Abstract
The present study examined the influence of cognitive development in the relationship between multiple types of racial discrimination and psychological well-being. A sample of 322 African American adolescents (53% female), aged 13-18, completed measures of cognitive development, racial discrimination, self-esteem and depressive symptoms. Based on the cognitive development measure, youth were categorized as having pre-formal or formal reasoning abilities. The results indicate no significant differences in perceptions of individual, cultural or collective/institutional racism between pre-formal reasoning and formal reasoning adolescents. However, the results do suggest that perceptions of collective/institutional racism were more harmful for the self-esteem of pre-formal reasoning youth than the self-esteem of formal reasoning youth. The implications for the racial discrimination literature among African American adolescents are discussed.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 694-703 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Journal of youth and adolescence |
Volume | 39 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 2010 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Adolescents
- African Americans/Blacks
- Cognitive development
- Psychological well-being
- Racial discrimination
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Psychology
- Education
- Developmental and Educational Psychology
- Social Sciences (miscellaneous)