1. Racial/Cultural Identity Development
Chapter 5
Racial/Cultural Identity Development
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

2. Racial/Cultural Identity Development Models
Created to define processes of identity transformations:
Cross (1971) Black Identity Development
Sue and Sue (1971) Chinese American
Kitano (1982) Japanese American
Ruiz (1990) Latino/a American
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

3. Black Identity Development Model
From a White to Black frame of reference:
Preencounter—Idealize Whites
Encounter—Crisis then shift of worldview
Immersion-Emersion—Black pride
Internalization—New and old identities resolved
Internalization-commitment—Social change
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

4. Other Racial/Ethnic Identity Development Models
Sue and Sue (1971) Chinese Americans:
Traditionalist, Marginal Person, Asian American
Kitano (1982) Japanese Americans:
Positive-Positive, Negative-Positive, Positive-Negative, Negative-Negative
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

5. Other Racial/Ethnic Identity Development Models (Cont’d)
Ruiz (1990) Latino/a Americans:
Focus on specific Hispanic cultural groups
Marginal status correlated with maladjustment
Assimilation destructive to the individual
Pride correlated with positive mental health
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

6. Feminist Identity Theory
Patriarchy is responsible for women’s problems:
Passive acceptance—of traditional gender roles
Revelation—that prejudice exists; becomes angry
Embeddedness-emanation—develops close relationships with women and finds support
Synthesis—positive identity is formed
Active Commitment—making societal changes
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

7. A Working Racial/Cultural Identity Development Model
Understand self in relation to:
own group,
dominant group
and the relationship between two groups
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

8. A Working Racial/Cultural Identity Development Model (Cont’d)
Conformity—Idealize White society
Dissonance—Conflict arises
Resistance and Immersion—Guilt, shame, anger at conformity—begins to develop positive self identity
Introspection—Feelings intensify—may become rigid
Integrative Awareness—Inner sense of security
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)

9. Social Work Implications of the R/CID Model
Sensitize social workers to role that oppression plays in person of color’s development
Social worker’s role to extend beyond office
Recognition of difference
Better prescriptive interventions
Potentially changing and developmental nature of cultural identity
Multicultural Social Work Practice – Chapter (5)