Senior Project Final Paper

Stereotypes provide a frame in which a group can be judged. Though stereotypes are derived by

some fact, we make many mistakes judging individuals through one frame. African Americans have

been subject to many social stereotypes, and there has been research that suggests stereotypes affect

identity and esteem, eventually altering one’s social identity (Steele, 1997). Research has revealed

evidence that perceived ethnic injustices might lead ethnic minorities to question the personal value of

domains dominated by the Caucasian majority. (Schmader, Major, Gramzow, 2001). However, given the

gap between Caucasian students and African American students in academic achievement, the threat of

stereotypes may play a larger role on African American success. Does the extent of racial identification

and self esteem have effect on vulnerability to be threatened? This paper intends to highlight how racial

identity and self esteem influence the vulnerability to stereotype threat of African American university

students. Results will be analyzed against under the lens of social identity.

The Achievement Gap

The achievement gap describes the breach between academic success of Caucasian students,

and Minority students. In America minorities began to close the achievement gap with their fellow

Caucasian classmates during the 1970’s and 80’s (Wills,2007). Though the NAEP (National Assessment of

Educational Progress) recognizes that both African American and Hispanic students have made great

strides to narrow that breach, they also acknowledge that progress has come to a halt since the mid

80’s. In 2003, 39 percent of Caucasian students scored at a proficient level or higher on the 4th grade

NAEP reading exam, while only 12 percent of African American students did the same. The 4th grade

NAEP mathematics exam resulted in 42 percent of Caucasian students scoring at a proficient level or

higher, while only 10 percent of African Americans did so. The NAEP administers assessment tests

based on grade for all education subjects. (U.S. Department of Education, 2003) Research suggests,

achievement gaps occur in racially diverse settings, as both African Americans and Latinos experience

reading and math gaps in early grades.(Mckown, Weinstein, 2003)However of all races, African

Americans seem to be the most at risk in the academic setting. Research suggests that academic

performance may be directly related to the stereotype threat perceived by these minority groups

(Schmader, Major, Gramzow, 2001).

Social Identity Theory

When individuals associate themselves with certain groups, there is a tendency to compare their

group to others. Individuals often favorably rate the values that are associated with their group, while

dismissing the values of others. Individuals will also often match their values to those of the group which

they associate in efforts to create a positive social identity that bolsters self esteem. Social Identity

theory consists of three components, categorization, identification, and comparison. Positively

identifying with the in-group, while negatively dismissing characteristics of the out-group helps

individuals gain self-esteem. (Steele, 1997) Rosenberg’s self-esteem scale (1965) has been used for

measurements however, it is now thought that another motive, self-regulation, is also a driving entity.

This pertains to the fact that when an in-group identity is heightened, an individual will match his or her

behaviors in order to confirm membership with that group. In other words, when performance

differences become salient, African American students may devalue the academic performance

characteristics held by members of other racial groups in order to enhance social identity (Eccleston,

2001).

If an individual’s social identity can lead to individual discounting and disvaluing of domains,

there must be factors of social identity that influence one’s social identity in a given context. Social

Identity has been studied frequently with the Cross Model which has evolved since 1971, to include

individual’s self-concept as being influenced independently by both personal and ethnic identity (Jensen,

Negy Shreve, Uddin, 2003).As stated above, when an individual’s group faces discrimination or rejection,

a common strategy is to strengthen group identity in order to preserve self-esteem, through measures

of ethnic pride (Phinney, 1992). This finding is consistent with studies that show African Americans

holding a higher sense of self esteem than their racial counterparts, though many African Americans feel

they are the target of discrimination and rejection. Is the ability to devalue domains such as academics,

driven by the maintenance of self esteem of African American students?

Racial Identity and Social Identity Theory

Race has many implications on social identity theory as racial identity is formed partly through

the rank or status of the racial group in comparison to others. The extent to which an individual

indentifies with his race becomes a psychological construct that determines the degree that they dismiss

characteristics of others’ or out-groups. (Bonam, Peck, Sanchez, Shih, 2007) A study done in a corporate

setting suggests that African American professionals search for cues to determine the degree of identity-

threat or safe would be expected. Minority representation and diversity philosophy, within a business,

communicate messages that contain the level of group identity that is to be “worn on the outside”

(Crosby, Davies, Ditlmann, Steele, Vaughns, 2008). When an individual’s group faces discrimination, a

common strategy is to strengthen group identity, through interactions that involve ethnic pride. The

study also concludes that racial identification in all racial groups was positively related to self-esteem,

except for Asian Americans. European Americans placed great deal of importance on American ideals

and values rather than African Americans who held less significant American ideals (Phinney,1992).

