White Racial Identity Development is a field of research looking at how white identity can develop and affect a person throughout their life. Through the process, White people become more aware of their role in society, with the power and privilege they hold through systematic racism. Dr. Janet Helms created the White Racial Identity Model in 1992 to provide a way to categorize white racial identity. [1] Another theory, the White Racial Consciousness Theory was created as an alternative to Helm's model. [2]
The White Racial Identity Model was developed by an African American psychologist, Janet Helms in 1992. [3] It is a racial and ethnic identity model created specifically for people who identify as White. This theory, heavily influenced by William Cross, has become a widely referenced and studied theory on White racial identity development. [4] This model was created "to raise the awareness of White people about their role in creating and maintaining a racist society, and the need for them to act responsibly by dismantling systemic racism through a framework of power and privilege,". [1] In addition, Helms presented the idea that all people have a racial identity in some way that is influenced by power and privilege. [1]
The White Racial Identity Model is broken into five statuses, split into two groups: Abandonment of Racism and the Evolution of a non-racist identity. White individuals transition from understanding themselves as racial beings and the privilege associated with being White, to taking ownership of and abandoning racial privilege, and finally learning about other racial groups. [4]
Phase 1: Abandonment of Racism
In phase one, the abandonment of racism, White-identifying individuals have no consciousness of their race and privilege until they are met with a disruption related to race. This disruption then challenges the individual's ideas of whiteness and how they play a role in a racist society. [1] Following this encounter, the individual then begins to understand the salience of race and its relevance to power. In this phase, a person moves through three sub-statuses: Contact, Disintegration, and Reintegration. [3]
Phase 2: Evolution of a Non-Racist Identity
Phase two, the evolution of a non-racist identity, is where individuals begin to reflect more seriously on their identity and how they interact with their surroundings. [3] They begin to make more efforts to interact and learn from different racial groups. Helms wrote that people in this phase are working to "be White without also being bad, evil, or racist". The statuses a person moves through in this phase includes Pseudo-independence, Immersion/Emersion, and Autonomy. [1]
The White racial identity attitude scale was developed by African American Psychologists, Janet Helms and Robert Carter in 1990. It was designed and consists of 50 items to help understand the attitudes reflecting the five-status model of the White racial identity development (contact, disintegration, reintegration/pseudo independence, immersion/emersion, and autonomy). [5] This scale is crucial for researchers who are wanting to promote change when it comes to white privilege and the perception of racism. Also known as WRIAS, this scale is a widely used scale when measuring attitudes related towards one's racial identity and racism. It has been replicated in several studies and the scales in this measure are highly correlated in measuring this construct. [1] The WRIAS is understood in two major phases, the first being the abandonment of racism, and the second phase is reworking one's identity into a non-racist identity. [6] The WRIAS displayed weak psychometric properties as well and showed internal consistency estimates for each subscale. [7] Since the WRIAS scores are meant for research and are reliable, they help researchers understand how White racial identity can develop psychological burdens. Since the WRIAS scores are meant for research and are reliable, they help researchers understand how White racial identity can develop psychological burdens. Plus due to the issue of racial identity and that individuals from various ethnic, cultural, racial backgrounds may respond to the items differently. [7] The White Racial Attitude Identity Scale consists of 50 items assessing White’s racial attitudes using a 5 point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree; 5=strongly agree). Scale scores are derived by summing the 10 appropriately keyed items for each attitude scale. In this manner each attitude has a scale score that could range from 5 to 50. Carter (1988) reported internal consistency reliabilities of .53, .77, .80, .71, and .67 for the contact, disintegration, reintegration, pseudo-independence, and autonomy scales, respectively. [8]
The WRIAS was designed to measure Whites' progression from an abandonment of racism to a positive, nonracist White identity. While individuals have various combinations of these schemas, there is still an underlying assumption that the schemas do progress from racism to antiracism. The WRIAS has been used by psychologists mainly to assess the relationship between White racial identity and used within psychological counseling. The WRIAS has also been used to explore the relationship between White racial identity and racism. The most significant finding with the White Racial Identity Attitude Scale was that gender plays an important role in determining the effect of White racial identity on racist attitudes. A methodological note about the WRIAS is that it has typically been administered to small numbers of college students in single university settings when used in research. While the WRIAS has provided important findings on the white racial identity, the method of administration do present logistical challenges if it were to be replicated at a different level. [9]
There a number of critiques for the White Racial Identity Model. This includes the singular focus on Blacks and the White-Black relationship. There is concern that there is little focus on White identity, which may be explained by "whiteness" not having its own definition. [10] [2] Other critiques include the developmental stage focus of the model and the similarities to ethnic identity models. [2] [11] This use was not applicable, as racial and ethnic minorities are developing from the oppression they face, while White people are developing from the power they hold. [2] The overall main critique of the model is that it is outdated and not as applicable as it once was. [11]
