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Journal of Black Psychology
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Black Students on White Campuses: Toward a Two-Dimensional Model of Black Acculturation

Elizabeth R. Cole

University of Michigan, ecole{at}umich.edu

Kimberly R. Jacob Arriola

Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University

This article conceptualizes Black students' adaptation to a predominantly White institution in terms of a model of acculturation that includes one orientation toward maintaining the cultural heritage and identity of one's own group and a second one tapping relations with the majority group. This approach acknowledges that acculturation need not entail exchanging one's cultural heritage for a new one. The present research developed an instrument to measure these orientations. In Study 1, factor analysis of responses from Black students (N = 216) revealed two factors: Culture, Heritage, and Identity (CHI) and Out-Group Comfort (OC). Study 2 (n = 83), found that CHI was positively associated with measures of Black identity and collective self-esteem and that OC was associated with intergroup anxiety. In Study 3 (n = 143), CHI was independently associated with viewing education as affording opportunities for success and recognizing that discrimination might temper those opportunities. Both aspects of acculturation were related in predicted ways with the Racelessness Scale. Implications of the results for Black college students' adjustment are discussed.

Key Words: African Americans • college students • race • out-group comfort • racelessness

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Journal of Black Psychology, Vol. 33, No. 4, 379-403 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/0095798407307046
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This Article
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