Culturally Relevant Framework

Toward a Culturally Relevant Developmental
Framework for Urban Young Adults of Color

Objectives

Control Question: How might adolescent developmental and literacy concepts translate into a creative website format that validates the perspectives, supports the priorities, and promotes the personal passions of urban young adults of color?

Despite using the structure and process of inventing a website targeted to teens, this research project is principally intended to increase understanding of diverse urban youth. Project design includes a secondary emphasis of inquiry connected to culture.  Focus Question: Do cultural background and ethnic identity have the effect of highlighting or intensifying particular markers of adolescent development? 

Additionally, research materials were manipulated in order to compare established theories about adolescence with the actual experiences of a young African American male. While the creation of a working website is beyond the scope of this project, the fourth research component has a practical objective. Themes and patterns in the findings will be analyzed and organized into the core concepts and guiding principles of a culturally relevant framework, specific to urban adolescents of color. 

This report has been ordered into three main sections: overview of approach, procedures and teen research partner; data and analysis; project findings and consequent framework.

Overview

Along with the stresses associated with adolescence, African American youth in urban communities must cope with the challenges and demands of economic and social disadvantage. Young Black males, in particular, face difficult challenges as recorded in numerous studies and reports on the African American educational achievement gap and social opportunity gap. Extensive literature on this subject has established that cultural influences such as oppression, discrimination, racial prejudice and stereotyping can negatively impact a Black adolescent’s concept of self and complicate his ability to envision a positive role in society.

Procedures: Based on the broadly accepted research that has defined markers characterizing adolescent development, an initial series of prompts and probative questions were created. Developmental research was distilled and assembled into three charts. Although these charts contain similar types of information, they were treated as separate checklists to guide the collection of data and focus interpretation of results. The three charts – fully itemized in the Addendum to this document – catalogue Adolescent Developmental Markers (ADM), Developmental Themes of Adolescence (DTA), and Core Concepts of Adolescence (CCA). Information was collected through two, mid-May 2011 telephone interviews, and two follow-up discussions approximately three weeks later in June with a teen study participant. The project partner was evaluated to assess personal attitudes and self-concept, outlook on social issues concerning equity and opportunity, and observations about the developmental patterns of his peers. Based on his cultural background, it was predicted that the respondent’s attitudes and experiences would most strongly correlate with the particular hallmarks of adolescence that involve identity formation (self-esteem), a sense of isolation, and feelings of social vulnerability.

Study Participant: The project teen partner, referred to in this report as Ritchie, is a 16-year-old African American male public high school student preparing to enter his senior year. Ritchie feels supported at home. He enjoys several close friendships, mostly with young men. Ritchie also feels supported at school by teachers and other adults. He is decidedly optimistic. While experiencing some personal problems and pressures at this time in his life, he is generally quite hopeful about his future. Ritchie is not certain of his career plans, but is very interested in music production and audio engineering. Asked if he believed society would fairly give him, as a young Black man, the same opportunity to be successful as anybody else, Ritchie responded in the affirmative. However, he felt he might have to work harder than others, depending on the area of employment. Asked if he believed his efforts and hard work toward becoming successful would be recognized and rewarded by society, Ritchie responded, “Of course!”