African American adolescents have a high sense of racial identity which may be a reaction to conditions

of prejudice and discrimination as suggested by SIT. (Steele, 1997) The Racial Identity Ethnic (REI) is a

scale that has been recently used to measure individuals connectedness, awareness of racism, and

embedded achievement of their racial or ethnic background. Oyserman (2006) suggest that high REI is

associated with better academic achievement. Racial identity is an important part of one’s social

identity; more specifically the extent to which an individual identifies with that race or ethnicity, and the

social connotations that go along with it. African Americans have been credited the only racial group

that does not hold a strong American Identity but they do identify the most with their ethnicity, Phinney

reports, African Americans must balance their ethnicity with “acting white” when mainstream society

encourages so. In this case the pressures associated with the need to choose between “acting white”,

and a strong ethnic identity cause African Americans to struggle (Phinney, 1992). Charles Negy suggests

that self-esteem is positively correlated with ethnic identity for Caucasian and Hispanic students,

however not for African Americans (Negy et.al., 2003). In the context of American schools, researchers

have found that positive ethnic identities positively correlate with school engagement and academic

achievement. (Bennet, 2006) African American students who are labeled as having a low connection

with African Americans, felt that African Americans were devalued by society, and felt negatively about

African Americans indicated less interest in school, while African American students who were labeled

as idealized, felt positive group affiliation, positive value in society, and felt positive about African

Americans, indicated more personal value in school. (Chavous et.al. 2003)

Racial Identification has been studied separate from group beliefs and perceptions as many

African Americans vary greatly in their definitions of self with regard to their group. (Major, Schmader,

1998). Tajfel and Turner, creators of Social Identity theory speak of social creativity, which involves in-

group members assigning new values on attributes associated with out-groups in respect to their group.

Schmader et.al. (2001) has proposed that the stigmatized selectively devalue or disregard those

dimensions or attributes in which they fare poorly in, therefore selectively valuing those attributes that

they do well in. Individuals who do not have any knowledge of their own personal standing in a given

domain may devalue it based on previous conception of ability from in-group performance. Schmader

and Major (1998) found that when the in-group performs poorly relative to the out-group, an individual

will place less personal importance on that given attribute. Studies also support that there is stronger

tendency to devalue an attribute that an in-group member performs poorly on, then to value an

attribute an in-group member performs well on. (Gramzow, Major, Schmader, 2001) Steele (1997)

identified what he called “dis-identification”, which is the term given to students who no longer identify

a particular domain that they once had interest in due to performance. With the connotations

associated with the African American race aside, it is interesting to find the strength of racial

identification and how it influences academic performance without the pressures of stereotypes.

Stereotype Threat

Steel (1997)defines stereotype threat as “the event of a negative stereotype about a group to

which one belongs becoming self-relevant, usually as a plausible interpretation for what one is doing, a

situation one is in, or an experience that one is having.” To be stated simply, stereotype threat is the

idea that people tend to underperform when confronted with situations that might confirm negative

stereotypes about their social group.(1997) It has been studied amongst elementary school girls taking a

math test, elderly people given a memory test, and white men being assessed on athletic

ability(Viadero,2007). In assessing the affects of stereotype threat on a particular social group, it is

necessary for indirectly activated stereotypes to affect performance (Steele, 1997). Mcknown and

Weinstein (2003) concluded that once stigmatized groups become aware of stereotypes, awareness of

others’ stereotypes activates threat which can significantly hamper performance. Research suggest that

participants with a mental illness performed worse on a standardized test after being asked about their

illness(Crocker, Kahng, Quinn, 2004).In pertaining to African American students, students who were told

that a test they were given was diagnostic performed worse, then students who were told the test was

non-diagnostic of ability. However, Steele and Aronson have refuted the misinterpretation of their work

by other scholars, by saying that the elimination of stereotype threat will not eliminate the achievement

gap (Aronson, Steele, 1995).

