Speaking Truth to Power: How Black/African Psychology Changed the Discipline of Psychology

Abstract

Black/African psychology is a distinct disciplinary field of psychology that includes a community of scholars and a history of scholarly inquiry. Black psychologists grounded in a Black/African psychology tradition have long challenged the hegemonic paradigms and racist beliefs perpetuated by Eurocentric approaches to psychology. However, in the absence of teaching about the important contributions of Black/African psychology, many individuals remain unaware of its historical and contemporary impact on the discipline of psychology. Using the three methodological approaches of deconstruction, reconstruction, and construction as a framework, the authors identify the many ways in which Black/African psychology has challenged prevailing beliefs in psychology about Black behavior and culture and forever changed psychological research on Black people.

Introduction: Building for Eternity

“…In some cases, these terms are viewed as interchangeable, while in other cases, distinctive definitions are offered particularly for Black psychology versus African psychology. Jamison (2018) provides a developmental perspective with regard to the distinction between Black psychology and African psychology, suggesting that Black psychology is a reaction to the experience of White supremacy racism, while Cokley and Garba (2018) frame Black psychology as a part of the process of deconstruction that served as the launching pad for the development of the field of African psychology. Similarly, Grills et al (2018) articulate the developmental steps that were taken by Black psychologists as we generated theory, conducted research, and engaged in practice that informed the evolution from Black psychology to African psychology, African-centered psychology, and more recently, Pan-African psychology.…”

“…True to the tenets of African philosophy, there is no need at this time to foreclose on a particular perspective, for, as Bobby Wright (1979) might suggest, at this stage of our development, these differences have heuristic value. Cokley and Garba (2018) suggest that African psychology should be accorded the status of a discipline and delineate the four criteria, which a discipline exhibits, all of which, they contend, are met by the proponents of African/ Black psychology. Myers, Anderson, Lodge, Speight, and Queener (2018) examine an Africentric perspective through the optimal conceptual theory (Myers, 1993), also grounded in African-centered principles and concepts.…”

“…A critical issue that the discipline of African/Black psychology must tackle concerns methodology. Several scholars (Cokley & Garba, 2018;Grills et al, 2018;Jamison, 2018) question African/Black psychology's reliance on the methods of Western science, both in research and clinical diagnosis. Carruthers (as cited in Jamison, 2018) states that the discipline is "caught between the philosophy of liberation and the methodology of oppression."…”

“…Frederick Douglass (1857) lamented that without struggle, there is no progress. Our early work challenging culturally biased testing has evolved and has led to the development of African-centered assessment tools, but as these authors (Cokley & Garba, 2018;Grills et al, 2018;Jamison, 2018) concede, many more are needed. African-centered diagnostic tools have been developed, but their use is not yet widespread, and they are either unknown or unaccepted in most clinical settings serving people of African ancestry.…”

“…Grills et al (2018) suggest that the next generation of Black psychologists must establish alliances with traditional African healers and engage in internships under their guidance, in order to push the agenda of African/Black psychology forward. Cokley and Garba (2018) urge the next generation of Black psychologists to continue the legacy of African-centered research, theory development, and practice in order to advance the discipline. From the work of Myers et al (2018), we gain one prolific example of a theory that has demonstrated its value in the area of both research and practice.…”