A question of belonging: Race, social fit, and achievement.

TLDR

Stigmatization creates belonging uncertainty, making people sensitive to cues about the quality of their social connections. Two experiments tested how belonging uncertainty undermines the motivation and achievement of people whose group is negatively characterized in academic settings. Experiment 1 had students believe they might have few friends in an intellectual domain, while Experiment 2 used an intervention that reduced doubts about social belonging in college. Black students experienced a decline in belonging and potential, whereas White students were unaffected, and the study discusses implications for achievement motivation theory and interventions.

Abstract

Stigmatization can give rise to belonging uncertainty. In this state, people are sensitive to information diagnostic of the quality of their social connections. Two experiments tested how belonging uncertainty undermines the motivation and achievement of people whose group is negatively characterized in academic settings. In Experiment 1, students were led to believe that they might have few friends in an intellectual domain. Whereas White students were unaffected, Black students (stigmatized in academics) displayed a drop in their sense of belonging and potential. In Experiment 2, an intervention that mitigated doubts about social belonging in college raised the academic achievement (e.g., college grades) of Black students but not of White students. Implications for theories of achievement motivation and intervention are discussed.