Effects of religiosity and racial socialization on subjective stigmatization in African-American adolescents

doi:10.1006/jado.1999.0213

Journal of Adolescence

Volume 22, Issue 2, April 1999, Pages 223-242

https://doi.org/10.1006/jado.1999.0213 Get rights and content

Abstract

The direct effects of religiosity and racial socialization on subjective stigmatization among 50 African-American adolescents were investigated. A stigma is a characteristic about which others hold negative attitudes and stereotypes. Subjective stigmatization measures the degree to which an individual internalizes such negative attitudes and stereotypes toward a social group of which he or she is a member. Participants who showed strong commitment to the church were more destigmatized than were participants who did not. Further, participants who received racial socialization messages stemming from a single “primary” category were more destigmatized than those who did not. Unexpectedly, the more racial socialization messages participants received, the more self-stigmatized they were. The importance of religiosity and racial socialization in the lives of African-American adolescents are discussed.

References (55)

E. Andujo
Ethnic identity of transethnically adopted Hispanic adolescents
Social Work
(1988)
H.M. Bahr et al.
“And thy neighbor as thyself ”: self-esteem and faith in people as correlates of religiosity and family solidarity among Middletown high school students
Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion
(1983)
P.L. Benson et al.
Adolescence and religion: a review of the literature from 1970-1986
Research in the Scientific Study of Religion
(1989)
A. Billingsley et al.
The church, the family, and the school in the African American community
Journal of Negro Education
(1991)
B. Blaine et al.
Religiousness, race, and psychological well-being: exploring social psychological mediators
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
(1995)
P.J. Bowman et al.
Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry
(1985)
A.W. Boykin et al.
Black child socialization: a conceptual framework
D.R. Brown
Religious socialization and educational attainment among African Americans: an empirical assessment
Journal of Negro Education
(1991)
S.V. Brown
Premarital sexual permissiveness among Black adolescent females
Social Psychology Quarterly
(1985)
M. Chaves et al.
Comparing the community involvement of Black and White congregations
Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion
(1992)

L.M. Coleman

Stigma: an enigma demystified

L.M. Coleman et al.

Validating the Destigmatization Scale

(1998)

L.M. Coleman et al.

Developing a scale to assess subjective stigmatization: an exploratory look

(1990)

L.M. Coleman et al.

Destigmatization and women's information processing about self and others

(1993)

J. Crocker et al.

Social stigma and self-esteem: the self-protective properties of stigma

Psychological Review

(1989)

J. Crocker et al.

Social stigma: the affective consequences of attributional ambiguity

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

(1991)

D.H. Demo et al.

Socialization and racial identity among Black Americans

Social Psychology Quarterly

(1990)

M.J. Donahue et al.

Religion and the well-being of adolescents

Journal of Social Issues

(1995)

C.G. Ellison

Religious involvement and subjective well-being

Journal of Health and Social Behavior

(1991)

C.G. Ellison

Religious involvement and self-perception among Black Americans

Social Forces

(1993)

C.G. Ellison et al.

Religion, religious commitment, and life satisfaction among Black Americans

The Sociological Quarterly

(1990)

D.Y. Ford et al.

Rejection or confirmation of racial identity: a dilemma for high-achieving Blacks?

The Journal of Educational Thought

(1994)

G.H. Gallup, Jr. et al.

The Religious Life of Young Americans

(1992)

J.T. Gibbs

Young, Black, and Male in America: an endangered species

(1988)

E. Goffman

Stigma: notes on the management of spoiled identity

(1963)

M.T. Hallihan et al.

Students' characteristics and the peer-influence process

Sociology of Education

(1990)

B.R. Hare et al.

No place to run, no place to hide: comparative status and future prospects of Black boys

Cited by (79)