Data and Analysis

HOPES

Target Audience

Research Data: Diverse Urban Teen Perspectives

• Results of ADM rating scale: Ritchie verified his personal experience with each of the developmental issues – to some degree. Of the ten markers reviewed, Ritchie most strongly related to the following four: (1) quest for identity; (2) high idealism; (3) self-consciousness and sensitivity to criticism; and (4) desires independence while also needing support and guidance. Ritchie least identified with the ADM – “peers becoming paramount.”
• Results of DTA rating scale: Respondent has personally experienced some degree of most themes. Of the nine, Ritchie most identified with the following: (1) highly charged emotionalism and intensity; (2) a sense of isolation and/or being an outcast; (3) acute awareness of the social world and your place within it; and (4) a raw vulnerability in facing the world and its relationship in a very different way.
• Partner’s view of himself and other African American teens: Ritchie has a great deal of creative energy. He was eager to give opinions and wanted to more fully participate in the actual design elements. He gladly offered to contribute his computer skills in music and photography. Ritchie’s favorite possession is his computer. He reports that the favorite activities of urban youth are music, sports, shopping, dating, hanging with friends, and partying. Ritchie seemed hesitant to speak freely about drug and alcohol use. Ritchie became animated and direct when requested to list the community and social issues of chief concern to himself and African American youth. He quickly specified the following items: (1) government corruption; (2) how Black teens feel treated -- disrespected -- in school; (3) trouble with racism and prejudice; and (4) discrimination in the police department and judicial system. No, Ritchie has never personally had interaction with police. Yes, he has experienced discrimination – and believes most young people of color have experienced prejudice and discrimination.
• Partner’s literary awarenesses and insights: Ritchie spoke quite eloquently about literature, expressing the view that books and stories provide “metaphors to think about life.” Teens of all cultural backgrounds, according to Ritchie, are more likely to read and enjoy items that are short. He is also certain that the ability of teens to respond and share opinions about what they read is vital to the success of a site aimed at young people. For Black youth in particular, Ritchie sees music as a far more popular and important vehicle of expression than literature. Other than a gaming magazine, he rarely reads for pleasure, and seldom discusses books with friends. Teens would probably prefer lighter books -- comedies or “action books.”  Ritchie believes Black teenagers prefer books by Black writers. Asked for his favorite author, Ritchie seemed quite proud to give the name, Walter Dean Myers.

Research Analysis: Observations of Developmental Patterns in Partner

Ritchie was reluctant to group all Black teens together. Several times, he emphasized that individual differences are important. Physically, Ritchie feels healthy, but he is always extremely tired.  He is so tired at times that he falls asleep in class – but Ritchie insists he gets plenty of regular sleep. Ritchie is struggling in school. He relates his education difficulties with his periodic feelings of depression. He agreed to the characterization “moody” and the idea of “highs and lows,” but could not be specific about his days of depression. Ritchie becomes pensive. He says he doesn’t necessarily feel bad, he just “doesn’t feel right.”  I note that moments later the 16-year-old’s introspective mood has flipped and he is excitedly giving details about his triumphs as group leader on a multi-player gaming site.

What do we hope to achieve? Based on the data connected to urban teen perspectives, the guiding vision of the website is determined to be: to create a sense of community, build self-esteem, and provide young adults of color a forum for awareness and discussion of important issues.

NEEDS

Design Requirements

Research Data: Diverse Urban Teen Priorities

• Format ideas: Respondent feels teens would prefer an ongoing, evolving website that offered a wide variety of topics and features – as opposed to a periodically published e-zine that is limited in scope. Teens of color are more likely to visit a website that is dedicated to their social concerns and is directed specifically to them. Web content generated by teens and web interactivity are thought to be the two most important elements of a successful venture.
• Design approach: Ritchie offered surprisingly strong opinions on approach, insisting the website should be limited to no more than two or three basic colors, and that the site not be overly busy or visually complicated. He feels teens would be put off by distracting or confusing visual elements. A simple design is seen as preferable, due to the amount of visual information teens are “bombarded with day and night by the media.” The ideal look would be simple but sophisticated, with the main visual element being photos of teens and celebrities. Advertisements should be kept to a minimum, and posted at the bottom of the page. Ritchie suggests it would be a good idea to have a website gift shop, selling a limited variety of merchandise.
• Marketing strategy and promotional tactics: Web links and “word of mouth” -- as compared to television, radio or magazine advertising – would be the best bets for marketing. Ritchie is not familiar with any website created by or for Black youth and feels it would be quite easy to attract visitors to such a site. The most effective promotional strategy? Offering free “downloading” of new music. Citing the popularity of gaming – Ritchie believes the creation of a new online, multi-player game set in an urban environment would be a winning proposition for attracting and maintaining interest in the website.

