Skin-tone based social stratification has been characterized as an enduring part of the U.S. racial landscape (Hunter, 2002). Despite the plethora of research that examines the racial disparities in education (e.g., Reardon & Portilla, 2015), and an emerging literature finding that lighter skin-tones are associated with higher educational attainment among adults (Hunter, 2002) few studies have examined whether similar processes emerge during early childhood. Thus, grounded in Garcia Coll and colleagues’ (1996) integrative model, we tested whether skin-tone predicted children’s academic achievement, and whether these relations were modified by children’s ethnic-racial identification (i.e., positive ethnic-racial attitudes and centrality). Consistent with expectations, darker skin-tones were associated with lower math scores. Positive attitudes did not significantly moderate the relation between skin-tone and academic achievement. However, contrary to our hypothesis, high levels of ethnic racial centrality strengthened the association between skin-tone and academic achievement. Conclusions: These findings contribute to the literature by providing evidence for the early development of within race skin-tone based disparities in academic achievement and underscoring the need for further exploration of ethnic racial identification as protective or risk factors in the positive development of minority children.

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Using a transactional framework, this study explored social relationships in the classroom as mediators of the association between ethnic-racial identity and academic outcomes. Participants were 101 5th graders of diverse backgrounds who completed computer-based questionnaires about their friendships, ethnic-racial identity, and academic engagement. Teachers reported on closeness and conflict in the student-teacher relationship. Relationships in the expected direction were evident between the public regard and centrality dimensions of ethnic-racial identity and social relationships as well as with academic outcomes. Further, path analyses revealed that the relationship between the public regard and cognitive engagement was mediated by student-teacher closeness. Gender differences were evident for pathways to grades; such that for boys’ public regard was indirectly related to their language arts grades through cognitive engagement. The current study highlighted the varied effects of ethnic-racial identity and classroom relationships’ on academic outcomes particularly for boys.

As the student body in the United States continues to become more diverse, it is critically important to understand the factors that influence African American and Latinx students’ engagement, including what they bring to the classroom, and their perceptions of what is occurring in the classroom. During early adolescence, youth are making meaning and internalizing the proximal influences their classrooms have on their sense of self and subsequent academic outcomes. Among school variables, teaching quality accounts for some amount of variation in student achievement. This dissertation project explored whether there were gender differences among 205 middle school students’ perceptions of classroom practices. The study also assessed whether differences in boys’ and girls’ perceptions of classroom practices had different influences on their self-systems (e.g., components of ethnic-racial identity and social efficacy with teacher), and classroom engagement. Study results suggest that boys and girls rate similar exposure to social-emotional classroom practices from their teachers, however invariance tests demonstrate these practices have different meanings for boys and girls. In addition, results indicate that exposure to social-emotional classroom practices is affirming for components of boys’ ethnic-racial identity, such as their racial centrality, public regard, and private regard, which in turn predicted higher classroom engagement. Whereas for girls, classroom practices only affirmed their private regard which in turn predicted higher classroom engagement. Social efficacy with one’s teacher did not mediate the association between classroom practices and classroom engagement as previously hypothesized for neither girls nor boys. This study also found that girls’ grade level was an important covariate in the model, which implies there are important developmental considerations in the dynamic relationship between the classroom context and students’ self-systems. Findings from this study suggest some important implications for policy and curricula development around teacher training and teaching practices that enhance academic and social outcomes for students of color. In particular, practices that encourage collaboration and sharing of ideas and knowledge among African and Latinx students are both developmentally, and culturally responsive for students’ sense of self and engagement in class.

abstract: This study addresses conflicting findings regarding gender differences in the moderating role of ethnic private regard in the longitudinal association between school ethnic discrimination and educational values among Latina/o early adolescents. Participants included 689 Latina/o early adolescents in middle school (Mage = 12.06, SD = .98 at Time 1; Mage = 12.66, SD = 1.00 at Time 2). Two waves of data were collected approximately eight months apart. Ethnic private regard moderated the association between school ethnic discrimination at time 1 and educational values at time 2 only among Latino male early adolescents, such that the negative association between school ethnic discrimination and educational values existed only for males with high ethnic private regard. Implications highlight the need to enhance teachers’ cultural competency in working with Latino male students. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Counseling Psychology 2016

