Abstract
For children growing up in a racialized society such as the United States, the process of racialization is inevitable. Ethnic-racial socialization refers to the ways in which parents (and others) teach children about their race and ethnicity, but relatively little is known about how this occurs with young children. Even less is known about how children are taught critical consciousness, or how to think critically about the social construction of race and ethnicity. The present study proposes a framework for how race and ethnicity are socialized during early childhood to examine how children are taught to recognize and resist racism starting at young ages when they are first starting to observe and draw meaning from social categories. To test the framework, a mixed-methods pilot study was conducted with 74 parents (32% Latinx; 27% Black; 19% white; 11% Asian; 8% Multiracial; 3% indigenous) and their 3- to 7-year-old children. Data from behavioral observations of parent-child play sessions was coded to establish proof of concept for the framework. Findings were consistent with past research on ethnic-racial socialization and critical consciousness with adolescents, suggesting that even in early childhood, parents teach ethnic-racial heritage, ethnic-racial pride, preparation for bias, ethnic-racial diversity, acceptance and inclusion, appreciation of diversity, critical awareness, and critical action. Discussion will focus on how these strategies promote young children’s ethnic-racial identity, a developmental competency associated with positive and healthy outcomes, and critical consciousness, a competency that fosters resistance to racism.
Presenters
Esther CalzadaProfessor, School of Social Work, University of Texas at Austin, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Ethnic-racial Socialization, Critical Consciousness, Ethnic-racial Identity, Early Childhood