Racial Identity and Stereotype Threat

According to Stereotype Threat, minority students should experience greater stress and anxiety, and

these would in turn undermine academic performance (Anisman, Cole, Matheson, 2007). Long exposure

of negative stereotypes about one’s group, cause individuals to internalize the stereotypes, which result

in a sense of inadequacy becoming part of their identity.(Steele, 1997).However research suggests that

multiracial and bicultural students create a buffer for many racial stereotypes by viewing ethnicity or

race as a social construct.(Bonam et.al., 2007) When examining racial identity, it is important to consider

racial identification (centrality), and racial regard (perceptions); it has been found that both levels are

present and vary among African Americans(Rowley et.al. , 1998). African American psychologist James

M. Jones wrote “To experience stereotype threat, one needs not believe the stereotype nor even be

worried that it is true of oneself”, the simple fact that the stereotype is known, becomes an influence

and potential threat (Steele, 1997). People who are “racialized” will assert defensive communal

identities in response to societal representations that construct them as the negative other. (Gosine,

2002) Ogbu reports that among other caste-like minorities such as the Oriental Jews of Israel, the West

Indians of Great Britain, and the Baraku of Japan, their exist a similar gap in IQ as between African

Americans and Caucasians here in America. It is interesting to note that some of these groups

experience the gaps even within race.(Steele, 1997) Perceived ethnic injustices are a predictor of

academic devaluing and discounting among negatively stereotyped ethnic minorities (Schmader, Major,

Gramzow, 2001). If many African Americans perceive ethnic injustices, how does the racial identity of

African American students affect their vulnerability to stereotype threat in an academic performance

test?

Self Esteem and Stereotype Threat

African American students tend to have greater self-esteem, than Caucasian students, or any other

ethnicity (Negy et.al, 2003). We might predict that individuals of a socially stereotyped or stigmatized

group, who do not perform well in a given domain, may come to view that domain as less important

than those who perform well. In a university or high school setting where Caucasian students seem to

succeed, African Americans may unconsciously place less importance in academic achievement.“Relative

in-group failures motivate personal devaluing as a strategy of protecting collective self esteem

(Schmader, Major, 1999). Rosemary Phelps (2001) concluded that cultural mistrust, ethnic identity, and

racial identity accounted for 37 percent of the variance in self esteem among African American students.

However some researchers suggest that self-esteem is not the variable of importance in addressing

stereotype threat and academics, Van Laar (2000) insists it is external attributions that hinder African

Americans, such as beliefs about the world around them, and their place in it. Students display doubts

that their efforts will benefit them in the future. Crocker and Major (1999) suggest that “stigma” itself

contains esteem protective strategies, allowing the stigmatized to blame their failures on the prejudice,

and evaluate themselves relative to their in-group members African American students are detaching

their self-esteem from performance in certain domains.(Steele, 1997). Steele has split the notion of self-

esteem creating a “home-life” self esteem and self-esteem among peers. He concludes that African

Americans dis-identify with domains in which their evaluative prospectives were poor, the home life,

and identify with domains in which their prospects were better, their peers (Schmader et.al. 2001).

Stereotypes play a significant role in “the detaching” of domains for stigmatized groups. A question of

specific interest is, how will the awareness of information about African Americans and mathematics

affect academic performance tests given to African American students, as opposed to those African

American students who have not been made aware? The variance of self esteem in students will be

analyzed against performance for significant correlations.

Methods

Participants

Participants include 62 university students from universities located all throughout the eastern

coast. Snowball sampling occurred as students were selected based on ethnicity as questionnaires were

passed along. Approximately 1/3 of students surveyed were females.

Procedures

Data was received from questionnaires that were passed along campuses and completed

through email. Students were not told more than to complete the survey that was on hand. The

questionnaires were manipulated as 31 questionnaires contained a brief paragraph discussing

information regarding the lack of mathematics and reading skills in African American students as

compared to Caucasian students. Each student was only exposed to one condition. The questionnaire

consists of scales that capture measurements of Academic performance, self esteem, and racial

identification.

Instruments

Self Esteem

Rosenberg’s Self Esteem scale (1965) is a close ended measure that consists of a four point likert

scale that ranges from strongly agree to strongly disagree. Examples of statements include “I feel that I

have a number of good qualities”, and “I wish I could have more respect for myself”. Scoring for the

statements rank as following: SA=3, A=2, D=1, SD=0. The score ranges from 0-30, scores between 15-

25 display average self-esteem while scores below 15 demonstrate a low self-esteem.

Racial Identity

Daphna Oyserman’s Racial-Ethnic Identity measurement (2006) is a close ended measure that

consists of a tripartite as connectedness, awareness of racism, and embedded achievement are all

subscales embedded into the statements. Statements are ranked on a five point likert scale that ranges

from SD=1- SA=5, items are tallied for the sum. Examples include If I am successful it will help the

African American Community, and I have a lot of pride in what members of the African American

community have achieved.