The theory was created in 1990 and revised in 1995. Although it has been updated and revised, there are many other white identity development and consciousness models that have been adapted from this that some researchers and practitioners see as more relevant. [2] Row, Bennett, and Atkinson created their own theory in response to concerns they had with Helm's model. [2] They created the White Racial Consciousness Theory to address these concerns. [2] They define White Racial Consciousness as "one's awareness of being White and what that implies in relation to those who do not share White group membership." [2] The use of the word consciousness acknowledges that for some this might be a clear part of their self, while for others it may be more vague. There is also the understanding that this consciousness is changing as a person goes through a life full of experiences that effect their outlook. [2]
Another scale was also created as an alternative to Helm's model. Choney and Behrens created the Oklahoma Racial Attitudes Scale, which aligns with the theory of White Racial Consciousness. [12]
Racism is discrimination and prejudice against people based on their race or ethnicity. Racism can be present in social actions, practices, or political systems that support the expression of prejudice or aversion in discriminatory practices. The ideology underlying racist practices often assumes that humans can be subdivided into distinct groups that are different in their social behavior and innate capacities and that can be ranked as inferior or superior. Racist ideology can become manifest in many aspects of social life. Associated social actions may include nativism, xenophobia, otherness, segregation, hierarchical ranking, supremacism, and related social phenomena. Racism refers to violation of racial equality based on equal opportunities or based on equality of outcomes for different races or ethnicities, also called substantive equality.
Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their race, ancestry, ethnicity, and/or skin color and hair texture. Individuals can discriminate by refusing to do business with, socialize with, or share resources with people of a certain group. Governments can discriminate explicitly in law, for example through policies of racial segregation, disparate enforcement of laws, or disproportionate allocation of resources. Some jurisdictions have anti-discrimination laws which prohibit the government or individuals from being discriminated based on race in various circumstances. Some institutions and laws use affirmative action to attempt to overcome or compensate for the effects of racial discrimination. In some cases, this is simply enhanced recruitment of members of underrepresented groups; in other cases, there are firm racial quotas. Opponents of strong remedies like quotas characterize them as reverse discrimination, where members of a dominant or majority group are discriminated against.
Racial color blindness refers to the belief that a person's race or ethnicity should not influence their legal or social treatment in society.
Whiteness studies is the study of the structures that produce white privilege, the examination of what whiteness is when analyzed as a race, a culture, and a source of systemic racism, and the exploration of other social phenomena generated by the societal compositions, perceptions and group behaviors of white people. It is an interdisciplinary arena of inquiry that has developed beginning in the United States from white trash studies and critical race studies, particularly since the late 20th century. It is focused on what proponents describe as the cultural, historical and sociological aspects of people identified as white, and the social construction of "whiteness" as an ideology tied to social status.
White privilege, or white skin privilege, is the societal privilege that benefits white people over non-white people in some societies, particularly if they are otherwise under the same social, political, or economic circumstances. With roots in European colonialism and imperialism, and the Atlantic slave trade, white privilege has developed in circumstances that have broadly sought to protect white racial privileges, various national citizenships, and other rights or special benefits.
Whiteness theory is a field under whiteness studies, that studies what white identity means in terms of social, political, racial, economic, culture, etc. Whiteness theory posits that if some Western societies make whiteness central to their respective national and cultural identities, their white populations may become blind to the privilege associated with White identity. The theory examines how that blindness may exclude, otherize and perhaps harm non-white individuals and segments of the population.
Internalized racism is a form of internalized oppression, defined by sociologist Karen D. Pyke as the "internalization of racial oppression by the racially subordinated." In her study The Psychology of Racism, Robin Nicole Johnson emphasizes that internalized racism involves both "conscious and unconscious acceptance of a racial hierarchy in which a presumed superior race are consistently ranked above other races. These definitions encompass a wide range of instances, including, but not limited to, belief in negative stereotypes, adaptations to cultural standards, and thinking that supports the status quo.
Microaggression is a term used for commonplace verbal, behavioral or environmental slights, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative attitudes toward those of different races, cultures, beliefs, or genders. The term was coined by Harvard University psychiatrist Chester M. Pierce in 1970 to describe insults and dismissals which he regularly witnessed non-black Americans inflicting on African Americans. By the early 21st century, use of the term was applied to the casual disparagement of any socially marginalized group, including LGBT people, poor people, and disabled people. Psychologist Derald Wing Sue defines microaggressions as "brief, everyday exchanges that send denigrating messages to certain individuals because of their group membership". The persons making the comments may be otherwise well-intentioned and unaware of the potential impact of their words.
