Influences on Positive Identity Development from an Intersectional Perspective

Background and Purpose: Many social work interventions with youth are informed by a Positive Youth Development (PYD) approach, which posits that a universal set of developmental assets contribute to healthy developmental outcomes, such as positive self-identity, for all youth. A strong and positive self-identity provides youth with a foundation to develop the interpersonal and individual skills that facilitate healthy decision making, positive relationships, and contributions to community well-being. However, developing a positive self-identity within a social context of systemic oppression can be a more complex task for youth from traditionally marginalized backgrounds than for their dominant culture peers. Using an intersectional (race/ethnicity x gender) lens, the current study sought to quantify the relative contribution of selected influences (PYD assets and key constructs from models of minority youth development) on the self-identity of youth in order to better inform design of interventions and programming intended to foster positive identity development.

Methods: 5171 middle and high school students completed the School Success Profile (SSP), a multi-dimensional self-report of the socioenvironmental context for learning both in and out of school. Total scores on the Positive Sense of Self subscale served as the dependent variable. Independent variables representing key developmental influences were operationalized by total scores on relevant subscales of the SSP. Separate hierarchical regression models were run for each intersectional identity group and results were compared to identify significant contributors to positive self-identity at the universal and group-specific levels.

Results: Three constructs operated universally, demonstrating statistically significant associations with positive self-identity for all groups: family social support, future orientation, and emotional regulation.

Comparison of results between intersectional identity groups revealed that the positive self-identities of Black girls were significantly associated with a greater number of both positive and negative influences than those of any other group. In addition to the three universally beneficial constructs, Black girls’ self-identities were significantly impacted by experiences of microaggressions, neighborhood safety, behavior of other youth in the neighborhood, quality and amount of sleep, school engagement, and participation in extracurricular activities.

Conclusions and Implications:

Incorporating opportunities for family support and participation, providing healthy strategies for emotional regulation, and helping youth imagine hopeful and feasible futures are likely to be effective strategies to foster positive self-identity development at the universal level and/or with a diverse group of youth. However, results of this study also align with prior research showing that identity development can be a more complicated task for youth with marginalized identities. Black girls in the study were required to manage more positive and negative influences on their self-identities. The complexity involved in navigating these additional influences may be reflective of the complex social location of Black women and girls, including the barrage of often-contradictory messages and stereotypes about who Black women are, can, and should be. Interventions to foster positive self-identity development among Black girls must acknowledge and build upon their collective and individual strengths while also addressing the contradictions and challenges of growing up in a society with intersectional oppression.