Academic Performance

The academic performance scale will be a composition of eight 12th grade math questions that are

from the National Assessment of Education Progress (2003). The questions change difficulty as they

consist of three easy and three medium questions, as well as two hard questions. Questions include: In

triangle ABC shown above, what is the measure of , the cost to mail a first-class letter is 33

cents for the first ounce. Each additional ounce costs 22 cents. (Fractions of an ounce are

rounded up to the next whole ounce.), How much does it cost to mail a letter that weighs 2.7

ounces?

Results

Research question one seeks a relationship between academic performance and racial identity

of African American university students. A correlation coefficient test was used in to examine this

relationship. The relationship was not significant such that higher racial identity was related to higher

academic performance, r (60) = .249, p >. 05. The results revealed that there is not a relation between

racial identity and academic performance in university students.

Research question two seeks a relationship between self esteem and academic performance of

African American university students. A correlation coefficient was used in order to conduct this test.

The relationship was not significant in such that higher self esteem correlated to higher academic

performance, r (60) = .114, p >.05. The results revealed that there is not a relation between self esteem

and academic performance in university students.

A correlation coefficient was used to determine if self esteem and racial identity of African

American students displayed a relationship, research question three. The relationship was not

significant such that higher self esteem was related to higher racial identity, r (60) =.171, p >.05. Results

reveal no significant relationship between racial identity and self esteem in university students.

The relationship between self esteem of African American students who received the stereotype

manipulation as compared to those African American students who did not, is examined in research

question four. In order to determine the results a T test was conducted. The relationship was not

significant in such that students who received the manipulation had no difference in self esteem scores

than those who did not receive the manipulation, t (59) = -1.15, p >.05. The stereotype manipulation

revealed no relationship with students’ self esteem scores.

Research question five seeks to find a relationship between the racial identity of students who

received the manipulation on the questionnaires and students who did not receive manipulation. A T

test was conducted in order to determine the results. The results find that the relationship is significant

in such that manipulation resulted in lower racial identity scores, t (59) = -3.55, p <.05. The stereotype

manipulation resulted in students lower racial identity scores as compared to students who did not

receive any manipulation.

In order to determine the relationship between stereotype manipulation and academic

performance, research question six, a t test was conducted. The results display a significant relationship

as academic performance was lower under the stereotype manipulation, t (59) = -2.3 p< .05. The results

reveal that under the stereotype manipulation, students’ academic performance was significantly lower.

Discussion

Social Identity Theory

In the research conducted, Social Identity Theory is not fully supported by the results. If racial

identity and self esteem are thought to be two crucial aspects of what shapes an individual’s social

identity, then the two should have correlated in some manner. The findings suggest that African

Americans do not associate their self esteem with their racial identification. In fact, self –esteem is did

not significantly correlate in any test run in the research. Though past findings have concluded that

one’s race identity is conceptualized as a protective factor for a personal self esteem in African

Americans, self esteem is high in these students regardless of racial identification.

The Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity (MMRI) provides insight to the concept of racial

identity. Different from Oyserman’s tripartite scale this looks at racial identity in four different aspects.

Racial salience, racial regard (private/public), and racial centrality, are the four aspects of racial identity

that can be prevalent in any given situation. Racial salience refers to the extent to which a person’s race

is a relevant part of her or his self-concept at a particular moment. Racial regard refers to an individual’s

evaluative judgment of their race. It consists of both a private and public component, in which private

refers to the positive or negative feelings one has about his/her group and their membership with that

group, and public refers to one’s sense of positive or negative feelings that society has on his/her group.

This refers back to collective self esteem, which is another perspective that divides esteem into

subcategories and assumes individuals identify with a group. (Rowley, et. al, 1998) Racial centrality

refers to the extent to which a person most often defines themselves with respect to race. The MMRI

provides racial identity an option, which Oyserman’s tripartite doesn’t necessarily offer. It is possible

that racial regard and centrality may very well correlate with self esteem. Also self esteem in African

Americans has been concluded to be detached from other personal variables such as embedded

achievement. It could be possible that African Americans totally separate their racial identity from the

personal or self concept of self esteem.

