Fostering the Sociopolitical Development of African American and Latinx Adolescents to Analyze and Challenge Racial and Economic Inequality

Abstract

Sociopolitical development refers to the processes by which an individual acquires the knowledge, skills, and commitment to analyze and challenge oppressive social forces. A growing body of scholarship reports that high levels of sociopolitical development are predictive in adolescents of a number of key outcomes including resilience and civic engagement. The present study explored the role that urban secondary schools can play in fostering adolescents’ sociopolitical development through a longitudinal, mixed-methods investigation of more than 400 adolescents attending “progressive” and “no-excuses” high schools. Analyses revealed that, on average, students attending progressive high schools demonstrated meaningful growth in their ability to critically analyze racial and economic inequality, while students attending no-excuses high schools demonstrated meaningful growth in their motivation to challenge these inequities through activism. Qualitative interviews offered insight into youth’s perceptions of the programming and practices at their respective schools that contributed to their sociopolitical development.

Black Adolescents’ Critical Reflection Development: Parents’ Racial Socialization and Attributions About Race Achievement Gaps

“…Critical reflection development, as well as the larger CC process, is not a destination, but rather is a multidirectional process that changes over time. These developmental changes were highlighted by Seider et al.’s () longitudinal research on Latinx and Black youths’ CC development. In that study, students who attended more progressive high schools evinced more growth in their critical racial and economic reflection across the high school years, whereas youth who attended “no‐excuses” high schools demonstrated more growth in their motivation to challenge these inequities through activism.…”

The Development of Critical Consciousness and its Relation to Academic Achievement in Adolescents of Color

“…This study drew upon data collected as part of a larger mixed‐methods investigation of the development of adolescents’ critical consciousness of racial and economic injustice (Seider et al, , , ).…”

A Developmental-Science Perspective on Social Inequality

“…Providing opportunities for analysis and reflection on the sources and consequences of social inequalities may help children and adolescents develop a critical understanding of the social, economic, and political systems that they are a part of (Seider et al, 2020). For example, research on family racial-ethnic socialization indicates that conversations about discrimination can contribute to adolescents’ structural explanations for social inequalities (e.g., systemic racism; Bañales et al, 2019).…”