The relationship between racial identity and self-esteem in African American college and high school students.

Abstract

The Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity was used to examine the relationship between racial identity and personal self-esteem (PSE) in a sample of African American college students (n = 173) and a sample of African American high school students (n = 72). Racial identity was assessed using the Centrality and Regard scales of the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity, whereas the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used to assess PSE. Riur predictions were tested: (a) racial centrality is weakly but positively related to PSE; (b) private regard is moderately related to PSE; (c) public regard is unrelated to PSE; and (d) racial centrality moderates the relationship between private regard and PSE. Multiple regression analysis found that racial centrality and public racial regard were unrelated to PSE in both samples. Private regard was positively related to PSE in the college sample. Racial centrality moderated the relationship between private regard and PSE in both samples, such that the relationship was significant for those with high levels of centrality but nonsignificant for those with low levels. At the beginning of this century, W. E. B. Dubois argued that the central problem of American society was that of the color line (Dubois, 1903). An examination of the psychological literature over the past 90 years suggests that Dubois was prophetic. Social psychology has been exploring the meaning of race in the lives of African Americans since its earliest inception. Interestingly, much of the research produced by mainstream psychology suggests that African Americans who identify strongly with being Black may be at psychological risk as a result of the stigma associated with the identity (e.g., Horowitz, 1939; Kardiner & Ovesey, 1951; Steele & Aronson, 1995). Other researchers have tended to suggest that a strong identification with one's race can serve as a protective buffer to personal self-esteem (e.g.,

Ethnic, Racial and Cultural Identity and Perceived Benefits and Barriers Related to Genetic Testing for Breast Cancer among At-Risk Women of African Descent in New York City

“…A wealth of previous research has focused on psychological aspects of African-American identity [34], including associations with self-esteem [59] and academic performance [60]. Yet, there is no clear consensus among psychological identity theorists over whether strong identification with racial group places individuals of African descent at risk for adverse effects or whether such identification serves as a protective factor which promotes resiliency against racism and discrimination [34,61,62,63].…”

Constructing a minority group identity out of shared rejection: the case of international students

“…Group identification provides individuals with a social and psychological 'place' within which they can establish a sense of meaning and identity (Simon, 1999;Spears, Jetten, & Scheepers, 2002). Minority group identification is correlated with psychological adjustment among a number of different kinds of stigmatized groups (Bat-Chava, 1994;Grossman, Wirt, & Davids, 1985;Munford, 1994;Phinney, 1990;Rowley, Sellers, Chavous, & Smith, 1998), and experimental work has found that the mere presence of similarly stigmatized others raises self-esteem and lowers depression and anxiety (Frable, Pratt, & Hoey, 1998;McKenna & Bargh, 1998). Furthermore, regardless of the ingroup's status, identification with ingroup social categories is associated with positive well-being (Branscombe & Wann, 1991).…”

Gendered Racial Identity of Black Young Women

“…Models of racial/ethnic identity were developed which suggest that individuals move from having naïve beliefs about their racial group status, holding negative feelings about their racial group, or placing low salience on race, to developing racial consciousness and a sense of pride in history, heritage, and group membership (Schwarzbaum and Thomas 2008). Positive racial identity has been found to be related to positive outcomes in African American youth, including positive self-esteem (Buckley and Carter 2005;Greene et al 2006;Rowley et al 1998;Sellers et al 2006), reduced psychological symptoms, particularly depression and anxiety (Sellers et al 2006), and higher levels of academic achievement (Altschul et al 2006;Jagers et al 1997;Wong et al 2003). Racial identity seems to serve as a buffer for acts of racism, discrimination, or prejudice (Greene et al 2006).…”