Since first contact with Europeans, Native American nations have strived to maintain and strengthen their sovereignty. Yet, non-Native individuals and groups, as well as federal, state, and local governments, continue to challenge this sovereignty. Despite the critical importance of sovereignty, the only academic study focused on U.S. public attitudes toward Native nation sovereignty predated the rise of Native nation gaming and relied on samples from three universities. In our study, we surveyed over 2000 White Americans from across the United States to examine attitudes toward Native nation sovereignty. Of the many factors that may influence these attitudes, we focused on three: belief in “the casino Indian” stereotype, the perception that Native American interests conflict with the interests of Whites, and the presence of Native nation gaming in participants’ states.

We find two significant models predicting attitudes towards Native nation sovereignty. First, greater endorsement of the casino Indian stereotype is associated with more negative attitudes toward Native nation sovereignty. This relationship is explained, at least in part, by the perception that Native American interests conflict with the interests of Whites. That is, the more White participants endorsed the casino Indian sterereotype, the more apt they were to believe that their interests conflict with Native Americans, which in turn is related to more negative attitudes towards Native nation sovereignty. The second model revealed that the presence of Native nation gaming in the participant’s state has important indirect implications for attitudes towards Native nation sovereignty. Specifically, White participants living in states with Native nation gaming are more likely to endorse the casino Indian stereotype, which is related to greater perceived conflict of interest with Native Americans, and, ultimately perceived conflict of interest is associated with more negative attitudes toward Native nation sovereignty. We situate our findings relative to group position theory and discuss practical implications for Native nation sovereignty.

自与欧洲人首次接触以来，美洲原住民国家一直努力维护和加强其主权。但是，非本地个人和团体，以及联邦，州和地方政府，仍在挑战这一主权。尽管主权具有至关重要的意义，但唯一以美国公众对土著民族主权的态度为重点的学术研究早于土著民族博弈的兴起，并依赖于三所大学的样本。在我们的研究中，我们调查了来自美国各地的2000多位美国白人，以研究他们对土著民族主权的态度。在可能影响这些态度的众多因素中，我们集中于三个方面：对“赌场印第安人”刻板印象的信念，对美国原住民利益与白人利益冲突的看法，

我们发现两个重要的模型可以预测对土著民族主权的态度。首先，对赌场印度人刻板印象的更多支持与对土著民族主权的更多消极态度有关。这种关系至少部分是由于人们认为美洲印第安人的利益与白人的利益相冲突。就是说，白人参与者越认可赌场的印度定型观念，就越容易相信自己的利益与美洲原住民发生冲突，这又与对土著民族主权的消极态度有关。第二种模型表明，参与者国家中存在的土著民族博弈对土著民族主权的态度具有重要的间接影响。特别，生活在具有土著民族博弈的州中的白人参与者更有可能认可赌场印度人的刻板印象，这与人们与土著美国人的更大利益冲突有关，最终，人们感知到的利益冲突与对土著民族主权的更多消极态度有关。我们将我们的发现与群体地位理论相关，并讨论对土著民族主权的实际影响。