Impact of Experiences With Racism on African-Descent Persons’ Susceptibility to Stereotype Threat Within the United Kingdom
Abstract
The present study examines the impact of experiences with individual, institutional, cultural, and collective racism on susceptibility to stereotype among African-descent persons within the United Kingdom (n = 103). Results of hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that (contrary to hypotheses) experiences with individual, institutional, and cultural racism were not significantly or marginally related to susceptibility to stereotype threat when entered together in Model 1. However (consistent with hypotheses), experience with collective racism was a significant positive predictor of susceptibility to stereotype threat after controlling for the effects of experiences with individual, institutional, and cultural racism in Model 2. Moreover (and unexpectedly), once experience with collective racism was added, experience with cultural racism emerged as a marginal negative predictor of susceptibility to stereotype threat. Implications for the continuing relevance of Erving Goffman’s symbolic interactionist theory and construct of stigma, along with Claude Steele’s construct of stereotype threat, to the field of Black psychology is discussed.