Abstract
Ethnic–racial identity (i.e., individuals’ beliefs about their ethnic–racial group membership and the processes through which they develop those beliefs) is a developmental competency that can promote adolescents’ adjustment; however, the extant literature has largely focused on how distinct dimensions of ethnic–racial identity are associated with adjustment (i.e., variable-centered approaches), potentially obscuring a more holistic understanding of this developmental competency. The current study utilized latent profile analysis, a person-centered approach, to examine profiles of ethnic–racial identity among Black (n = 325; Mage = 15.94, SD = 1.14) and Latinx (n = 370; Mage = 16.13, SD = 1.10) adolescents as well as links between profile membership and adjustment. Three ethnic–racial identity profiles emerged: Diffuse & Low Regard (n = 55; lower development, lower self-concept); Diffuse & High Regard (n = 160; lower development, higher self-concept); and Developed & Idealized (n = 477; higher development, higher self-concept). The profile highest in ethnic–racial identity across all indicators reported the highest levels of adjustment. The findings highlight the synergistic benefits of ethnic–racial identity development and positive self-concept for adolescents’ psychosocial and academic adjustment.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Akaike, H. (1974). A new look at the statistical model identification. IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, 19(6), 716–723. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAC.1974.1100705
Asparouhov, T., & Muthén, B. (2014). Auxiliary variables in mixture modeling: three-step approaches using Mplus. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 21(3), 329–341. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705511.2014.915181
Asparouhov, T., & Muthén, B. (2020). Auxiliary variables in mixture modeling: using the BCH method in Mplus to estimate a distal outcome model and an arbitrary secondary model. Mplus Web Notes, 21(7), 1–49
Azmitia, M., Syed, M., & Radmacher, K. (2013). Finding your niche: Identity and emotional support in emerging adults’ adjustment to the transition to college. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 23(4), 744–761. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12037
Bakk, Z., Tekle, F. B., & Vermunt, J. K. (2013). Estimating the association between latent class membership and external variables using bias-adjusted three-step approaches. Sociological Methodology, 43(1), 272–311. https://doi.org/10.1177/0081175012470644
Bakk, Z., & Vermunt, J. K. (2016). Robustness of stepwise latent class modeling with continuous distal outcomes. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 23(1), 20–31. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705511.2014.955104
Bolck, A., Croon, M., & Hagenaars, J. (2004). Estimating latent structure models with categorical variables: one-step versus three-step estimators. Political Analysis, 12(1), 3–27. https://doi.org/10.1093/pan/mph001
Celeux, G., & Soromenho, G. (1996). An entropy criterion for assessing the number of clusters in a mixture model. Journal of Classification, 13(2), 195–212. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01246098
Chavous, T. M., Bernat, D. H., Schmeelk-Cone, K., Caldwell, C. H., Kohn-Wood, L., & Zimmerman, M. A. (2003). Racial identity and academic attainment among African American adolescents. Child Development, 74(4), 1076–1090. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00593
Collins, L. M., & Lanza, S. T. (2010). Latent class and latent transition analysis with applications in the social behavioral, and health sciences. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley
Cross, W. E., & Cross, T. B. (2008). Theory, research, and models. In S. M. Quintana, & C. McKown (Eds.), Handbook of race, racism, and the developing child (pp. 154–181). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons
Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49(1), 71–75. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa4901_13
Dynarski, S. (2004). The new merit aid. In College choices: the economics of where to go, when to go, and how to pay for it (pp. 63–100). University of Chicago Press
Dunn, E. C., Milliren, C. E., Evans, C. R., Subramanian, S. V., & Richmond, T. K. (2015). Disentangling the relative influence of schools and neighborhoods on adolescents’ risk for depressive symptoms. American Journal of Public Health, 105(4), 732–740. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2014.302374
Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: youth in crisis. New York, NY: Norton
Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Burrow, A. L., & Ong, A. D. (2011). Changes in racial identity among African American college students following the election of Barack Obama. Developmental Psychology, 47(6), 1608–1618. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025284
Harper, B. E., & Tuckman, B. W. (2007). Racial identity beliefs and academic achievement: does being black hold students back? Social Psychology of Education, 9(4), 381–403. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-006-9001-z
Hickendorff, M., Edelsbrunner, P. A., McMullen, J., Schneider, M., & Trezise, K. (2018). Informative tools for characterizing individual differences in learning: latent class, latent profile, and latent transition analysis. Learning and Individual Differences, 66, 4–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2017.11.001
