard may be presented in different ways.
◊ Presentation of Health Data of Data by "Race Alone"
For presentation of data by "Race Alone," respondents who checked only one race are presented in that race category and respondents who checked more than one race are presented in a category labeled, "Two or more races." The categories are mutually exclusive, and the resulting tabulations should sum to the total population count.
Presentation Categories for the 1997 OMB Standard, "Race Alone" Presentation Method
- American Indian or Alaska Native
- Asian
- Black or African-American
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
- White
- Two or more races
Table 1: 2008 U.S. Census Bureau New Mexico Population Estimates by "Race Alone"
Race Alone | Population Estimates |
|---|---|
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone | 192,235 |
| Asian alone | 27,884 |
| Black or African American alone | 59,009 |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone | 2,854 |
| White alone | 1,666,790 |
| Two or more races | 35,584 |
| TOTAL | 1,984,356 |
| Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program,
Downloaded from http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff on June 22, 2009 Note: The figures in this table are from the U.S. Census Bureau. They have been used here for illustration of race presentation concepts. For presentation of health data, the New Mexico Department of Health uses population estimates produced by the University of New Mexico's Geospatial and Population Studies (GPS) Program. The GPS estimates are available on the NM-IBIS query system. | |
Table 2: 2008 U.S. Census Bureau New Mexico Population Estimates by "Race Alone" and Hispanic Ethnicity
Race Alone | Hispanic or Latino | Not Hispanic or Latino | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone | 20,620 | 171,615 | 192,235 |
| Asian alone | 3,412 | 24,472 | 27,884 |
| Black or African American alone | 16,426 | 42,583 | 59,009 |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone | 1,477 | 1,377 | 2,854 |
| White alone | 838,553 | 828,237 | 1,666,790 |
| Two or more races | 10,525 | 25,059 | 35,584 |
| TOTAL | 891,013 | 1,093,343 | 1,984,356 |
| Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program,
Downloaded from http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff on June 22, 2009 Note: The figures in this table are from the U.S. Census Bureau. They have been used here for illustration of race presentation concepts. For presentation of health data, the New Mexico Department of Health uses population estimates produced by the University of New Mexico's Geospatial and Population Studies (GPS) Program. The GPS estimates are available on the NM-IBIS query system. | |||
◊ Presentation of Health Data by "Race Alone or in Combination"
For presentation of data by "Race Alone or in Combination," respondents who checked only one race are presented in that race category and respondents who checked more than one race are presented in EACH of the race categories that were checked. Because a multi-racial individual is presented in more than one race category, the categories are not mutually exclusive, and the resulting tabulations will sum to a figure that is greater than the total population count.
Presentation Categories for the "Race Alone or in Combination" Presentation Method
- American Indian or Alaska Native Alone or in Combination
- Asian Alone or in Combination
- Black or African-American Alone or in Combination
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander Alone or in Combination
- White Alone or in Combination
Table 3: 2008 U.S. Census Bureau New Mexico Population Estimates by "Race Alone or in Combination"
| Race Alone or in Combination | Population Estimates (1) |
|---|---|
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination with one or more other races | 211,178 |
| Asian alone or in combination with one or more other races | 37,715 |
| Black or African American alone or in combination with one or more other races | 69,336 |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone or in combination with one or more other races | 4,820 |
| White alone or in combination with one or more other races | 1,699,167 |
| TOTAL | 1,984,356 |
| Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program,
Downloaded from http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff on June 22, 2009 (1) The estimates do not sum to the total. (Individuals may be counted in more than one row.) Note: The figures in this table are from the U.S. Census Bureau. They have been used here for illustration of race presentation concepts. For presentation of health data, the New Mexico Department of Health uses population estimates produced by the University of New Mexico's Geospatial and Population Studies (GPS) Program. The GPS estimates are available on the NM-IBIS query system. | |
In addition, Census 2000 also provided 63 categories for race, including both single race categories (e.g., "White alone," "Asian alone"), and all possible combinations of the multirace categories (e.g., "American Indian and White," "Asian and White," "Black or African American and White," "American Indian or Alaska Native and Black or African American," etc.).
