Integrating Racial and Ethnic Identity Research Into Developmental Understanding of Adolescents

Abstract

This article calls for a fuller integration of racial and ethnic identity (REI) as a fundamental topic of developmental research. Reviewing common, youth‐focused models of REI, it suggests the need for understanding the underlying assumptions of each when undertaking research in this domain. It then proposes that youth development research will be enhanced by further testing of the relation of REI to developmental progress in other dimensions of youth's identity and by developmentally conceptualized testing that incorporates social‐ecological perspectives. Relevant findings from studies of adolescents are used throughout to support these contentions. The article argues that new directions can promote the integration of REI research into the mainstream and inform the supports that bolster resilience for youth.

The Everyday Implications of Ethnic-Racial Identity Processes: Exploring Variability in Ethnic-Racial Identity Salience Across Situations

“…However, research on colorblindness has largely dismissed the utility of this approach (Plaut et al 2009; Richeson and Nussbaum 2004). By underscoring the psychological benefits of acknowledging and accepting the salience of ethnic-racial identity in everyday interactions with adolescents, this study adds to this accumulation of literature suggesting that ethnic-racial identity can be a positive component youth development (Lee Williams et al 2012). Further, the current study supports recent intervention efforts recognizing the importance of salience in promoting developmental processes of ethnic-racial identity (Umaña-Taylor and Douglass., in press).…”

“…As the ethnic and racial diversity of the United States continues to grow, ethnic-racial identity is increasingly recognized as a normative component of youth development (Lee Williams et al 2012). Ethnic-racial identity is a multi-faceted construct that captures many different aspects of how individuals make personal sense of their own ethnicity-race (Umaña-Taylor et al 2014).…”

Further Conceptualizing Ethnic and Racial Identity Research: The Social Identity Approach and Its Dynamic Model

“…The social identity approach further provides systematic ways for conceptualizing and examining the critical role of societal and situational contexts. ERI research recognizes the importance of context and the situational dependency of ERI salience (e.g., Sellers et al., ), and various studies have examined the role of parents, schools, neighborhoods, and other proximal and more distant contexts (see Lee Williams et al., ; Umaña‐Taylor et al., ; Yip & Douglas, ). In addition to this work, the social identity approach offers a principled and theorized way for examining contextual and situational variation.…”

School climate and ethnic‐racial identity in school: A longitudinal examination of reciprocal associations

“…Adolescence is a time of significant identity development (Erikson, ), including ethnic‐racial identity (ERI), which broadly refers to the meaning individuals ascribe to ethnic‐racial group membership and how such meaning is crafted over time (Umaña‐Taylor et al, ). ERI formation is considered a normative aspect of development among ethnic‐racial minority youth (Williams, Tolan, Durkee, François, & Anderson, ) and one that is also salient to White youth in ethnically and racially diverse settings (Xu, Farver, & Pauker, ). ERI has been associated with numerous positive psychosocial outcomes, such as greater academic engagement and self‐esteem among ethnically and racially diverse U.S. youth (including Whites; e.g., Miller‐Cotto & Byrnes, ; Rivas‐Drake, Seaton et al, ; Rivas‐Drake, Syed et al, ).…”