Himmelfarb, S., & Murrell, S. A. (1983). Reliability and validity of five mental health scales in older persons. Journal of Gerontology, 38(3), 333–339. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronj/38.3.333
Hughes, D., Rodriguez, J., Smith, E. P., Johnson, D. J., Stevenson, H. C., & Spicer, P. (2006). Parents’ ethnic-racial socialization practices: a review of research and directions for future study. Developmental Psychology, 42(5), 747–770. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.42.5.747
Jlala, H. A., French, J. L., Foxall, G. L., Hardman, J. G., & Bedforth, N. M. (2010). Effect of preoperative multimedia information on perioperative anxiety in patients undergoing procedures under regional anaesthesia. British Journal of Anaesthesia, 104(3), 369–374. https://doi.org/10.1093/bja/aeq002
Jung, T., & Wickrama, K. A. S. (2008). An introduction to latent class growth analysis and growth mixture modeling. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2(1), 302–317. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2007.00054.x
Knowles, E. D., & Peng, K. (2005). White selves: conceptualizing and measuring a dominant-group identity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89, 223–241. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.89.2.223
Marcia, J. E. (1994). The empirical study of ego identity. In H. A. Bosma, T. L. G. Graafsma, H. D. Grotevant, & D. J. de Levita (Eds.), Identity and development: an interdisciplinary approach, Sage focus editions, Vol. 172 (pp. 67–80). Sage Publications, Inc
McDermott, E. R., Umaña‐Taylor, A. J., Schaefer, D. R., Martinez‐Fuentes, S., Co, L., Ison, A., Ryan, A. M., & Rivas‐Drake, D. (2020). The structure of educational inequity: adolescents’ access to parent education through friendship networks and its impact on academic outcomes. Social Development. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12494
McLarnon, M. J. W., & O’Neill, T. A. (2018). Extensions of auxiliary variable approaches for the investigation of mediation, moderation, and conditional effects in mixture models. Organizational Research Methods, 21(4), 955–982. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428118770731
Muthén, L. K. & & Muthén, B. O. (1996). Mplus user’s guide. 8th ed. Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén. 2018
Miller-Cotto, D., & Byrnes, J. P. (2016). Ethnic/racial identity and academic achievement: a meta-analytic review. Developmental Review, 41, 51–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2016.06.003
Mitchell, K. S., & Mazzeo, S. E. (2004). Binge eating and psychological distress in ethnically diverse undergraduate men and women. Eating Behaviors, 5(2), 157–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2003.07.004
Nasserinejad, K., van Rosmalen, J., de Kort, W., & Lesaffre, E. (2017). Comparison of criteria for choosing the number of classes in Bayesian finite mixture models. PLoS ONE, 12(1), e0168838 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0168838
Neblett, E. W., Rivas-Drake, D., & Umaña-Taylor, A. J. (2012). The promise of racial and ethnic protective factors in promoting ethnic minority youth development. Child Development Perspectives, 6(3), 295–303. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1750-8606.2012.00239.x
Nylund, K. L., Asparouhov, T., & Muthén, B. O. (2007). Deciding on the number of classes in latent class analysis and growth mixture modeling: a Monte Carlo Simulation Study. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 14(4), 535–569. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705510701575396
O’Connor, M., Sanson, A., Hawkins, M. T., Letcher, P., Toumbourou, J. W., Smart, D., Vassallo, S., & Olsson, C. A. (2011). Predictors of positive development in emerging adulthood. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40(7), 860–874. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-010-9593-7
Ortiz, P. (2018). An African American and Latinx history of the United States. Boston, MA: Beacon Press
Phinney, J. S. (1993). A three-stage model of ethnic identity development in adolescence. In M. E. Bernal (Ed.), Ethnic identity: formation and transmission among Hispanics and other minorities (pp. 61–79). Albany: State University of New York Press
Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D scale: a self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1(3), 385–401. https://doi.org/10.1177/014662167700100306
Roberts, R. E., Lewinsohn, P. M., & Seeley, J. R. (1991). Screening for adolescent depression: a comparison of depression scales. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 30(1), 58–66. https://doi.org/10.1097/00004583-199101000-00009
Rivas-Drake, D., Lozada, F. T., Pinetta, B. J., & Jagers, R. J. (2020). School-based social-emotional learning and ethnic-racial identity among African American and Latino adolescents. Youth & Society, 52(7), 1331–1354. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X20939736
Rivas-Drake, D., Syed, M., Umaña-Taylor, A., Markstrom, C., French, S., Schwartz, S. J., Lee, R., & Ethnic and Racial Identity in the 21st Century Study Group. (2014). Feeling good, happy, and proud: a meta-analysis of positive ethnic-racial affect and adjustment. Child Development, 85(1), 77–102. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12175
Rosenberg, M. (1979). Conceiving the self. New York, NY: Basic Books
Rosenthal, D. A., Gurney, R. M., & Moore, S. M. (1981). From trust on intimacy: a new inventory for examining Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 10(6), 525–537. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02087944
