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Cited by 72Racial and Ethnic Identity ResearchSocial and Intergroup PsychologyCritical Race Theory in Education

Race, Context, and Privilege: White Adolescents’ Explanations of Racial-ethnic Centrality

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Grossman, Jennifer M., Charmaraman, Linda·2009·Journal of Youth and Adolescence
DOI 10.1007/s10964-008-9330-7PMC PMC2864535
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Abstract

This mixed-methods exploratory study examined the diverse content and situated context of White adolescents' racial-ethnic identities. The sample consisted of 781 9th-12th grade White adolescents from three New England schools, which varied in racial and economic make-up. Open-ended responses provided a range of thematic categories regarding the importance of race-ethnicity to the adolescents' identities, representing the diverse ideologies of White adolescents' explanations, ranging from colorblind claims to ethnic pride. This study also found significant relationships between racial-ethnic identity importance (centrality) and parents' education for White adolescents. These findings highlight the diversity of White adolescents' understanding of their racial-ethnic identities and the importance of context in shaping racial-ethnic centrality.

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  • While some white youth may learn about and feel pride in their ethnic heritage, many write "white" when prompted to provide their ethnic group.

    “While some white youth may learn about and feel pride in their ethnic heritage, many write “white” when prompted to provide their ethnic group (Grossman & Charmaraman, 2009; Syed & Juang, 2014).”

    From Studying Ethnic-Racial Identity among White Youth: White Supremacy as a Developmental Context (2022) · cites this paper as Grossman & Charmaraman, 2009

    The Results (Thematic Analyses; page unavailable) give an example of a White adolescent expressing pride in Italian heritage. The Methods (Measures; page unavailable) describe race-ethnicity identification questions, but the paper does not report that many adolescents wrote “white” when prompted to provide their ethnic group; the Results say participants were not directly asked to report their ethnic background. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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Cites

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Authors
Grossman, J. M., & Charmaraman, L.
Affiliations
Wellesley College (US)
Corresponding author
Grossman, Jennifer M.
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Youth and Adolescence
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2008-08-22
Volume
38
Issue
2
Pages
139-152
ISSN
  • 0047-2891 (ISSN-L)
  • 1573-6601
DOI
10.1007/s10964-008-9330-7
PMC
PMC2864535
OpenAlex
W2069551663
Cited by
72
References
3
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 4
FWCI
9.26
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations
  • Journal of Youth and Adolescence (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
  • National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (L60 MD002691)
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (T32HD041917, R21HD049697)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Racial and Ethnic Identity Research
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Critical Race Theory in Education
Keywords
White adolescents, ethnic-racial identity, colorblind ideology, ethnic pride, racial privilege, parental education, school context, racial and ethnic diversity
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adolescent Behavior, Educational Status, Female, Humans, Male, New England, Parents, Prejudice, Race Relations, Social Class, Social Identification, Stereotyping, Students, Cultural Diversity, White People, Cultural Competency, Young Adult

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