Theory and measurement of foreigner objectification

This chapter investigates the phenomenon of foreigner objectification, or the labeling (implicit or otherwise) of members of racial/ ethnic minority groups as foreigners regardless of citizenship, migration status, or length of residence. As the majority of research on foreigner objectification has emerged out of the United States, the chapter focuses on the foreigner objectification experiences of two rapidly growing US racial/ ethnic groups: Latinos/ as and Asian Americans. It first contextualizes foreigner objectification within the larger literature on attitudes toward racial/ ethnic minority groups. It then discusses how foreigner objectification has been measured in psychological research and examines the limited but growing literature on the association between foreigner objectification and mental and physical health.