This study examined the widely reported contention that the social and intellectual development of African-American college students is nurtured better by traditionally Black collegiate institutions (TBIs) than by predominantly White collegiate institutions (PWIs). It was hypothesized that if the reported environmental effects exist, then students at TBIs ought to be more developmentally advanced than their counterparts at PWIs. Three areas of psychosocial development were examined for 250 African-American students attending the two types of institutions in the same northeastern state. The Racial Identity Attitude Scale, the Student Development Task and Lifestyle Inventory, and the Career Decision Scale were used. The results did not provide clear support for the superiority of the TBIs in facilitating the development of African-American college students. Results and implications for counseling and future research are discussed.Recently, considerable attention has been focused on the effects of college environments on certain developmental characteristics that distinguish African-American students at traditionally Black collegiate institutions from their counterparts at predominantly White collegiate institutions. Allen (1985) reported that African-American students at traditionally Black collegiate institutions display greater psychosocial adjustment, academic gains, cultural awareness and commitment, and attainment aspirations. From a cross-sectional study of African-American and White students in various college settings, Fleming (1984) concluded that African-American students at predominantly White collegiate institutions "showed evidence of intellectual stagnation in the senior year and frustrated achievement drive" (pp. xiii-xiv).A specific focus within this area of research has been minority students' social and psychological maturity. Gosman (1986, 1987) noted a high correlation between African-American students' progress and their socialization in the collegiate environment. Madrazo-Peterson and Rodriguez (1978) pointed to minority students' experience of isolation and displacement at predominantly White collegiate institutions. Hughes (1987) also has noted the de-We express appreciation to the Alumni Society of the College of Education of Pennsylvania State University for a faculty research grant, which in part supported the research reported here. We also extend thanks to Judith Thomas and cooperating faculty at Lincoln University, to Mary Anne McNally, Yvonne Terrell, and John Patrick for their thoughtful comments on an earlier draft of this article, and to Hoi K. Suen for his helpful suggestions on the data analyses.
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