Audit study

A type of study used in economics, sociology, political science, and psychology, an audit study is one in which trained employees of the researcher ("auditors") are matched on all characteristics except the one being tested for discrimination.[1] These auditors then apply for a service, be it a job, financial advice regarding their stock portfolio,[2] housing, or a credit card, to test for discrimination.[3]

Applications

Audit studies have been conducted to test the existence of discrimination in numerous occupations and services and in regards to multiple characteristics. For example, studies have been conducted to measure discrimination against racial minorities by real estate agents,[4] as well as gender discrimination against women applying for restaurant jobs.[5] Most employment-related audit studies have focused on overqualified college students applying for low-paying jobs during the summer.[6] They have also been used to measure racial and gender discrimination in academia,[7] racial discrimination in the low[8] and high[9] ends of the labor market, and racial/ethnic discrimination in roommate selection.[10]

Criticism

Audit studies have been criticized because the auditors may look different to employers, and this may result in the appearance of discrimination when employers were really just making decisions based on appearance.[11] The other limitations of these studies, according to their critics, include that they are unable to audit jobs found through interactions with other people directly, only those found through newspapers.[6] Additionally, others have noted the lack of standardization of signals (primarily names) to indicate race through correspondence (e.g. resumes, emails, etc.).[12][13]

References
  1. Gaddis, S. Michael, ed. (2018). Audit Studies: Behind the Scenes with Theory, Method, and Nuance. Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-71153-9. ISBN 978-3-319-71152-2.
  2. Mullainathan, Sendhil; Noeth, Markus; Schoar, Antoinette (March 2012). "The Market for Financial Advice: An Audit Study". NBER Working Paper No. 17929. doi:10.3386/w17929.
  3. Fix, Michael; Struyk, Raymond J., eds. (1993). Clear and Convincing Evidence: Measurement of Discrimination in America. Urban Institute Press.
  4. Page, Marianne (September 1995). "Racial and Ethnic Discrimination in Urban Housing Markets: Evidence from a Recent Audit Study". Journal of Urban Economics. 38 (2): 183–206. doi:10.1006/juec.1995.1028.
  5. Neumark, D.; Bank, R. J.; Van Nort, K. D. (1 August 1996). "Sex Discrimination in Restaurant Hiring: An Audit Study" (PDF). The Quarterly Journal of Economics. 111 (3): 915–941. doi:10.2307/2946676. JSTOR 2946676.
  6. Heckman, James J. (Spring 1998). "Detecting Discrimination". The Journal of Economic Perspectives. 12 (2): 101–116. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.371.4425. doi:10.1257/jep.12.2.101. JSTOR 2646964.
  7. Milkman, K. L.; Akinola, M.; Chugh, D. (21 May 2012). "Temporal Distance and Discrimination: An Audit Study in Academia". Psychological Science. 23 (7): 710–717. doi:10.1177/0956797611434539. PMID 22614463.
  8. Pager, D. (March 2003). "The Mark of a Criminal Record". American Journal of Sociology. 108 (5): 937–975. doi:10.1086/374403.
  9. Gaddis, S. M. (June 2015). "Discrimination in the Credential Society: An Audit Study of Race and College Selectivity in the Labor Market". Social Forces. 93 (4): 1451–1479. doi:10.1093/sf/sou111.
  10. Gaddis, S. Michael, and Raj Ghoshal, 2020 "Searching for a Roommate: A Correspondence Audit Examining Racial/Ethnic and Immigrant Discrimination among Millennials," Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World, 6:1-16.
  11. Neumark, David (2012). "Detecting Discrimination in Audit and Correspondence Studies". Journal of Human Resources. 47 (4): 1128–1157. doi:10.3368/jhr.47.4.1128. hdl:10419/46132.
  12. Gaddis, S. Michael (2017). "How Black Are Lakisha and Jamal? Racial Perceptions from Names Used in Correspondence Audit Studies". Sociological Science. 4: 469–489. doi:10.15195/v4.a19.
  13. Gaddis, S. Michael (2017). "Racial/Ethnic Perceptions from Hispanic Names: Selecting Names to Test for Discrimination". Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World. 3: 237802311773719. doi:10.1177/2378023117737193.
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