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Understanding how our identities are formed, what is needed to help that development happen, and how our own identities may shape how we view others is important to being ethical and empathetic professionals. I don’t know if I’m the right person to look at these theories. Or if my analysis goes deep enough. Or even if I should be critiquing the work. I don’t know if I have the right words. Or if they’ll land in the right way. But I want to try. I want to learn. I want to attempt to understand. I started with White Identity Development not because it’s the most important, but because most practitioners (at least here in the Northeast) are white. We need to understand how our development as while folk happened and how it shapes us. We need to truly understand our biases when it comes to racial identity development and to do that we need to look inward. Once we’ve explored where we are, how we got there, and how it influences our work and views, we should be able to better understand how ...

Ethnic Identity in children has five components. 1 - Ethnic self-identitification, this is when children identify themselves with their ethnic group. 2 - Ethnic constancy - children understand that their identity is constant and unchanging. 3 - Ethnic role behaviors - children engage in behaviors that align with their ethnic group. 4 - Ethnic knowledge - children realize that certain knowledge or behaviors are specific and relevant to their ethnic group. 5 - Ethnic feelings and preferences - children develop feelings about their belonging within their ethnic group. Children develop within the framework gradually and is dependent on learning about themselves in social settings. Title of theory: Development of Mexican American Identity Year theory was published: 1993 Students originally studied: 45 Mexican American children between the ages of 6 and 10. Both of their parents were of Mexican descent. Background of the authors: Martha E. Bernal was the first Latina to receive a PhD in psy...

There are five stages, which are progressive, but individuals spend varying amount of time in each stages. Ethnic Awareness is the first stage, which occured prior to elementary school for all subjects, and the reference point for their racial identity was their family. White Identitification is the second stage, and occured when there was an increase in contact with white people and racial prejudices. Awakening to Social Political Consciousness (ATSPC) is the third stage, and is when the subjects realized they were a minority within American society and that they were not personally responsible for their minoritized status. Redirection to Asian American Consciousness (RTAAC) is the fourth stage and is described as when subjects were able to identify as Asian American. Incorporation is fifth and is when the subjects were able to identify with multiple groups without losing their identity as an Asian American. Title of theory: Asian American Identity Development Year theory was publishe...

There are five influence on American Indian consciousness. They are outlined below, directly from Perry Horse's chapter in New Directions for Student Services, no. 109. However, there isn't a defined standard for how someone may define themselves as American Indian or Native American. In the Chapter in New Directions for Student Services, he also discusses white privilege and how that plays into American Indians learning about their own identities and how they choose to identify themselves. Identity as an American Indian or Native American is personal, found through personal journeys, and is also political. His model is not a typical identity model. Title of theory: Native American Identity Development Year theory was published: 2001 Students originally studied: This identity development theory is based on personal experiences and observations of other American Indians. Background of the author: Dr. Perry Horse (Kiowa) assisted in founding the American Indian Higher Education C...

There are six sectors: Early black identity development, pre-adolescence, adolescence, early adulthood, and adult nigrescence. A good explainer can be found at https://studentdevelopmenttheory.wordpress.com/racial-identity-development/ . Identity development begins within the family, then to learning from the black adults in the child's life, then to beginning to develop an idea of what being black means to oneself, moving into early adulthood where internalized racism, establishment of peers with the same values happens, developing into Adult Nigrescence, which is four different stages, and concluding with Nigrescence Recycling. Title of theory: Model of Psychological Nigrescence Year theory was published: 1978 Students originally studied: William E. Cross created the sectors while observing his own life and the life of the Black Americans around him. Background of the author: William Cross is an African American who grew up during segregation. His father was a Pullman por...

The next set of theories is going to look at racial identity development. I’m going to look at Helms, Cross, Horse, Kim, and Barnel & Knight. I think it’s important to dedicate some space to these identity development models, and I think it's important to look at white identity development given the current state of things. The basic gist is: white people start by not recognizing the differences in the experiences of white and black people, either due to ignorance or due to being so immersed in the culture that it is accepted. They then travel through phases, including wanting to believe oneself is not racist while still holding racist ideology, beginning to understand or recognize differences, exploring personal meaning of racism, and then becoming increasingly aware of how one's Whiteness plays a role in cultural beliefs and increasingly knowledgeable about the differences of others. https://mss.boisestate.edu/tunnel-of-oppression/inside-the-tunnel/helms-white-racial-...