Identity development is a critical process common to the human experience across all demographics. While everyone engages in identity development, the range of nuances in identity that need to be navigated makes the process more complicated. As children progress through adolescence, developing their unique identity becomes a vital task in which…

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields face persistent disparities in racial, ethnic and gender representation; these disparities are even more pronounced in computer science (CS) fields where women of color comprise 1 percent or less of all employees. These inequalities, and their causes, are complex, systemic, and result…

This article presents the experiences of Multiracial students at a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and the unique challenges they face in exploring their racial identities and finding belonging.

With the increased focus on multicultural education in colleges and universities, there is a need for educators to have a profound knowledge of White racial identity development to better understand White students' resistance to multicultural topics and to facilitate their racial identity development. An integration of Helms's White racial…

Racial identity development among college students with parents from different heritage groups was largely unexplored until the 1990s, when two forces--one demographic, the other theoretical--converged to stimulate interest in understanding the experiences and identities of biracial and multiracial youth. The increasing number of students from two…

This article provides insight into the recent appearance of multiracial student services in U.S. higher education by presenting a review of current practice within student affairs administration. The authors begin by discussing the historical and social context for multiracial student services within prevailing approaches to multicultural identity…

Racial and ethnic identity development have been important topics in counseling psychology research for the last four decades. At present, however, there appears to be some confusion and debate regarding the quality of theory and measurement in the topical area. The present article serves as an introduction to this Journal of Counseling Psychology…

This piece recounts personal changes I underwent while collecting data for my dissertation. Stemming from my own personal experiences of anomie and feelings of not belonging to the languages and cultures of either Canada or Israel, this inquiry examined the collusion of my attitudes with the attitudes of advanced Hebrew learners of diverse…

Presents and describes the adolescent developmental pathways paradigm, a rites-of-passage model for African American youth that provides a developmental framework for ethnic identity development and integrates it into the current literature on adolescent rites of passage. Attention is given to the ecological context within which adolescent-focused…

In a world where socially constructed categories of race are misconstrued as biological, the author, a light-skinned "Black," found herself unacceptable to both sides. From exploring her own Blackness to owning both her Whiteness and her Blackness, her story explores the biracial experience that goes beyond racial identity models. (EMK)

Human beings tell stories to make sense of their experiences. Implications of this position for counseling are explored, using the author's experiences as the son of a Native American. His decision at age 11 to leave home for a better life is described as a critical incident. (EMK)

Racial identity is important in a person's identity. The author's experiences growing up a working-class White among Blacks and working on an all-Black project are recounted. What it is to be an ally in the racial struggle is discussed, and ideas for counseling students of color are provided. (EMK)

Authenticity as a biracial individual means presenting oneself as a whole individual of multiple racial origins. This author recounts his experiences of being biracial. Looking white, he has experienced both discrimination and preference from both class and racial memberships or lack of it. (EMK)

Assimilation does not assure acceptance in the "melting pot" United States. Ethnic self-identity and acceptance of the journey process are the prizes this writer has earned from her journey. She discusses the experience of "passing," and the reasons why some individuals would choose not to. (EMK)

Recommends developing a secure, positive sense of one's racial identity through questioning preexisting attitudes and examining the past and present relationships between one's own and other groups. Describes several models of positive ethnic identity development for minority and white students. Discusses the implications of this research for…