Study shows that overweight Asian-Americans are viewed as more “American”

According to a study by the Association for Psychological Science, being overweight can affect how “American” Asians look.

The study surveyed 1,200 participants who were shown photos of men who were white, black, Latino, or Asian.

These photos were doctored to make them look both average and overweight to see how the participants perceived their immigrant status.

The results showed that overweight Asians were viewed as more “American” and less likely viewed as being illegal or undocumented immigrants.

“We found that there was a paradoxical social benefit for Asian-Americans, where extra weight allows them to be seen as more American and less likely to face prejudice directed at those assumed to be foreign.”

— Sapna Cheryan, author of study

Interestingly, people of white, black, or Latino descent didn’t see the same results as Asians.

“Asian-Americans but not white, black, or Latino Americans are associated with foreign countries that are not seen as stereotypically overweight, which enables greater weight to signal an American identity.”

— Authors of study

Source: The New York Times