AbstractsAnthropology

This research was conducted in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. A sociometric test was given to 40 boys and 49 girls, who comprised three multiracial groups - Cubs and Brownies. This test was designed to show the degree of social interaction among racial subgroups. Results showed that the boys’ group tended toward racial self-preference; whereas, the girls' choices were fairly well distributed, although most were directed to the most prestigious subgroup. The mothers of these children (N=68) were also interviewed to elicit their views on Trinidadian race relations. Three major findings emerged: (1) the urban situation has tended to erase the acute rivalry among racial groups which may still exist in the rural areas; (2) politics in recent years have increased the rift between the East Indians and the Negroes, and between the Whites and the Negroes; (3) within all the racial categories, social class is a more important variable than racial origin in influencing interpersonal interaction.