Racial Attitudes of Black Preschoolers as Related to Parental Civil Rights Activism.

Abstract

Research on black children's racial attitudes, preference and pride essentially began with the work of Clark and Clark (1939, 1947) and Horowitz (1939). Recently, several authors have sug gested that racial attitudes of black children have changed in the decades since these studies (e.g.. Brand, Ruiz, & Padilla, 1974; Hraba & Grant, 1970). Hraba and Grant found greater numbers of black doll choices than Clark and Clark (1947). However, this result could have been due to regional differences or different amounts of inter racial contact, rather than to historical change. Similarly, McAdoo (1976) found more black choices over time in a longitudinal study, with children tested first in 1969 at 4-5 years and in 1974 at 9-10 years, but the greater age of the children at follow-up could explain the change as well as historical change in attitudes. It is difficult to study historical change unconfounded with age without using complicated cohort-sequential designs. However, if one has hypotheses concerning the active agent in historical change, one can, in a cross-sectional design, compare children who vary in exposure to this active agent. In the present case, if activism in the Black Movement is the relevant variable, as is often suggested, chil dren of activists should show higher levels of black choice than chil dren of nonactivists. Studies suggest that there are durable differences between activ ists and nonactivists. Fendrich (1974, 1976) found that black and white student activists remain politically active as they grew older, and are more likely to work in the knowledge and human services industries, receive graduate education and place low value on ex This article is based on an M.S. thesis conducted by the first author under the direction of the second author. A report of the research was presented at the meetings of the Eastern Psychological Association, Philadelphia, 1979. The