The confluence of race, gender, and class among community college students: Assessing attitudes toward affirmative action in college admissions

This article examines the attitudes of baccalaureate aspiring community college students with regard to affirmative action in college admissions. Using data from UCLA's Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Annual Freshman Year Survey, the study assessed determinants of approval or disapproval of affirmative action for 20,339 community college students. Because students in traditionally disadvantaged groups (e.g., first-generation, racial/ethnic minorities, female, and low-income) are overrepresented at the community college, critical theoretical perspectives concerning social mobility and self-interest were utilized to guide the study. The findings indicate that race/ethnicity and political views were significant predictors of affirmative action attitudes for males and females. The impact of family income and transfer intent significantly contributed to male support for abolishing affirmative action. Age yielded a significant association for support of affirmative action as reported by older African American and white students.