Schwartz, S. J., Beyers, W., Luyckx, K., Soenens, B., Zamboanga, B. L., Forthun, L. F., Hardy, S. A., Vazsonyi, A. T., Ham, L. S., Kim, S. Y., Whitbourne, S. K., & Waterman, A. S. (2011). Examining the light and dark sides of emerging adults’ identity: a study of identity status differences in positive and negative psychosocial functioning. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40(7), 839–859. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-010-9606-6
Schwartz, S. J., Zamboanga, B. L., & Jarvis, L. H. (2007). Ethnic identity and acculturation in Hispanic early adolescents: mediated relationships to academic grades, prosocial behaviors, and externalizing symptoms. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 13(4), 364–373. https://doi.org/10.1037/1099-9809.13.4.364
Schwartz, S. J., Zamboanga, B. L., Wang, W., & Olthuis, J. V. (2009). Measuring identity from an Eriksonian perspective: two sides of the same coin? Journal of Personality Assessment, 91(2), 143–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223890802634266
Sclove, S. L. (1987). Application of model-selection criteria to some problems in multivariate analysis. Psychometrika, 52(3), 333–343. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02294360
Scottham, K. M., Cooke, D. Y., Sellers, R. M., & Ford, K. (2010). Integrating process with content in understanding African American racial identity development. Self and Identity, 9(1), 19–40. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298860802505384
Seaton, E. K. (2009). Perceived racial discrimination and racial identity profiles among African American adolescents. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 15(2), 137–144. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015506
Seaton, E. K., Caldwell, C. H., Sellers, R. M., & Jackson, J. S. (2010). An intersectional approach for understanding perceived discrimination and psychological well-being among African American and Caribbean Black youth. Developmental Psychology, 46(5), 1372–1379. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019869
Seaton, E. K., Scottham, K. M., & Sellers, R. M. (2006). The status model of racial identity development in African American adolescents: evidence of structure, trajectories and well-being. Child Development, 77, 1416–1426. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00944.x
Sellers, R. M., Rowley, S. A. J., Chavous, T. M., Shelton, J. N., & Smith, M. A. (1997). Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity: a preliminary investigation of reliability and constuct validity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73(4), 805–815. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.73.4.805
Sellers, R. M., & Shelton, J. N. (2003). The role of racial identity in perceived racial discrimination. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(5), 1079–1092. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.5.1079
Sellers, R. M., Smith, M. A., Shelton, J. N., Rowley, S. A. J., & Chavous, T. M. (1998). Multidimensional model of racial identity: a reconceptualization of African American racial identity. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 2(1), 18–39. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327957pspr0201_2
Skinner, E. A., Kindermann, T. A., & Furrer, C. J. (2009). A motivational perspective on engagement and disaffection: conceptualization and assessment of children’s behavioral and emotional participation in academic activities in the classroom. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 69(3), 493–525. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164408323233
Sladek, M. R., Umaña-Taylor, A. J., McDermott, E. R., Rivas-Drake, D., & Martinez-Fuentes, S. (2020). Testing invariance of ethnic-racial discrimination and identity measures for adolescents across ethnic-racial groups and contexts. Psychological Assessment, 32(6), 509–526. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000805
Smalls, C., & Cooper, S. M. (2012). Racial group regard, barrier socialization, and African American adolescents’ engagement: patterns and processes by gender. Journal of Adolescence, 35(4), 887–897. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.12.007
Smokowski, P. R., Rose, R. A., & Bacallao, M. (2010). Influence of risk factors and cultural assets on latino adolescents’ trajectories of self-esteem and internalizing symptoms. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 41(2), 133–155. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-009-0157-6
Smith, T. B., & Silva, L. (2011). Ethnic identity and personal well-being of people of color: a meta-analysis. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 58, 42–60. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021528
Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., & Lushene, R. E. (1970). Manual for the state-trait anxiety inventory. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press
Syed, M., Walker, L. H. M., Lee, R. M., Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Zamboanga, B. L., Schwartz, S. J., Armenta, B. E., & Huynh, Q.-L. (2013). A two-factor model of ethnic identity exploration: Implications for identity coherence and well-being. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 19(2), 143–154. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030564
Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1986). The social identity theory of intergroup behaviour. In S. Worchel, & W. G. Austin (Eds.), The psychology of intergroup relations, Vol. 2 (pp. 7–24). New York, NY: Nelson Hall
