A Model for Differential Perceptions of Competence Based

on Skin Tone Among African Americans

This article combines a review of the psychological and sociohistorical literature on African American color
consciousness with a model that explains how it may contribute to differential outcomes for group members. It is
hypothesized that attractive individuals are viewed as more competent than unattractive individuals on multiple
dimensions, It is hypothesized that African Americans who approximate European American standards of physical
attractiveness are viewed as more attractive and that lighter skinned African Americans may be viewed as more
competent on a variety of dimensions. Implications for research and mental health practice are discussed.
Color consciousness is the process by which African Americans, "differentially attend and respond to shades of Black
skin" (Bond & Cash, 1992; Neal, 1988; Neal & Wilson, 1989). It is an issue with which most African Americans are quite
familiar and by which many are affected (Harvey, 1995; K. R. Perkins, 1996). As an example, there is a preponderance
of colloquial terms used to describe various African American shades of skin. These terms include dark skinned, brown
skinned, light skinned, ebony, chocolate, fair skinned, and cafe au lair, among others. In their seminal study of African
Americans and skin tone variance, Keith and Herring (1991) revealed that African Americans achieve different levels
of success regarding occupational prestige, educational attainment, and family income. They suggested that African
Americans operate in a highly stratified socioeconomic structure. Furthermore, they compiled strong empirical evidence
to support the idea that the stratification might be accounted for primarily by the various skin tones existent within the
group. They concluded that even though strong evidence existed to support this "skin tone hypothesis," further research
would need to confirm their postulates and address the reasons and processes by which the stratification occurred.
The following model is proposed to address possible reasons and processes by which skin tone stratification outcomes
occur among African Americans.
Color consciousness and skin tone stratification seem to be related in that color consciousness may be the antecedent
of skin tone stratification. As an example, Keith and Herring stated that "darker skinned Blacks still face a greater degree
of social and economic barriers, with darker skinned Blacks earning sometimes up to 50 percent less that lighter Blacks
with similar educational backgrounds and occupational status" ("Why Skin Color," 1992). In a contrary fashion, lighter
skinned African Americans also face this stratification because they are often viewed as not being "Black enough" (i.e.,
not having strong ties to their ethnic identity) by their darker skinned peers. The film documentary, A Question of Color
(Sandler, 1993), expanded on the aforementioned views of color consciousness and revealed how insidious and
integral a factor color consciousness is in the African American experience.
Given that African Americans exist in a culture predominated by European Americans, it is possible that European
Americans are also affected by color consciousness. In fact, European Americans, "may ... play a role in the
perpetuation of the [stratified] relationship ... [due to] their control of employment in middle class occupations in whitedominated corporations and institutions" (Hughes & Hertel, 1990, p. 1116). Generally, it seems that color
consciousness and skin tone stratification are widely recognized aspects of African American culture.
Each of these points leads to the question of why stratification outcomes exist among African Americans. One possible
reason to consider is level of attractiveness. The fact that African Americans live in a society that emphasizes physical
attractiveness is one possible reason why issues regarding skin tone are so powerful. Like people in many societies,
Americans ascribe numerous traits, both positive and negative, to individuals based on their physical appearance. The
physical attractiveness, or "what is beautiful is good," stereotype has been demonstrated frequently in Western nations.
"In general, more facially attractive individuals are rated more positively on a wide range of traits than are less attractive
individuals" (Wheeler & Kim, 1997, p. 795). Some of the traits that more attractive people have been rated more
positively on include social competence, intellectual competence, integrity, potency, dominance, sexual warmth, and
good mental health (Feingold, 1992; Wheeler & Kim, 1997).
Given the factors of skin tone variance, color consciousness, and attractiveness, I propose that (a) European Americans
have adopted and perpetuated a standard that associates attractiveness with individual levels of competence; (b)
African Americans have internalized this standard via socialization into the majority culture; (c) as a result, a European

