Native American youth face a number of challenges that affect their academic success and mental health (Center for Native American Youth, 2016). One way in which Native American youth currently face prejudice within the school system is through curriculum (Yosso, 2002). More specifically, Native American youth are often presented with textbooks that include stereotyped and distorted information about their peoples' history (Loewen, 1995; Sanchez, 2007). However, there is currently a gap in the literature showing whether or not these textbooks also contain microaggressive statements towards Native Americans. The current study looked at 5 Eighth Grade level Montana history texts from around the state to explore two research questions. The first-are there microaggressions in history textbooks used across the state, and the second-if there are microaggressions, what are those themes? Results of this study found that microaggressions were present in textbooks used in Eighth Grade textbooks in Montana. Microaggressions found in these books included 96 microinvalidations, 54 microinsults, and 11 microassaults. Furthermore, the themes of these microaggressive statements expanded beyond Sanchez's (2007) original themes. In turn, this section further discusses the results of this study as well as the possible implications, directions for future research, and suggestions for school psychologists.
Previous research on the risk factors for the development of mental health disorders among Indigenous Peoples in the United States suggest that experiencing prejudice is correlated with the development of psychopathology. However, the relation between school‐based prejudice, including microaggressions, and the development of depression remains unexamined. As such, the current study is an exploratory analysis among a small sample (N = 47) of age 18–25 Indigenous young adults from the American Northwest examining the predictive relation between their retrospective recall of school‐based racial microaggressions as measured by the School‐Based Racial and Ethnic Microaggressions Subscale and their current levels of depressive symptoms in adulthood as measured by the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. There was a statistically significant predictive relation found between participant's retrospective recall of microaggressions and their current levels of depression as young adults. As such, the practice and policy implications for school‐based professionals are discussed.
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