2. Bridged Race Estimates
Data collected using the 1997 standard are not directly comparable to those that were collected using the prior, 1977, standard. To permit trend analysis, a methodology was developed to "bridge" population estimates that were collected using the 1997 standard back to the categories used in the 1977 standard. The bridging methodology (5) applies a statistical model to individuals' responses that were collected using the 1997 standaard and converts those responses to what they may have said had they been using the old single race categories from the 1977 standard. This presents yet another option for presentation of race data that were collected using the 1997 OMB standard, known as the "bridged race" method.
Table 4: 2010 New Mexico Population Estimates by Bridged Race and Hispanic Ethnicity
| Race | Hispanic or Latino | Not Hispanic or Latino | Total, Hispanic and non-Hispanic Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 39,528 | 181,611 | 221,139 |
| Asian or Pacific Islander | 7,632 | 30,716 | 38,347 |
| Black or African American | 16,048 | 42,190 | 58,239 |
| White | 897,601 | 849,844 | 1,747,445 |
| Total, All Races | 960,809 | 1,104,363 | 2,065,171 |
| Source: University of New Mexico, Geospatial and Population Studies (GPS) Program. | |||
3. NMDOH Guidelines for Presentation of Health Data by Race and Ethnicity
The New Mexico Department of Health has defined state standards for presentation of Race and Ethnicity. Data systems in New Mexico collect race and ethnicity data using the 1997 OMB standard, but for the purposes of presentation, race and ethnicity are presented together using the following five major categories/labels:
Presentation Categories for the NMDOH Race and Ethnicity Presentation Standard
- American Indian or Alaska Native
- Asian or Pacific Islander
- Black or African American
- Hispanic
- White
Table 5: 2011 GPS New Mexico Population Estimates by Race and Ethnicity
Race/Ethnicity | Population Estimates |
|---|---|
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 222,514 |
| Asian or Pacific Islander | 38,609 |
| Black or African American | 58,616 |
| Hispanic | 902,478 |
| White | 861,508 |
| TOTAL | 2,083,725 |
| Source: University of New Mexico, Geospatial and Population Studies (GPS) Program. Downloaded from the NM-IBIS query system on March 29, 2013. | |
The New Mexico presentation standard uses the estimates by bridged race and Hispanic ethnicity. Presentation of race and ethnicity will be done together in the same table. Race/ethnicity will be presented as a single social and cultural construct. Persons designated as Hispanic ethnicity, regardless of race, will be categorized as 'Hispanic.' Persons not designated as Hispanic will be categorized by their single race ('Black or African American,' 'American Indian or Alaska native,' 'Asian or Pacific Islander,' 'White,' or 'Other'). For more information, please see the NMDOH Race and Ethnicity Presentation Standards.
4. Deciding How to Present Race and Ethnicity
Decision Tree for How to Present New Mexico Health Data by Race and Ethnicity
References
1. Jones CP. Levels of racism: a theoretic framework and a gardener's tale. AJPH 2000; 90:1212-1215. As cited in Guidelines for Using Racial and Ethnic Groupings in Data Analyses. Washington State Department of Health, Revised April 2010.
2. Race Relations: Intercultural Skills-Building Resources and Tutorials. Downloaded from http://racerelations.about.com/od/skillsbuildingresources/Intercultural_SkillsBuilding_Resources_and_Tutorials.htm on June 26, 2009.
3. Federal Register Notice October 30, 1997, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET. Revisions to the Standards for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity. Downloaded from http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg_1997standards/ on June 22, 2009.
4. Federal Register 7/9/97, Part II. Pages 36873-36946. OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET, Recommendations from the Interagency Committee for the Review of the Racial and Ethnic Standards to the Office of Management and Budget Concerning Changes to the Standards for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity. Downloaded from http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg/directive_15.html#chap3 on June 22, 2009.
5. The Bridge Report: Tabulation Options for Trend Analysis. Downloaded from http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/information_and_regulatory_affairs/re_app-ctables.pdf on June 22, 2009.