abstract: Neighborhoods are important aspects of the adolescent and family ecology. Cultural developmental perspectives posit that neighborhood environments contain both promoting and inhibiting characteristics for ethnic-racial minoritized populations (García Coll et al., 1996). Historically, neighborhood researchers have approached Latino neighborhoods from a deficit perspective. Thus, there is limited research about how Latino neighborhoods support Latino youth development and family processes. In my dissertation, I examine both the promoting and inhibiting aspects of Latino identified neighborhoods for adolescent development. In study 1, I prospectively examined a model in which Mexican-origin parents’ perceptions of social and cultural resources in neighborhoods may support parents to engage in higher levels of cultural socialization and, in turn, promote adolescents’ ethnic-racial identity (ERI). Findings suggest neighborhood social and cultural cohesion in late childhood promoted middle adolescents’ ERI affirmation via intermediate increases in maternal cultural socialization. Similar patterns were observed for ERI resolution, but only for adolescents whose mothers were born in the United States. Findings have critical implications for how neighborhoods support parents’ cultural socialization practices and adolescents’ ERI. In study 2, I used a convergent mixed methods research design to compare and contrast researchers’ neighborhood assessments collected using systematic social observations (e.g., physical disorder, sociocultural symbols) with adolescents’ qualitative neighborhood assessments collected by semi-structured interviews with Mexican-origin adolescents. Using quantitative methods, I found that researchers observed varying degrees of physical disorder, physical decay, street safety, and sociocultural symbols across adolescents’ neighborhood environments. Using qualitative methods, I found that adolescents observed these same neighborhood features about half the time, but also that they often layered additional meaning on top of distinct neighborhood features. Using mixed methods I found that, in the context of high spatial concordance, there was a high degree of overlap between researchers and adolescents in terms of agreement on the presence of physical disorder, physical decay, street safety, and sociocultural symbols. Lastly, adolescents often expanded upon these neighborhood environmental features, especially with references to positive and negative affect and resources. Overall, findings from study 2 underscore the importance using mixed methods to address the shared and unique aspects of researchers’ objectivity and adolescents’ phenomenology. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Family and Human Development 2020

The current study examined how multiple dimensions of ethnic-racial identity (ERI) were associated with alcohol use and alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms and how these relations varied by individuals’ ethnic-racial group among 1850 diverse emerging adults (M = 18.46, SD = .38). Further, measurement invariance of the Ethnic Identity Scale-Brief (EIS-B) was tested across Latinx, White, Black, Asian, and Multiracial students. Additionally, alternative models were examined that tested whether family factors (i.e., parent education and family history of alcohol problems) moderated the relations between ERI and alcohol problems to further examine nuances in these relations. Results indicated that the EIS-B functioned differently across White students and students of color; therefore, all research questions were tested separately for White students. Findings indicated that there were significant differences by race/ethnicity. ERI affirmation was negatively associated with AUD symptoms for Asian individuals and Black individuals. ERI exploration was positively associated with AUD symptoms among Black individuals. ERI resolution was negatively associated with alcohol use for Latinx individuals and positively associated with alcohol use for Multiracial individuals. For White individuals, ERI exploration was negatively associated with alcohol use and ERI affirmation was negatively associated with AUD symptoms. Regarding the alternative models, parent education was a significant moderator, such that at high parent education, ERI resolution predicted more alcohol use among White students and less AUD symptoms among Minority students. Family history of alcohol problems was not a significant moderator of any relations between ERI dimensions and alcohol problems. Overall, continued research and finding ways to translate findings into interventions with college students that incorporate these nuanced mechanisms underlying alcohol problems is a fruitful and important endeavor.

Thesis advisor: Belle Liang / Ethnic racial identity (ERI) is a developmental model that recognizes that individuals with an ethnicity (e.g., Jamaican, Puerto Rican) and race (e.g., Black, White) will have attitudes, beliefs, and actions influenced by their ethnic and racial group membership which represents an important aspect of their identity (Umana-Taylor et al., 2014). Research on people of Color (POC) who positively identify with their own ethnic and/or racial group and academic outcomes has been mixed, with studies documenting no associations (Guzman, 2002; Ivory, 2003), negative associations (Sellers, Chavous, & Cooke, 1998), and positive associations (Rivas-Drake, Seaton et al., 2014). Moreover, there remains little research on examining the underlying mechanisms explaining the link between ethnic and/or racial identity and student engagement. Research in related fields suggests several potential mechanisms that may help explain the relationship between ERI and student engagement. For example, Sumner and colleagues (2018) posited that marginalization experiences likely shape youth purpose; POC, given their marginalization experiences, may be more purposeful than non-POC. Additionally, research suggests that positive feelings towards one’s ethnic or racial group are associated with positive mental health outcomes (Rivas-Drake, Syed et al., 2014) which in turn are associated with student engagement. The current study investigates the underlying mechanisms for the relationship between ERI and student engagement. Specifically, the study examined associations between either an assimilation (i.e., attitudes in which individuals define identities in nationalistic rather than ethnonationalist terms) or multiculturalist inclusive (i.e., positive attitude towards one’s ethnic-racial group as well as other ethnic-racial groups) ERI status and student engagement. Path analysis was employed to test the mediating role of purpose and mental health on the relationship between ERI and student engagement. The study also examined whether the relationship between ERI and mental health was different across ethnic-racial groups. The results indicate that ERI status was not directly related to mental health. Nor was ERI status indirectly related to student engagement through mental health. However, ERI status was directly related to purpose and indirectly related to self-regulation through purpose. Further, the association between ERI status and mental health differed across ethnic-racial groups. That is, ERI status, both assimilation and multiculturalist inclusive, was more highly associated with psychological wellbeing for POCs than for non-POCs. For White students, there was a positive association between a multiculturalist inclusive ERI status and depression. Youth purpose may explain additional relationships between ERI status and other outcomes. Implications of these findings for research, assessment, and intervention are discussed. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2021. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology.