William E. Cross Jr. is a theorist and researcher in the field of ethnic identity development, specifically Black identity development. He is best known for his nigrescence model, first detailed in a 1971 publication, and his book, Shades of Black, published in 1991. Cross's nigrescence model expanded upon the work of Black psychologists who came before him and created an important foundation for racial/ethnic identity psychology. It has proved a framework for both individual and collective social change. Throughout his career, Cross has been concerned with racial/ethnic identity theory and the negative effects of Western thought and science on the psychology of Black Americans, specifically the need for “psychological liberation under conditions of oppression.”
Aversive racism is a social scientific theory proposed by Samuel L. Gaertner & John F. Dovidio (1986), according to which negative evaluations of racial/ethnic minorities are realized by a persistent avoidance of interaction with other racial and ethnic groups. As opposed to traditional, overt racism, which is characterized by overt hatred for and discrimination against racial/ethnic minorities, aversive racism is characterized by more complex, ambivalent expressions and attitudes nonetheless with prejudicial views towards other races. Aversive racism arises from unconscious personal beliefs taught during childhood. Subtle racist behaviors are usually targeted towards African Americans. Workplace discrimination is one of the best examples of aversive racism. Biased beliefs on how minorities act and think affect how individuals interact with minority members.
Laissez-faire racism is closely related to color blindness and covert racism, and is theorised to encompass an ideology that blames minorities for their poorer economic situations, viewing it as the result of cultural inferiority. The term is used largely by scholars of whiteness studies, who argue that laissez-faire racism has tangible consequences even though few would openly claim to be, or even believe they are, laissez-faire racists.
Social privilege is an advantage or entitlement that benefits individuals belonging to certain groups, often to the detriment of others. Privileged groups can be advantaged based on social class, wealth, education, caste, age, height, skin color, physical fitness, nationality, geographic location, cultural differences, ethnic or racial category, gender, gender identity, neurodiversity, physical disability, sexual orientation, religion, and other differentiating factors. Individuals can be privileged in one area, such as education, and not privileged in another area, such as health. The amount of privilege any individual has may change over time, such as when a person becomes disabled, or when a child becomes a young adult.
Ethnocultural empathy refers to the understanding of feelings of individuals that are ethnically and/or culturally different from oneself. This concept casts doubts on global empathy, which assumes that empathy is "feeling in oneself the feelings of others" regardless of the other's characteristics or context. Ethnocultural empathy, on the other hand, assumes that empathy toward others probably increases if the other is similar to oneself in terms of ethnicity, gender, age, or cultural background.
Ethnic identity development includes the identity formation in an individual's self-categorization in, and psychological attachment to, (an) ethnic group(s). Ethnic identity is characterized as part of one's overarching self-concept and identification. It is distinct from the development of ethnic group identities.
Biracial and multiracial identity development is described as a process across the life span that is based on internal and external forces such as individual family structure, cultural knowledge, physical appearance, geographic location, peer culture, opportunities for exploration, socio-historical context, etc.
Multiracial feminist theory is promoted by women of color (WOC), including Black, Latina, Asian, Native American, and anti-racist white women. In 1996, Maxine Baca Zinn and Bonnie Thornton Dill wrote “Theorizing Difference from Multiracial Feminism," a piece emphasizing intersectionality and the application of intersectional analysis within feminist discourse.
Prejudice plus power, also known as R = P + P, is a stipulative definition of racism used in the United States. Patricia Bidol-Padva first proposed this definition in a 1970 book, where she defined racism as "prejudice plus institutional power." According to this definition, two elements are required in order for racism to exist: racial prejudice, and social power to codify and enforce this prejudice into an entire society. Adherents write that while all people can be racially prejudiced, minorities are powerless and therefore only white people have the power to be racist. This definition is supported by the argument that power is responsible for the process of racialization and that social power is distributed in a zero-sum game. This view is commonly shared by social liberals and progressives. It also been used to define other forms of discrimination such as sexism, homophobia, and ableism.
Racial trauma, or race-based traumatic stress, is the cumulative effects of racism on an individual’s mental and physical health. It has been observed in numerous BIPOC communities and people of all ages, including young children. Racial trauma can be experienced vicariously or directly. It has been linked to feelings of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, as well as other physical health issues.
White identity is the objective or subjective state of perceiving oneself as a white person and as relating to being white. White identity has been researched in data and polling, historically and in social sciences. There are however polarized positions in media and academia as to whether a positive white racial identity which does not diminish other racial groups is plausible or achievable in the Western world's political climate.
White defensiveness is a term to describe defensive responses by white people to discussions of societal discrimination, structural racism, and white privilege. The term has been applied to characterize the responses of white people to portrayals of the Atlantic slave trade and European colonization, or scholarship on the legacy of those systems in modern society. Academics and historians have identified multiple forms of white defensiveness, including white denial, white diversion, and white fragility, the last of which was popularized by scholar Robin DiAngelo.