2008/09/01 by Inna Altschul, Daphna Oyserman, Deborah Bybee · 1 citation
Social Sciences · #Racial and Ethnic Identity Research #School Choice and Performance #Critical Race Theory in Education
paper · doi:10.1177/019027250807100309
openalex publication_date 2008/09/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/19
How are racial-ethnic identity and acculturation processes linked, and when do they have positive consequences for academic achievement and assimilation trajectory? To address these issues this study integrates two frameworks—segmented assimilation (Portes and Rumbaut 2001) and racial-ethnic self-schema (Oyserman et al. 2003)—that focus on how immigrant and minority youth identify with their in-group and American society at large and link these patterns of racial-ethnic identity with academic outcomes. Segmented assimilation describes how context influences identity and subsequently assimilation trajectory, while racial-ethnic self-schema theory relates differences in identity content to academic achievement. Integration of the two frameworks provides a more robust model of identity influences across contexts. Predicted relationships within inhospitable contexts were tested using structural equation models connecting three measures of acculturation—immigrant generation in the United States, Spanish-use, and identity—to academic achievement of Hispanic youth (n = 185) living in low-income, urban neighborhoods. “Thick” in-group focused identities, and “thin” aschematic identities were associated with lower achievement, while bridging identities linking connection to one's in-group with overcoming obstacles in broader society were associated with positive outcomes. Endorsement of aschematic identities increased with generation in the U.S., suggesting that downward mobility is facilitated by “thin” rather than “thick” identities. Content of identity was the most important predictor of achievement.