Research Analysis: Observations and Translation to Design
The site should be clearly aimed at young adults of color, and should stress content authored by African Americans and other minorities. I note that -- a writer whose work touches the hearts and minds of urban youth can be a powerful role model. Articles by and about successful authors from diverse backgrounds should be a regular website feature. Information and ideas are interesting to teenagers when coming from other teenagers or “old people who are still kind of young in their 20s.” Content created by site members and other young people should dominate the pages. Visually, the site must be clean and uncluttered.

What type of site do young people most need? Ritchie expressed that, while maturity levels vary, adolescents belong in two categories: 12 - 15 and 16 - 18. The older group would definitely prefer the title, “young adults.” In order to create a sense of trust and community, the site will have an option for teens to become members. Members would have their own screen name, home page and message box or email – similar to MySpace and other social networking sites.

CONCERNS

Site Content

Research Data: Diverse Urban Teen Passions

• Results of CCA rating scale: The respondent verified some degree of experience with all six core concepts but most strongly related to two items: (1) identity Development; and (2) independence and responsibility.
• Content strategy and relevancy to diverse urban teens: The proposed platform will be a combination pop culture and social networking site. It will be a multi-focus, multi-purpose webpage with a host of features. Updated content and visitor feedback will induce teens to return to the site. The strategy is to provide a forum where urban youth can build confidence through self-expression. By sharing opinions, stories, music and art, site members can take comfort in the fact that they are not alone in their thoughts and feelings. Based on Ritchie’s mission statement suggestion of “a place for people to express themselves” the website mission is: to build self-esteem and social awareness among young adults of color through shared information, ideas and experiences.
• Organization and structure: The site will have a newsmagazine layout with a daily headline piece, news articles of interest to urban teens, and regularly updated feature sections. There will be a “members only” area with profile pages, messaging and other social networking components. Issues of emphasis are respect, rules of behavior, awareness of cultural pride and intra-cultural diversity. Issues that should definitely not be emphasized are school work and education. The intended audience is urban young adults of color, approximately 16 – 18 years of age.

Research Analysis: Translation to Design


Domain Name: Of the twelve presented website names, Ritchie’s top choice: I.D. Magazine -- Intentional Diversity. Top three runner-ups: (2) Urban Word; (3) Today in Color Magazine; (4) Curb -- Contemporary Urban Bounce.


Design mock-ups: Ritchie preferred: (1) Our Voices Break Open -- vanceholmes.blogspot.com; (2) Urban Word -- holmes100.blogspot.com;  (3) Reach Up - holmes200.blogspot.com; (4) Urban Contemporary -- holmes300.blogspot.com.


Teen contribution and authorship: Member input and content authorship is a pivotal element of the platform and would be central to the final design. Exactly how content would be gathered is not clear, but the site would encourage members to submit material through promotions and prizes. An editorial board of teens may be a solution.


Editorial departments will include: On Point: monthly column from a special guest editor; Reach Up: wellness; Sound Advice: music; Urban Word: literature and reviews; Ur Style: fashion, grooming; Spot Light: profiling artists, authors, academics and athletes; Change: poetry, art, social justice; Black Friday: lifestyle; Hang Time: sports; Thinking in Color: culture; Brother; Sister; Link Crazy: bookmarks; Aspire: monthly teen showcase; Suggestion Box.

Findings and Framework

Observations of Developmental Patterns in Partner: The adolescent developmental characteristics most pronounced in interaction with the study participant were the liminal facets associated with the teenage years:  desires independence while also needing support and guidance; seeks approval from adults yet acceptance by peers; no longer a child but not yet fully an adult. This quality of liminality is noted as a key theme observed throughout conversations with Ritchie. It is reasonable to conclude that these adolescent feelings of “between-ness” are heightened and intensified by the very similar duality many people of color grapple with, e.g., the split personal identity as African and American; the social dilemma of “otherness” and invisibility; the political paradox of assimilation / differentiation.

