Mixed Race Studies

Biracial Group Membership Scale

Journal of Black Psychology
Volume 43, Issue 5 (2017-07-01)
pages 435-450
DOI: 10.1177/0095798416657260

Marisa G. Franco
Department of Psychology
University of Maryland, College Park

Olivia L. Holmes
Department of Psychology
University of Illinois, Chicago

With individuals of mixed African heritage increasingly identifying as Biracial, it is important to determine whether Black people continue to perceive Biracial people as members of their community. The status of Biracial individuals within the Black community has implications for the political power of the Black community and also for Biracial individuals’ racial identity development and well-being. Thus, the purpose of this study was to create a psychometrically sound measure to assess the degree to which Black people accept Biracial people as members of the Black community: the Biracial Group Membership Scale. Factor analyses were conducted with 328 Black adults. Exploratory factor analysis revealed two factors: Rejection of Biracial People and Forced Black Identity. A confirmatory factor analysis provided support for the initial factor structure. The scale related to the Attitudes Toward Multiracial Children Scale, essentialism, and items assessing interactions with Biracial individuals. Limitations, suggestions for future research, and implications are discussed.

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Impact of Identity Invalidation for Black Multiracial People: The Importance of Race of Perpetrator

Journal of Black Psychology
Published online before print: 2015-09-08
DOI: 10.1177/0095798415604796

Marisa G. Franco
University of Maryland

Stephen A. Franco
St. George’s University, St. George, Grenada, West Indies

Multiracial people report repeated experiences of racial identity invalidation, in which their racial identity is rejected by others. The current study examined whether the race of the perpetrator of these invalidating experiences matters in determining the impact of invalidation. A sample of 221 Black multiracial people was recruited to take an online survey investigating their experiences of identity invalidation, levels of cultural homelessness, and challenges with racial identity. Participants reported that Black people invalidated their racial identity the most, and they were most hurt by invalidation perpetrated by Black people. Finally, those whose experiences of identity invalidation were mostly perpetrated by Black people, as opposed to other racial groups, were more likely to exhibit racial homelessness and challenges with racial identity. Results highlight the importance of racial identity affirmation by the Black community for Black multiracial individuals.

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Perceptions of Mixed-Race: A Study Using an Implicit Index

Journal of Black Psychology
Published online before print: 2014-11-12
DOI: 10.1177/0095798414550248

Barlow Wright, Senior Lecturer in Psychology
Brunel University London, England

Michael Olyedemi
Brunel University London, England

Stanley O. Gaines Jr., Senior Lecturer in Psychology
Brunel University London, England

The psychology of race is in its infancy, particularly in the United Kingdom and especially regarding mixed-race. Most use untimed explicit indexes and qualitative/self-report measures. Here, we used not only explicit responses (participants’ choice of response categories) but also implicit data (participants’ response times, RT). In a Stroop task, 92 Black, White, and mixed-race participants classified photographs of mixed-race persons. Photos were accompanied by a word, such as Black or White. Participants ignored the word, simply deciding whether to categorize photos as White or Black. Averaged across three different instructional sets, White participants categorized mixed-race slightly to the White side of the center point, with Black participants doing the converse. Intriguingly, mixed-race participants placed mixed-race photos further toward Black than did the Black group. But for RT, they now indicated midway between White and Black participants. We conclude that at the conscious (key-press) level, mixed-race persons see being mixed-race as Black, but at the unconscious (RT) level, their perception is a perfect balance between Black and White. Findings are discussed in terms of two recent theories of racial identity.

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Racial Socialization in Cross-Racial Families

Journal of Black Psychology
Published Online: 2011-08-03
DOI: 10.1177/0095798411416457

Cyndy R. Snyder
University of California, Berkeley

The purpose of this study was to investigate how multiracial people of African descent experience racism in schools and to understand how their parents or guardians prepare them to cope with incidents of racism in school. Through qualitative in-depth interviews with multiracial and transracially adopted adults of African descent, this study seeks to raise awareness regarding the complexity of family racial dynamics and how family racial socialization processes affect students’ ability to navigate racism. Findings suggested that racial socialization processes varied by the racial composition of the family, that is, families in which there was at least one Black parent or guardian present tended to more openly address issues of race and racism in comparison with families in which there was no Black parent or guardian present. Findings from this study hold theoretical implications for how racial socialization is conceptualized and practical implications for programs and policies designed to support families raising children of African descent.

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Adults’ Attitudes Toward Multiracial Children

Journal of Black Psychology
Volume 29, Number 4 (November 2003)
pages 463-480
DOI: 10.1177/0095798403256888

Gayle L. Chesley
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

William G. Wagner

A between-groups experimental design was used to examine adults’ attitudes toward multiracial children of African descent. The purpose was to determine if the races of the respondent,the child, and the child’ s friends are related to adults’ ratings of children’s self-perception and depressive symptoms. A total of 156 undergraduate students (African American = 78, European American = 78) read a vignette in which the race of the target child (European American, African American, or multiracial) and the child’s friends (European American or African American) were experimentally controlled. Participants assessed the child using a revision of Harter’s Self-Perception Profile for Children and a revised version of Kovacs’s Children’s Depression Inventory—Short Form. Ratings of the child’s global self-worth and depressive symptoms were negatively correlated. The results of a 2 × 2 × 3 MANOVA revealed a significant three-way interaction for the races of the child,the respondent, and the child’s friends on adults’ ratings of the child’s peer acceptance. The implications of these findings are discussed.

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