Healthy ethnic-racial identity means( Eddie 2025)
› Understanding one’ s own ethnic heritage and racial background
› Recognizing that concepts of race and ethnicity are human constructs
› Noticing unfairness and working toward fairness for everyone
It has been linked to higher self-esteem, increased empathy toward others, and greater academic achievement( e. g., Rivas-Drake et al. 2014; Umaña-Taylor et al. 2014; Arroyo-Ramírez et al. 2021). Conversely, unhealthy ethnic-racial identity has been linked to negative feelings toward self, harmful bias toward others, lower academic achievement, and increased health risks( Rivas-Drake et al. 2014; Umaña-Taylor et al. 2014).
Children’ s development depends upon a number of factors( Kranzler 2020; Berk 2022). The messages they receive about ethnicity and race from their environments and other people are key drivers of their developing ethnic-racial identities( Quintana 1998; Hughes et al. 2006). These messages are called ethnic-racial socialization, and they are never perceived as neutral. Rather, they either perpetuate or disrupt negative messages about ethnicity and race( Jemal & Bussey 2022; Meltzoff & Gilliam 2024; Eddie 2025).
see color”)( Vittrup 2018; Zucker & Patterson 2018). This approach, however, can contribute to unhealthy ethnic-racial identities: People feel unseen when their differences are unacknowledged and / or unappreciated( Farago et al. 2019). Further, ignoring differences can lead to a denial of racial inequities( Curenton & Iruka 2013; Derman-Sparks & Edwards, with Goins 2020). It takes intentional practices to disrupt this harmful approach( Loyd & Gaither 2018).
Ethnic-Racial Socialization in Early Childhood Settings
Preferences toward the familiar and categorizing people based on their appearances are normal developmental processes( e. g., Bar-Haim et al. 2006; Bigler & Liben 2007). However, if left unchecked, these tendencies can leave children vulnerable to messages that promote racial hierarchy and a fear of differences( Farago et al. 2019; Waxman 2021; see Gilliam et al. 2016 for information on unconcious bias). Additionally, bias based on ethnicity and race can lead to isolation and exclusion( Perszyk et al. 2019; Sturdivant & Alanis 2021).
While all children are exposed to ethnic-racial socialization, research shows that those from minoritized communities more often receive explicit messages( e. g., Hughes et al. 2006). Their families connect race and ethnicity to positive factors, such as cultural pride(“ Black is beautiful”;“ This is a special tradition from our culture”). They also use ethnic-racial socialization as a protective factor, such as helping prepare their children for bias( Quintana 1998; Hughes et al. 2006). This would include having conversations with young children to explain how some people might treat them differently because of how they look or offering ways to respond if someone makes an inappropriate comment about their ethnicity or race.
Of course, these messages are not restricted to minoritized populations. Children in White-identifying families also experience ethnic-racial socialization( Hazelbaker et al. 2022)— most commonly to emphasize sameness and minimize differences( e. g.,“ We don’ t
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