No description available.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento CientÃfico e TecnolÃgico / A presente dissertaÃÃo derivou da pesquisa âCultura LÃdica e ProduÃÃo de Identidades nas PrÃticas Educativas da InfÃnciaâ, da qual integrei a equipe de pesquisa, e tem por objetivo refletir sobre o papel das prÃticas lÃdicas na elaboraÃÃo dos referenciais identitÃrios Ãtnico-raciais em crianÃas da EducaÃÃo Infantil. Os Estudos Culturais, a teoria da complexidade, a abordagem antropolÃgica e sÃcio-histÃrica do jogo foram as referÃncias teÃricas a partir das quais foi configurada e analisada a problemÃtica em questÃo. A metodologia adotada aliou uma abordagem de cunho etnogrÃfico com procedimentos de intervenÃÃo com os quais procurou favorecer as condiÃÃes de expressÃo e elaboraÃÃo de sentidos que os sujeitos atribuÃam Ãs situaÃÃes vivenciadas. Tais interaÃÃes, protagonizadas por alunos de uma classe de jardim II de uma escola pÃblica municipal, foram registradas em vÃdeo e fotos, bem como em diÃrio de campo. As expressÃes a partir das atividades de contaÃÃo de histÃrias, teatro de fantoches e construÃÃo de histÃrias a partir de imagens demonstraram a constituiÃÃo de um referencial negativo relacionado Ãs personagens negras, apesar da cuidadosa seleÃÃo do material, escolhidos em papÃis afirmativos e valorizados positivamente. O fenÃtipo como fator determinante na exclusÃo, assim como o silenciamento da crianÃa negra foram evidenciados na dinÃmica de relaÃÃes do grupo em contraste com o protagonismo nas atividades, visibilidade e papel de porta voz do grupo observados nos comportamentos das crianÃas brancas. NÃo obstante duas crianÃas negras atuaram de forma positiva e auto-afirmada em papÃis de lideranÃa e resistÃncia à exclusÃo a despeito dos referenciais negativos que as circundam. As atividades lÃdicas de carÃter livre mostraram-se mais favorÃveis aos processos de reelaboraÃÃo de sentidos do que aquelas de carÃter dirigido. A elaboraÃÃo dos referenciais identitÃrios Ãtnico-raciais ocorreu e pode ser percebida na tomada de atitudes e na flexibilizaÃÃo de papÃis na dinÃmica de relaÃÃes do grupo, oportunizada, principalmente, pela reversibilidade de papÃis, coerÃncia ao objetivo interno à atividade, e a flexibilidade de sentidos; especificidades do contexto lÃdico. / This work derived from the research "Playful Culture and Production of Practical Identities in the Educative ones of Infancy", of which I integrated the research team, and has for objective to reflect on the paper of practical the playful ones in the elaboration of ethnic-racial the identification parameters in children of the Infantile Education.The Cultural Studies, the theory of the complexity, the anthropologic and partner-historical boarding of the game had been the theoretical references from which were configured and analyzed the problematic one in question. The adopted methodology united a boarding of ethnographyc matrix with intervention procedures with which it looked for to favor the conditions of expression and elaboration of felt that the citizens they attributed to the lived deeply situations. Such interactions, carried out for pupils of a classroom of garden II of a municipal public school, had been registered in video and photos, as well as in daily of field. The expressions from the activities of narration of histories, theater of puppets and construction of histories from images had demonstrated the constitution of a negative parameter related to the black personages, despite the careful election of the material, chosen in affirmative and valued papers positively. Appearance as determinative factor in the exclusion, as well as the become speechless of the black child had been evidenced in the dynamics of relations of the group in contrast with protagonism in the activities, visibility and paper of door observed voice of the group in the behaviors of the white children. Nevertheless two black children had acted of form positive and auto-affirmed in papers of leadership and resistance to the exclusion the spite of the negative parameters that surround them. The playful activities of free character had revealed more favorable to the felt processes of rework of of that those of directed character. The elaboration of ethnic-racial the identification parameters occurred and can be perceived in the taking of attitudes and the alternation of papers in the dynamics of relations of the group, made possible, mainly, for the reversibility of papers, coherence to the internal objective to the activity, and the flexibility of directions; peculiarities of the playful context.