We surveyed a representative sample of American adults to understand how Hispanics, Asian Americans, and African Americans prefer to identify among peers and in marketing and media.

1. 1
Culture Report Brief
October 2020

2. ThinkNow conducted a nationwide online
survey among Hispanics, African-
Americans and Asian-Americans 18 to 64
years of age to understand how they
prefer to identify themselves among
peers and in marketing and media.
Background/Methodology
Survey Method
Field Timing
303
Hispanics
Base
Size
› Online via ThinkNow Research’s
Omnibus Study
› July 2020
Methodology
Regional Coverage
› National
Screening Criteria
› 18 to 64 years of age
Base Size
› n=1,010
Hispanics
n=501
African
American
n=255
Asians
n=254

3. 35%
31%
35%
36%
38%
43%
28%
25%
26%
26%
30%
26%
14%
24%
16%
13%
9%
10%
7%
10%
8%
8%
6%
7%
5%
4%
6%
8%
5%
4%
5%
3%
4%
4%
7%
4%
3%
3%
4%
2%
2%
2%
4%
2%
4%
4%
3%
3%
When other non-Hispanics ask what
race/ethnicity you are
When other Hispanics ask what
race/ethnicity you are
When describing yourself in a casual setting
(social gathering)
When describing yourself in a professional
setting (job, interview, etc.)
To use when describing or naming all people of
Spanish or Latin American heritage in the US
For the media/companies/brands to use when
describing/naming all people of Spanish or Latin
American heritage in the US
Hispanics (N=501)
The terms “Hispanic” and “Latino/Latina” are preferred by the majority of US Latinos across
different scenarios – in particular, when they or others (i.e. media, companies) refer to this
population as a whole.
Preferred Names for Various Scenarios
Hispanics
Hispanic Latino(a)
My country
of origin
My country
of origin +
American
American
Latinx
Chicano(a)
Does not
matter
• Latinos are most likely to use their country of origin (i.e. Cuban, Mexican) when other Hispanics ask what race/ethnicity they are.

4. 43%
39%
38%
33%
38%
43%
43%
49%
9%
9%
9%
9%
4%
4%
5%
4%
1%
1%
1%
2%
5%
5%
4%
3%
That others use to describe you,
personally
That others use to describe all people
of your race/ethnicity
To use when describing or naming all
people of people of your race/ethnicity
For the media/companies/brands to
use when describing/naming
African-American (N=255)
In most situations, African-Americans are evenly split on their preference for “Black” and
“African-American.”
Black African-American American
Person of
Color
Other Does not
matter
• When it comes to the media or companies/brands referring to them as a group, however, preference is stronger for “African-Americans”.
Preferred Names for Various Scenarios
African-Americans

5. 38%
34%
32%
31%
36%
33%
34%
34%
8%
9%
8%
8%
7%
14%
12%
17%
5%
5%
9%
7%
2%
1%
3%
1%
4%
4%
3%
3%
For the media/companies/brands to use
when describing/naming
That others use to describe all people of
your race/ethnicity
That others use to describe you, personally
To use when describing or naming all
people of your race/ethnicity
Asians (N=254)
Asians are evenly split on “Asian-Americans” and “Asians.”
Asian-American Asian
My country of
origin + American
My Country
of Origin American
Does not
matter
Other
Preferred Names for Various Scenarios
Asian-Americans
• When describing all of people of their race/ethnicity, 1-in-4 prefer their country of origin (i.e. Japanese, Chinese), or country of origin +
American.

6. Participant Profile
300
Total Sample
Total Market Hispanics
African-
Americans Asians
Base size (1525) (501) (255) (254)
Female 50% 51% 47% 47%
Male 50% 48% 51% 53%
Age
18-38 46% 57% 50% 52%
39-54 34% 31% 32% 31%
55+ 20% 12% 18% 16%
Region
Northeast 18% 14% 17% 21%
Midwest 21% 9% 17% 12%
South 37% 37% 57% 23%
West 24% 40% 9% 44%
Marital Status
Single (Net) 29% 34% 43% 38%
Married or living with partner (Net) 59% 57% 37% 58%
Education
High School Grad or Less (Net) 22% 31% 29% 12%
Some College (Net) 29% 34% 36% 22%
College Grad or More (Net) 48% 34% 34% 66%
Employment & Income
Employed (Net) 69% 66% 66% 63%
Annual Household Income - Median $59K $47K $39K $80K
Acculturation Level (HispanicsOnly)
Less Acculturated - 23% - -
Bicultural - 51% - -
More Acculturated - 26% - -