Journal of Black Psychology current issue

Stigma, Culture, and HIV and AIDS in the Western Cape, South Africa: An Application of the PEN-3 Cultural Model for Community-Based Research

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:11:08 PDT

HIV- and AIDS-related stigma has been reported to be a major factor contributing to the spread of HIV. In this study, the authors explore the meaning of stigma and its impact on HIV and AIDS in South African families and health care centers. They conducted focus group and key informant interviews among African and Colored populations in Khayelitsha, Gugulethu, and Mitchell’s Plain in the Western Cape province. The audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and coded using NVivo. Using the PEN-3 cultural model, the authors analyzed results showing that participants’ shared experiences ranged from positive/nonstigmatizing, to existential/ unique to the contexts, to negative/stigmatizing. Families and health care centers were found to have both positive nonstigmatizing values and negative stigmatizing characteristics in addressing HIV/AIDS-related stigma. The authors conclude that a culture-centered analysis, relative to identity, is central to understanding the nature and contexts of HIV/AIDS-related stigma in South Africa.

"We Who Are Dark . . .:" The Black Community According to Black Adults in America: An Exploratory Content Analysis

Grayman, N. — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:11:08 PDT

The author explored the meaning of the Black community according to a purposeful sample of 60 Black adults in the mid-Atlantic United States. Purposeful stratified sampling resulted in equal numbers of participants along the lines of locale (Brooklyn, New York; Wilmington, Delaware; and Washington, D.C.), gender, and generational affiliation (older adults, middle-aged adults, and young adults). Content analysis of responses to a single open-ended survey question resulted in 11 emergent themes around the meaning of the Black community: the Black community as cultural, the Black community as residential, the Black community as global, the Black community as supportive, the Black community as visibly distinctive, the Black community as socioeconomic, the Black community as nonactualized, the Black community as nondifferential, the Black community as nihilistic, the Black community as nondefinable, and the Black community as other. Gender and generational variations in thematic endorsement were analyzed, and implications of these findings as they pertain to research, mental health programs, and policies for Blacks are discussed.

Black German Identities: Validating the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:11:09 PDT

This study examines the reliability and validity of a German version of the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity (MIBI) in a sample of 170 Black Germans. The internal consistencies of all subscales are at least moderate. The factorial structure of the MIBI, as assessed by principal component analysis, corresponds to a high degree to the supposed underlying dimensional structure. Construct validity was examined by analyzing (a) the intercorrelations of the MIBI subscales and (b) the correlations of the subscales with external variables. Predictive validity was assessed by analyzing the correlations of three MIBI subscales with the level of intra-racial contact. All but one prediction concerning the correlations of the subscales could be confirmed, suggesting high validity. No statistically significant negative association was observed between the Black nationalist and assimilationist ideology subscales. This result is discussed as a consequence of the specific social context Black Germans live in and is not considered to lower the MIBI’s validity. Observed differences in mean scores to earlier studies of African American racial identity are also discussed.

Stereotype Threat Paradigm in Search of a Phenomenon: A Comment on Kellow and Jones's (2008) Study

Whaley, A. L. — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:11:09 PDT

In a recent study, Kellow and Jones apply the stereotype threat paradigm to a sample of African American students attending an urban high school. The purpose of this commentary is to provide a conceptual and methodological critique of Kellow and Jones’s study. Implications for the role of Black psychologists in evaluating research on African American populations are discussed.

Associations Between Father-Daughter Relationship Quality and the Academic Engagement of African American Adolescent Girls: Self-Esteem as a Mediator?

Cooper, S. M. — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:11:09 PDT

Positive social interactions and relationships may play an influential role in the academic success of African American adolescent girls. Though studies have suggested that the paternal relationships are particularly consequential to girls’ outcomes, few studies exist that have explored how aspects of the father-daughter relationship contribute to their academic-related outcomes. Using a sample of 122 African American adolescent girls (M= 12.2 years; SD = 1.02), this study examined how father-daughter relationship quality was associated with academic engagement. An equally important goal of this investigation was to explore self-esteem (global and academic self-esteem) as a mediator of girls’ academic engagement. Findings indicated that quality of the father-daughter relationship was positively related to girls’ academic engagement. Also, both global and academic self-esteem mediated the link between father-daughter relationship quality and academic engagement. These findings suggest the importance of father-daughter relationship quality in both the academic engagement and self-esteem of African American adolescent girls.