Relation of Racial Identity Attitudes to Self-Actualization and Affective States of Black Students

The relation between racial identity attitudes derived from Cross's (1971) model of psychological nigrescence, or black self-actualization, and various affective states hypothesized to be relevant to the racial identification process were investigated through multiple regression analysis. Subje...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of counseling psychology 1985-07, Vol.32 (3), p.431-440
Main Authors: Parham, Thomas A, Helms, Janet E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Black People
Differential and comparative psychology
Emotional States
Ethnic Identity
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Human
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Racial Identity
Self-Actualization
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Summary:The relation between racial identity attitudes derived from Cross's (1971) model of psychological nigrescence, or black self-actualization, and various affective states hypothesized to be relevant to the racial identification process were investigated through multiple regression analysis. Subjects were 166 black university students. Both prowhite-antiblack (preencounter) and problack-antiwhite (immersion) attitudes were associated with greater personal distress as indicated by negative relations between these attitudes and mentally healthy self-actualizing tendencies and by positive relations to feelings of inferiority, anxiety, and hostility. Awakening black identity (encounter attitudes) was positively related to self-actualization tendencies and negatively related to feelings of inferiority and anxiety. The possibility that cognitive and affective components of racial identity attitudes may evolve via different models is explored. Implications for future research and recommendations for delivery of psychological services to black populations are discussed.
ISSN:0022-0167
1939-2168
DOI:10.1037/0022-0167.32.3.431