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This paper employs data from a recent national survey to offer an empirical assessment of core theoretical tenets of whiteness studies. Using survey items developed explicitly for this purpose, we analyze three specific propositions relating to whites' awareness and conception of their own racial status: the invisibility of white identity; the understanding (or lack thereof) of racial privileges; and adherence to individualistic, color-blind ideals. Consistent with whiteness theories, we find that white Americans are less aware of privilege than individuals from racial minority groups and consistently adopt color-blind, individualist ideologies. However, we also find that whites are both more connected to white identity and culture as well as more aware of the advantages of their race than many theoretical discussions suggest. We then combine these results to estimate that 15 percent of white Americans exhibit what we call 'categorical whiteness,' a consistent and uniform adherence to the theoretical tenets that are the focus of this body of theory. We conclude by suggesting that these findings provide the basis for a more nuanced, contextualized understanding of whiteness as a social phenomenon. Keywords: whiteness studies, critical race theory, survey methods, racial attitudes, race relations.

White racial identity is central to whiteness studies. In order to further explore this key concept, this research uses new national survey data to model determinants of white racial identity. This article analyzes how prejudice, views on diversity and beliefs about America impact the importance of racial identity for whites. The data I use come from the American Mosaic Project Survey, a nationally representative, telephone survey (N = 2, 081). This research adds to previous work in whiteness studies by using national survey data to measure and analyze white racial identity. This research also makes an important methodological contribution to race relations research by bringing concepts from whiteness directly into the arena of large-scale survey research. Finally, I discuss the duality of white racial identity in terms of its defensive and progressive components and the implications of this duality for future research., White racial identity is central to whiteness studies. Whiteness studies has had a renaissance in the past 20 years, and during this time there has been a renewed interest in […]