Ecological Factors in Human Development.

Urie Bronfenbrenner (1992) helped developmental psychologists comprehend and define "context" as a rich, thick multidimensional construct. His ecological systems theory consists of five layers, and within each layer are developmental processes unique to each layer. The four articles in this section limit the exploration of context to the three innermost systems: the individual plus micro- and macrolayers. Rather than examine both the physical features and processes, the articles tend to focus solely on processes associated with a niche. Processes explored include social identity development, social network dynamics, peer influences, and school-based friendship patterns. The works tend to extend the generalization of extant theory to the developmental experience of various minority group experiences.

Racial awakening: Epiphanies and encounters in Black racial identity.

OBJECTIVE: The current study was guided by Nigrescence theory (Cross, 1971, 1991) and explored the phenomenon of racial awakening or epiphanic experiences of Black adults. We were interested in describing the context and perceived outcomes of the epiphanies in participants' understanding of what it means to be Black. METHOD: Sixty-four adults participated in racial life narrative interviews. There was an equivalent number of men and women who participated from 4 sites: Australia, Bermuda, South Africa, and the United States. RESULTS: Findings from dimensional analysis highlight the turning points, triggers, and awakening or epiphanies in one's racial identity. Specifically, in this study racial awakening or increased awareness about the meaning of being Black was spurred by personal experiences and/or observations, education, and activism. Participants discussed increased racial activism, racial pride, and possible-selves after the process of racial awakening and continued exploration. Only 1 participant described disappointment and despair after a racial epiphany. CONCLUSIONS: Findings extend our understanding of the process in which people develop a sense of racial consciousness. Insights may help inform future researchers in terms of identifying racial awakening prototypic stories and counselors in terms of providing opportunities to assist individuals in the meaning-making process. (PsycINFO Database Record

Ethnic and racial identity during adolescence and into young adulthood: an integrated conceptualization.

Although ethnic and racial identity (ERI) are central to the normative development of youth of color, there have been few efforts to bring scholars together to discuss the theoretical complexities of these constructs and provide a synthesis of existing work. The Ethnic and Racial Identity in the 21st Century Study Group was assembled for this purpose. This article provides an overview of the interface of ERI with developmental and contextual issues across development, with an emphasis on adolescence and young adulthood. It proposes a metaconstruct to capture experiences that reflect both individuals' ethnic background and their racialized experiences in a specific sociohistorical context. Finally, it presents milestones in the development of ERI across developmental periods.

A new audience segmentation tool for African Americans: the black identity classification scale.

Many health communications target African Americans in an attempt to remediate race-based health disparities. Such materials often assume that African Americans are culturally homogeneous; however, research indicates that African Americans are heterogeneous in their attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs. The Black Identity Classification Scale (BICS) was designed as a telephone-administered tool to segment African American audiences into 16 ethnic identity types. The BICS was pretested using focus groups, telephone pretests, and a pilot study (n = 306). The final scale then was administered to 625 Black adults participating in a dietary intervention study, where it generally demonstrated good internal consistency reliability. The construct validity of the BICS also was explored by comparing participants' responses to culturally associated survey items. The distribution of the 16 BICS identity types in the intervention study is presented, as well as select characteristics for participants with core identity components. Although additional research is warranted, these findings suggest that the BICS has good psychometric properties and may be an effective tool for identifying African American audience segments.

Tailoring a fruit and vegetable intervention on ethnic identity: results of a randomized study.

OBJECTIVE: Many targeted interventions have been developed and tested with African Americans (AA); however, AAs are a highly heterogeneous group. One characteristic that varies across AAs is Ethnic Identity (EI). Little research has been conducted on how to incorporate EI into the design of health messages and programs. DESIGN: We tested whether tailoring a print-based fruit and vegetable (F & V) intervention on EI would enhance program impact. AA adults were recruited from two integrated healthcare delivery systems and then randomized to receive three newsletters focused on F & V behavior change over three months. One set of newsletters was tailored only on demographic and social cognitive variables (control condition), whereas the other (experimental condition) was additionally tailored on EI. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome for the study was F & V intake, assessed at baseline and three months later using the composite of two brief self-report frequency measures. RESULTS: A total of 560 eligible participants were enrolled, of which 468 provided complete 3-month follow-up data. The experimental group increased their daily mean F & V intake by 1.1 servings compared to .8 servings in the control group (p = .13). Afrocentric experimental group participants showed a 1.4 increase in F & V servings per day compared to a .43 servings per day increase among Afrocentric controls (p < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Although the overall between-group effects were not significant, tailoring dietary messages on ethnic identity may improve intervention impact for some AA subgroups.

Race, ethnicity, and culture in child development: contemporary research and future directions.

The editors of this special issue reflect on the current status and future directions of research on race, ethnicity, and culture in child development. Research in the special issue disentangles race, ethnicity, culture, and immigrant status, and identifies mediators of sociocultural variables on developmental outcomes. The special issue includes important research on normal development in context for ethnic and racial minority children, addresses racial and ethnic identity development, and considers intergroup processes. The methodological innovations as well as challenges of current research are highlighted. It is recommended that future research adhere to principles of cultural validity described in the text.

A daily diary study of mental health and community involvement outcomes for three Chinese American social identities.

Approximately 100 American youths of Chinese descent participated in a 14-day diary study, completing daily reports on ethnic feelings, American feelings, ethnic community involvement, and psychological well-being. Participants were divided into 4 identity orientations (Chinese, American, bicultural, or other) and then assessed for differential patterns of mental health and community involvement. Chinese-centered identities were characterized by positive well-being and positive self-esteem. However, the American-centered and bicultural groups had well-being and self-esteem levels equal to that of the Chinese-centered group. Although the measures of menial health failed to differentiate the identity categories, both the Chinese- and bicultural-centered groups showed high involvement in Chinese culture, whereas American-centered participants were, significantly less involved.