Secular trends in the study of Afro-American children: a review of Child Development, 1936-1980.

Abstract

Almost since its inception, the psychological study of Afro-American children has spawned heated debate. At issue most often have been the appropriateness of comparing the behavior of Afro-American children to that of Euro-American children, labeling as deficits differences found between these two groups, and using tests normed on Euro-American children to assess the development of Afro-American children (Howard & Scott, 1981; McLoyd & Randolph, 1984; Myers, Rana, & Harris, 1979). In the main, critics argue that the study of Afro-American children has been impoverished by the tether of the comparative framework and point to biases in procedures, instruments, and the interpretation of data that, in their view, invalidate a major portion of comparative research (Hall, 1974; Howard & Scott, 1981; Myers et al., 1979; Weems, 1974). In the present study, we examine secular trends in studies of Afro-