Open AccessLongitudinal relations between skin tone and self-esteem in African American girls.
Author(s) -
Elizabeth A. Adams,
Beth KurtzCostes,
Adam J. Hoffman,
Vanessa V. Volpe,
Stephanie J. Rowley
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
developmental psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.318
H-Index - 213
eISSN - 1939-0599
pISSN - 0012-1649
DOI - 10.1037/dev0001123
Subject(s) - psychology , self esteem , developmental psychology , psycinfo , late childhood , longitudinal study , tone (literature) , medicine , art , literature , medline , pathology , political science , law
We examined developmental changes in self-esteem from late childhood to late adolescence in African American girls ( N = 124), comparing skin tone groups. Girls completed a measure of self-esteem when they were in Grades 5, 7, 10, and 12, and in Grade 12 their skin tone was rated on a 3-point scale (1 = Light, 2 = Medium, 3 = Dark). Girls with lighter skin reported higher self-esteem than dark and medium-toned girls in Grades 5 and 7, and their self-esteem remained high across the seven years of the study. The self-esteem of dark- and medium-skinned girls increased in high school such that at Grade 12, medium-skinned girls had higher self-esteem than dark-skinned girls, who did not differ from light-skinned girls. The results are discussed in terms of theory-building on the topic of colorism. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).