Cultural Focus Conclusions: The ancillary, cultural component of the investigation produced results generally matching predicted outcomes. Ritchie’s data points to personal experiences that strongly relate to the developmental markers pertaining to identity formation -- and markers in two other areas, here recognized as key themes: (1) melancholy, i.e., low self-esteem and sense of isolation; and (2) vulnerability – acute self and social awareness.  These results suggest that a teenager’s cultural background and ethnic identity may indeed have the effect of substantially highlighting and intensifying particular markers of adolescent development.

Data comparison: Project data fully confirms the validity of established research on adolescent development. Study participant, Ritchie, acknowledged observation of almost every surveyed developmental indicator, either in himself or other teenagers. Project data reveals an emphasis on the adolescent developmental markers in two main areas, noted as themes: (1) sensitivity, i.e., self-consciousness, sensitivity to criticism, social vulnerability; and (2) emotionality – the highly charged intensity and creative energy of adolescence.

Framework: The five core themes of the culturally relevant framework have been arranged in order of importance and aligned with core applications intended to anticipate and ameliorate the developmental stressors particular to urban adolescents of color. While the findings of this investigation are extremely limited, the format provides a structure and a starting point for further study. It is certainly a worthy and necessary line of research. The methodology is far more effective than the standard interview method. Planning a teen website proved to be an excellent structure for an open, objective discussion of teen topics. Along with being personally rewarding – both for me and my teen partner – the research has professional value because of the final, practical framework component. Fully developed, this culturally relevant developmental framework could be used in the same multiplicity of ways educators, librarians, artists and other professionals make practical use of the existing, generalized research detailing markers of adolescent development.

Developmental Framework for Urban Young Adults of Color 

	Core Theme	Indicators	Core application
1.	Liminality	Identity formation exploration; Desires independence while also needing support and guidance; Joy and heartbreak; Seeks approval from adults yet acceptance by peers	Provide experiences that allow for an urban youth of color to understand that there are others who identify with their personal struggles and who have similar problems.
2.	Melancholy	Low self-esteem; A sense of isolation or of being an “outcast”	Provide educational experiences -- role-playing, drama, reading, music -- that allow urban teens to understand that they are not alone; Design experiences for urban teens to learn how to self-advocate.
3.	Vulnerability	Acute awareness of the social world -- social vulnerability; Seeking a positive social role	Recognize the importance of friendships and create opportunities for youth of color to form positive and healthy relationships with peers; Present role models; Be a role model -- helping urban teens connect intellectual and moral reasoning.
4.	Sensitivity	Self-consciousness; Sensitivity to criticism	Provide experiences that promote the exploration of personal freedom and independence within a safe space; Create environments that are free from harsh criticism, humiliation, sarcasm; Eliminate prejudice, stereotyping, discrimination and bullying.
5.	Emotionality	Highly charged intensity and creative energy	Provide experiences that show urban teens ways to organize information and materials; Offer teens new strategies for thinking about the world; Provide information on successful artists of color; Encourage and expect excellence.

Addendum

Adolescent Developmental Markers (ADM)

1. Quest for Identity
2. High idealism
3. Self-centeredness; Self-consciousness; Sensitivity to criticism
4. Desires independence while also needing support and guidance
5. Developing a "moral compass"
6. Testing boundaries of authority
7. Highly charged emotionalism and intensity
8. Peers become paramount; move in packs
9. Joy and heartbreak of evolving love and friendships
10. High visual and audio acuity

Developmental Themes of Adolescence (DTA)

1. Highly charged emotionalism and intensity
2. Physical awkwardness
3. Sense of isolation and/or being an "outcast"
4. Exhilaration of new freedoms and independence
5. Testing boundaries
6. Joy and heartbreak of evolving love and friendships
7. Acute awareness of the social world and your place within it
8. Pain and struggle and a developing resilience
9. Raw vulnerability in facing the world and its relationship in a very different way

Core Concepts of Adolescence (CCA)

1. Identity Development
2. Loss of Innocence
3. Testing boundaries and authority
4. Independence and responsibility
5. Greater emphasis on action and personal experience
6. Developing a "moral compass"

Posted in: RESEARCH: YAL