ERIC Number: EJ779925
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007-Nov
Pages: 9
Abstractor: Author
Reference Count: 0
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0012-1649
Role Taking in Online "Classrooms": What Adolescents Are Learning about Race and Ethnicity
Tynes, Brendesha M.
Developmental Psychology, v43 n6 p1312-1320 Nov 2007
Adolescents recruited from chat rooms were interviewed via instant messaging about their interracial and inter ethnic experiences online. The types of messages participants sent and received about race on the Internet were identified using thematic analysis. Of particular interest within these online exchanges was what and how participants learned about racial issues. Data revealed that racialized role taking--the adoption and enactment of race-related identities--was a primary means of learning about race in the online settings adolescents visited. Participants assumed these identities in 6 capacities: as sympathizers, advocates, discussants, witnesses, targets, and friends. In doing so, they learned a wide range of information from their interracial and interethnic interlocutors, including various cultural practices and belief systems, the consequences of racial prejudice, and the ways in which racial oppression affects the lives of people of color. Participants were also exposed to negative stereotypes and racial prejudice against their own and other ethnic groups online. Findings underscore the need to counter online racial prejudice and promote the more positive aspects of what adolescents learn about race and ethnicity online.
Descriptors: Racial Bias, Ethnicity, Race, Ethnic Stereotypes, Beliefs, Adolescents, Computer Mediated Communication, Negative Attitudes, Racial Attitudes, Racial Relations, Cultural Awareness
American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org/publications
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
Identifiers: N/A

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