Racial-ethnic socialization and health outcomes in youth
2023, Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Health, First Edition
Framed by developmental and biopsychosocial models, this chapter focuses on the promotive and protective role of racial-ethnic socialization for minoritized youth across the life course. We focus on its links with physical and mental health outcomes as well as moderation and mediational links in reducing the negative outcomes of discrimination. Our review of the literature suggests that RES is promotive of positive health outcomes. Moreover, cultural socialization and the constellation of messages that include preparation for bias may be protective for mental health in the face of discrimination. Research identifying the protective and promotive effects of RES for mental health outcomes such as self-esteem and internalizing symptoms are strongest, however, newer research suggests that protective effects might also hold true for physical health by routes of influencing health behaviors. Ultimately, racial-ethnic socialization is an important resiliency process for minoritized youth and current clinical and intervention efforts reflect that it can be strengthened across development to result in healthier outcomes.
Child development at the intersection of race and SES: An overview
2019, Advances in Child Development and Behavior
Citation Excerpt :
Studies have found that familism supported psychological resilience and higher-quality parenting among Mexican-origin families living in more disadvantaged circumstances (White, Liu, Nair, & Tein, 2015; White, Roosa, & Zeiders, 2012). Meanwhile, cultural assets, such as spiritual and religious beliefs among African Americans, may likewise foster better family functioning (Dunbar, Leerkes, Coard, Supple, & Calkins, 2017) or promote healthy development (Brega & Coleman, 1999; Butler-Barnes, Williams, & Chavous, 2012; Gaylord-Harden et al., 2012). Culturally-adaptive childrearing practices may also interact synergistically with structural factors to buoy resilience or exacerbate vulnerability.
Racial/ethnic disparities in socioeconomic status (SES) persist in the United States. These disparities perpetuate the intergenerational transmission of inequality. Although families of color vary significantly in socioeconomic standing and evidence suggests the links between SES and child development may differ by race/ethnicity, we know relatively little about how race and SES interact to shape children's social contexts and developmental outcomes. This chapter draws theoretical insights from sociocultural perspectives on development and intersectionality theory to understand how and why family life and child development may play out in complex ways at the nexus of race and SES.
Ethnic church mentoring: buffer against outside prejudice and inside pressure for success
2024, Mentoring and Tutoring: Partnership in Learning
‘The Talk’: Risk, Racism and Family Relationships
2023, Political Studies
AFRICAN AMERICAN FAMILY LIFE: REDISCOVERING OUR FOUNDATIONAL WORKS
2023, Research in Human Development
Closing the Health Gap: Addressing Racism, Settler Colonialism, and White Supremacy
2023, Social Work and the Grand Challenge to Eliminate Racism: Concepts, Theory, and Evidence Based Approaches

View all citing articles on Scopus

^f1: Reprint requests and correspondence should be addressed to A. G. Brega, Division of Neurosurgery, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, 4200 East Ninth Avenue, Denver, CO 80262, U.S.A. (E-mail [email protected]), or L. M. Coleman, Department of Psychology, University of Colorado, Campus Box 345, Boulder, CO 80309-0345, U.S.A. (E-mail [email protected]).

View full text

Regular ArticleEffects of religiosity and racial socialization on subjective stigmatization in African-American adolescents

Abstract

Ethnic identity of transethnically adopted Hispanic adolescents

Social Work

“And thy neighbor as thyself ”: self-esteem and faith in people as correlates of religiosity and family solidarity among Middletown high school students

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion

Adolescence and religion: a review of the literature from 1970-1986

Research in the Scientific Study of Religion

The church, the family, and the school in the African American community

Journal of Negro Education

Religiousness, race, and psychological well-being: exploring social psychological mediators

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry

Black child socialization: a conceptual framework

Religious socialization and educational attainment among African Americans: an empirical assessment

Journal of Negro Education

Premarital sexual permissiveness among Black adolescent females

Social Psychology Quarterly

Comparing the community involvement of Black and White congregations

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion

Stigma: an enigma demystified

Validating the Destigmatization Scale

Developing a scale to assess subjective stigmatization: an exploratory look

Destigmatization and women's information processing about self and others

Social stigma and self-esteem: the self-protective properties of stigma

Psychological Review

Social stigma: the affective consequences of attributional ambiguity

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

Socialization and racial identity among Black Americans

Social Psychology Quarterly

Religion and the well-being of adolescents

Journal of Social Issues

Religious involvement and subjective well-being

Journal of Health and Social Behavior

Religious involvement and self-perception among Black Americans

Social Forces

Religion, religious commitment, and life satisfaction among Black Americans

The Sociological Quarterly

Rejection or confirmation of racial identity: a dilemma for high-achieving Blacks?

The Journal of Educational Thought

The Religious Life of Young Americans

Young, Black, and Male in America: an endangered species

Stigma: notes on the management of spoiled identity

Students' characteristics and the peer-influence process

Sociology of Education

No place to run, no place to hide: comparative status and future prospects of Black boys

Regular Article
Effects of religiosity and racial socialization on subjective stigmatization in African-American adolescents