Social Identity theory would entail that when perceived in-group justices or negative threats to

an individual’s group occur, an individual will strengthen his or her group membership in order to

bolster self esteem. However the findings suggest that African American students experience lower

racial identification when under stereotype threat than the students who were not under threat. The

results are inconsistent with Social Identity theory, for under threat, African American racial identities

weakened not strengthened. Few studies have indicated any negative correlation between stereotype

threat and racial identity. To be exact, this entails that when under threat, African Americans lose

strength or confidence in their racial identity. Racial Identity however, in Osyerman’s tripartite scale

measures identity in three different ways, one of them being awareness of racism. There is a possibility

that the lower scores concluded came from those who felt as if the manipulation paragraph was not a

nationwide assumption, or was false. Ultimately, scores were summed; therefore it is possible that their

scores may not necessarily be an indication of their “racial identification”. This is where using work from

the MMRI may have been useful.

Academic Performance

The findings suggest that self esteem does not correlate with academic performance in African

Americans. These are consistent with past findings that seem to indicate that among other races, African

Americans are the only one that does not relate self esteem to their academic performance, as stated

above. This becomes interesting because Steele (1997) notes that it is assumed that identifying with

school, is forming a relationship between oneself and the domains of school, which allows the domain

to become part of one’s self regard. In other words, if an individual identifies with school, than school

should be part of one’s self esteem. However Steele also notes that a form of dis-identification occurs

between African American students and the academic domains. This same phenomenon can be

witnessed when African American students under stereotype threat experience lower academic

performance scores. Students in an effort to preserve self esteem may detach self esteem from

academics, which results in the overall devaluing of academics and performance. This concept of

devaluing domains as an effort to preserve self esteem is worth further research because a domain

which has been dominated by the white counterpart in its entire history, is eventually going to lose

importance to the African American community, especially if it is known or thought that the domain

does not matter or will not benefit them.

This can also explain why students’ racial identification, had no correlation with academic

performance. The results are consistent with past studies for African Americans are again thought to be

the only race that separates racial identity from their academic achievement. Self esteem and racial

identity seem to be constructed as separate entities that alone cannot be predictors of academic success

in African American students.

From the research emerge results that are consistent with previous findings in that under

stereotype threat, African American students scored significantly lower in academic performance. Past

research has displayed that not only will students perform poorly under specific racial threat, but just

making race salient can affect the way a student performs. In this study students were given a paragraph

that lists the qualities of the average African American student, which seemed to pinpoint and highlight

not only race but attributes about the race. However, the same poor performance effect can result from

just asking students to circle their racial background before cognitive performances begin. This

information is extremely helpful for the use of those teaching in the future and future research

conducted.

Contributions

The research in this article has shed light on Social Identity theory for it assumes heavily that

racial identity is an important part of Social Identity. Future research should concentrate on certain

aspects of racial identity when studying academic performance in African Americans. Racial Identity is a

broad concept that must be compartmentalized.

The research has also shed light however, on stereotype threat and racial identity. For one,

further research should concentrate on the relationship between racial identity and stereotype threat.

The results suggest that racial identity can be hindered under stereotype threat, which may indicate that

individuals belonging to stigmatized groups will lose part of their identity when under threat. Because

there is not much past research that depicts racial identity being lower when under threat, this must be

examined for it has tremendous implications. The majority of findings have been consistent with past

studies; therefore this is one of the most significant findings in the research.

The stereotype manipulation provides a new twist in studying stereotype threat, for in most

past cases, it is assumed that the participants realize the stereotypes, and are therefore threatened. In

an effort to make participants aware, this study strayed from exact stereotypes but stated simple facts

about education in America. The manipulation may have been the cause for lower racial identification

scores as well.

Limitations

The biggest limitation of the study was the time period allotted to construct this research.

Though the study was relatively small, time could have accounted for better sampling and testing, and

much more research. Ideally, the study would have wanted to test students in the classroom setting,

where the average student most often academically performs, however due to location of study and

time given, surveys were distributed online. It is not possible to determine what state of mind students

are in when answering these surveys, however, students who may have discounted the academic

performance part of the survey may have been playing in to the purpose of the study.

The sampling took on the snowball form as participants were recruited by acquaintance and

past participants. The sample of participants would’ve been preferred random; however the location of

participants was broadly spread, to try and incorporate various ideas and perspectives.

A particular limitation is the sample of questions given to students to measure academic

performance. The questions were taken from the National Assessment for Education Progress’s question

database which only had eighth and twelfth grade math questions available. The questions were

carefully picked however to try and best accommodate for the average college student.

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The Effects of Stereotype

Threat upon African American

Students; in light of Social

Identity Theory

By

Andre Smith