Tein, J.-Y., Coxe, S., & Cham, H. (2013). Statistical power to detect the correct number of classes in latent profile analysis. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 20(4), 640–657. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705511.2013.824781
Umaña-Taylor, A. J. (2016). Ethnic-racial identity: conceptualization, development, and associations with youth adjustment. In L. Balter, & C. S. Tamis-LeMonda (Eds.), Child psychology: a handbook of contemporary issues (3rd ed., pp. 305–327). New York, NY: Psychology Press, Taylor & Francis
Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Kornienko, O., Douglass Bayless, S., & Updegraff, K. A. (2018). A universal intervention program increases ethnic-racial identity exploration and resolution to predict adolescent psychosocial functioning one year later. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-017-0766-5
Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Quintana, S. M., Lee, R. M., Cross, W. E., Rivas-Drake, D., Schwartz, S. J., Syed, M., Yip, T., & Seaton, E., Ethnic and Racial Identity in the 21st Century Study Group. (2014). Ethnic and racial identity during adolescence and into young adulthood: an integrated conceptualization. Child Development, 85(1), 21–39. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12196
Umaña-Taylor, A. J., & Updegraff, K. A. (2007). Latino adolescents’ mental health: exploring the interrelations among discrimination, ethnic identity, cultural orientation, self-esteem, and depressive symptoms. Journal of Adolescence, 30(4), 549–567. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2006.08.002
Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Vargas-Chanes, D., Garcia, C. D., & Gonzales-Backen, M. (2008). A longitudinal examination of Latino adolescents’ ethnic identity, coping with discrimination, and self-esteem. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 28(1), 16–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431607308666
Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Yazedjian, A., & Bámaca-Gómez, M. (2004). Developing the ethnic identity scale using Eriksonian and social identity perspectives. Identity, 4(1), 9–38. https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532706XID0401_2
Vermunt, J. K., & Magidson, J. (2002). Latent class cluster analysis. In J. A. Hagenaars, & A. L. McCutcheon (Eds.), Applied latent class analysis (1st ed., pp. 89–106). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511499531.004
Wantchekon, K. A., Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Sladek, M. R., McDermott, E. R., & Updegraff, K. A. (2021). Adolescents’ ethnic-racial centrality moderates effect of school-based intervention on ethnic-racial identity exploration. Developmental Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001150
Xie, M., Fowle, J., Ip, P. S., Haskin, M., & Yip, T. (2021). Profiles of ethnic-racial identity, socialization, and model minority experiences: associations with well-being among Asian American adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-021-01436-w
Yip, T. (2014). Ethnic identity in everyday life: the influence of identity development status. Child Development, 85(1), 205–219. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12107
Yip, T., Seaton, E. K., & Sellers, R. M. (2006). African American racial identity across the lifespan: identity status, identity content, and depressive symptoms. Child Development, 77(5), 1504–1517. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00950.x
Acknowledgements
We are grateful to the students who participated in survey data collection as well as the teachers and school administrators who facilitated data collection. We also thank Diamond Bravo, Michelle Capriles-Escobedo, Chelsea Derlan, Sara Douglass, Lluliana Flores, Stefanie Martinez-Fuentes, Alicia Godinez, Elizabeth Harvey-Mendoza, Steven Hobaica, Nicole Hollis, Olga Kornienko, Vanessa Martinez-Morales, Danielle Seay, M. Dalal Safa, and Benjamin Smith for their contributions to the research process.
Authors’ Contributions
K.A.W. conceived of the research questions, ran the statistical analyses, and drafted the manuscript; A.J.U.-T. conceived of the larger study, secured funding for, organized, and managed data collection, and worked closely with K.A.W. throughout the conceptualization of the current study, analyses, and the writing process, providing iterative feedback on the analytic process, the interpretation of the data, and manuscript drafts. Both authors have read and approved of the final manuscript.
Funding
Data collection was funded by internal funds from the Latino Resilience Enterprise in the T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics at Arizona State University.
Data Sharing and Declaration
This manuscript’s data will not be deposited.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
Ethical Approval
Data collection was conducted in accordance with APA ethical guidelines for the participation of human subjects and a University Institutional Review Board approved the informed consent and procedures.
Informed Consent
Informed parental consent and youth assent was obtained from all participants whose data are included in this study.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wantchekon, K.A., Umaña-Taylor, A.J. Relating Profiles of Ethnic–Racial Identity Process and Content to the Academic and Psychological Adjustment of Black and Latinx Adolescents. J Youth Adolescence 50, 1333–1352 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-021-01451-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-021-01451-x