The Formation of Multiracial IdentitiesPosted in Identity Development/Psychology, Papers/Presentations, United States on 2009-10-01 01:21Z by Steven |
The Formation of Multiracial Identities
Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association Annual Meeting,
Sheraton Boston and the Boston Marriott Copley Place
Boston, MA
2008-07-31
Crystal Bedley
Rutgers University
Since the 1970s, research on the multiracial population has been largely theoretically driven without substantial empirical investigation into how mixed-race people form a multiracial identity. This project articulates the historical, political, and cultural contexts that multiracial people experience living in the United States in order to build a foundation for exploring the particular social and cultural factors that influence multiracial identity development in mixed-race persons. In addition, this project bridges the psychological and sociological literatures on the multiracial population through its discussion of social/ecological influences on identity and identity theory. The author will conduct in-depth interviews (starting this spring) with 30-50 mixed-race respondents to better understand not only the multiracial identity formation process, but also to grasp the ways in which Hispanic/Latino identities complicate the formation of a multiracial identity, as well as exploring how context influences the expression of this identity.
Read the entire paper here.