This study investigated the relation of hostility to a combination of low socioeconomic status (SES) and minority group membership. The frustration-aggression hypothesis was employed as a theoretical referent, and it was hypothesized that the increased frustration of minority group membership in addition to low SES, would produce more manifestations of hostility than would be observed in majority group members of similar class levels. It was further hypothesized that tendencies to give a "good impression" would relate negatively to manifest hostility and extrapunitive tendencies while relating positively to intropunitiveness and impunitive expressions. 81 Spanish-American and non-Spanish White delinquents on probation served as subjects. All subjects were administered the Siegel Manifest Hostility scale, the Social Desirability scale derived by Edwards, the Rosenzweig Picture-Frustration Study, and the Lie scale from the MMPI. Significant negative correlations were found between the Social Desirability scale and the Siegel Manifest Hostility scale, and the extrapunitive scores from the Rosenzweig Picture-Frustration Study. Significant positive correlations were obtained between the Social Desirability scale and the measures of intropunitiveness and impunitiveness. Once the hostility means were adjusted to remove the effects of social desirability, significance was obtained between the groups on the Manifest Hostility scale. The Spanish-American male group was shown to manifest significantly greater hostility on this measure than any other group, thus partially supporting the main hypothesis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)