Role of Ethnic Identity in Participatory Processes That Facilitate Psychological Empowerment Among Urban Youth

Abstract

The current study involved the development and testing of a path model to predict psychological empowerment for urban youth ages 13-17. Data from a survey of urban youth in a city in the northeast United States were analyzed to test the model. The variables included in the model were: perceived neighborhood problems, neighborhood sense of community, social support, participation in community and school activities, and ethnic identity. Utilizing structural equation modeling, survey data were analyzed to determine whether the hypothesized model fit the data and to examine how the five predictor factors influenced an individual's level of psychological empowerment, as measured by the revised sociopolitical control scale. Path models were developed for the full sample and for gender-specific subgroups. Results showed that the hypothesized model provided a good fit to the data from the full sample of participants and crucial differences existed in the models for females and males. A key finding of this study was the critical role of ethnic identity in the psychological empowerment process; it was empowerment's strongest predictor variable for all three models. Key gender-related differences included the direct effect of perceived neighborhood problems on empowerment and the negative effect of perceived neighborhood problems on social support being mediated by neighborhood sense of community for females but not males.Strategies to promote ethnic identity development and implications for practice based on full sample and gender-specific differences are presented. Limitations and directions for future research are also discussed.iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Igniting the Fire Within Marginalized Youth: The Role of Critical Civic Inquiry in Fostering Ethnic Identity and Civic Self-Efficacy

“…Diemer and Li (2011) found that parental and peer support was directly related to youth's perceptions of sociopolitical control and participation in social action. Similarly, Tamanas (2010) found that social support from peers, friends, family, and other important adults was directly related to psychological empowerment and that social support mediated the relationship between perceived neighborhood problems and psychological empowerment. In addition, Ozer and Schotland (2011) found that youth with higher levels of psychological empowerment reported having more caring relationships with adults at school and more support from peers at school.…”

“…Furthermore, Watts et al (2002) stated that indoctrination must be avoided-that youth cannot be told how to think. In addition, Tamanas (2010) found that the ability to perceive problems in one's environment was positively linked to the development of psychological empowerment for youth of color. It should be noted that inquiry-based learning is a critical component of the CCI curriculum-As part of CCI, students work together to identify a problem that affects them in their schools, design and carry out a research project to explore that problem, and then engage adults in their school in conversations about a proposed solution to their problem.…”

“…In ethnic minority students, empowerment is related to psychological well-being (Molix & Bettencourt, 2010). In addition, youth empowerment contributes to academic engagement and academic performance (Ozer & Schotland, 2011) and is thought to increase youths' belief in their abilities to be social change agents (Tamanas, 2010). Based on these positive outcomes, there exists a need in the field of education to identify programs and strategies that promote the empowerment of marginalized students.…”

Empowering Chicana/o and Latina/o High School Students: A Guide for School Counselors

“…Youth of color who experience supportive relationships from adults and peers seem to experience increased personal empowerment (Hipolito-Delgado & Zion, 2015). Tamanas (2010) found a direct relationship between personal empowerment and social support from peers, friends, and family. Furthermore, Ozer and Schotland (2011) found that youth with higher levels of personal empowerment reported caring relationships with adults and support from peers.…”

“…Critical consciousness is a likely first step in the process of personal empowerment, as the awareness of oppression is thought to inspire sociopolitical action (Carr, 2003;Tamanas, 2010). The development of critical consciousness requires an understanding of how sociopolitical, cultural, and historical forces contribute to the oppression of marginalized communities (Watts, Abdul-Adil, & Pratt, 2002).…”