standard is the primary mechanism used to measure attractiveness in both cultures; and (d) because lighter skinned
African Americans' skin is closest to the European ideal, African Americans with lighter skin are perceived as more
competent than their darker skinned peers. Figure 1 is a graphic representation of the aforementioned model.
This theoretical model is further supported by the notion that many European Americans may perceive themselves as
more generally competent than members of ethnic minority groups including African Americans. An example is the
research of Herrnstein and Murray (1994) or the research of Jensen (1985, 1987, 1994), which purports that inherent
racial differences may account for the differences in social and academic competence between African Americans and
European Americans. In fact, Jensen (1994) stated the following:
social pathology ... is disproportionately concentrated (for blacks and whites alike) in the segment of the population with
IQs below 75 ... [and] at least one fourth of the black population (compared to one-twentieth of the white population)
falls below that critical IQ point. (p. 49)
As such, it is probably safe to say that these authors, and those who support them, would agree that many European
Americans demonstrate more social and intellectual competence than their African American peers.
As stated earlier, many European Americans may perpetuate the skin tone stratification among African Americans
through their control of access to higher status occupations. Furthermore, given the historical literature that supports
some European Americans' belief that African Americans who possess traces of European American ancestry are more
competent (Hughes & Hertel, 1990; Keith & Herring, 1991; Reuter, 1918), it is quite possible that lighter skinned African
Americans are afforded more opportunities for advancement. As a consequence, many African Americans may have
internalized the belief that lighter skinned African Americans are more competent, based on longitudinal observations
of interracial interactions. This notion is further supported by the theoretical models of racial identity that suggest that
African Americans progress through cycles of development whereby they are influenced at some level (both positively
and negatively) by the ideals of Eurocentrism (Cross, 1991; Helms, 1990; Parham, 1989).
In the following section, theories regarding attractiveness, competence, and the sociohistorical aspects of African
American skin tone are addressed to support the aforementioned model regarding the reasons for the existence of
stratification outcomes among African Americans.
SOCIOHISTORICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Bond and Cash (1992) stated that 'Black history provides considerable evidence that the ... skin tone of African
Americans has exerted powerful and persistent influences on societal attitudes toward and treatment of Black persons-within both Black and White cultures" (p. 874). Even though the "Black is Beautiful" movement of the 60s sought to
eradicate some of the negative notions associated with color consciousness, the phenomenon persists. Although skin
color and tone are an integral part of the African American experience both intraracially and in interactions with
European Americans, most research has been devoted to the effects of skin color on the latter. Also the research on
these interracial interactions has been more rooted in the theory of racism and stereotypes than in the theory of color
consciousness described here. In other words, most research has been devoted to studying the general stereotypes
that European Americans hold about African Americans as a group in contrast to the distinctions that European
Americans make about African Americans based on their individual skin tones. As an example, the literature that
describes how "people perceive out-group members, including other racial groups as more homogeneous in their traits
and behavior than in-group members" (see Linville, Salovey, & Fischer, 1986; see also Quattrone, 1986, for reviews of
this literature). To clarify, the general point is that although many European Americans probably do subconsciously
note the differences in African American skin tones, they are conditioned to hold stereotypical beliefs about the African
American population in general.
Conversely, African Americans consciously and subconsciously exert considerable energy in noting the various shades
of African American skin, Unfortunately, very little has been done to ascertain the role that this notation of skin tone
plays in the African American community. The dearth of research exists for a variety of reasons. First, it is possible that
the subject is too painful a topic for public discussion among the multitude of African Americans affected by it. Second,
many African Americans fear that discussing this issue in culturally mixed groups will lead to misinterpretation and will
be used to defeat much of the positive civic and political change for which so many African Americans fought and died
(Wiltz, 1995). Third, many African Americans fear that the rise and perpetuation of the skin tone issues in the group
stems from an attempt by some group members to distance themselves from their African cultural roots (Wiltz, 1995).

African American issues of skin tone are rooted in the history of oppression and the enslavement of Africans forcibly
transported to the shores of America. It is a widely held belief that during slavery the offspring of African women who
were sexually assaulted by European American men were of lighter hues and were afforded privileges that most other
enslaved Africans were not (Keith & Herring, 1991; Okazawa-Rey, Robinson, & Ward, 1986; Sandler, 1994; ScalesTrent, 1995). They were often freed from slavery, provided with formal and informal education, and allowed to acquire
the training necessary to become skilled artisans. With the eradication of slavery in 1865, lighter skinned African
Americans, who had disproportionately been established in what were then considered high status occupations, were
placed in the position of interracial liaison class. In addition, due to a stratification process that provided African
Americans of mixed parentage with opportunities for acquiring property and socialization into the dominant European
American culture, lighter skinned African Americans emerged in the upper stratum of the social hierarchy in African
American communities (Edwards, 1972; Frazier, 1957; Hughes & Hertel, 1990; Keith & Herring, 1991; Seltzer & Smith,
1991). As African Americans moved from the plantations to cities and towns, the color-based caste system followed
(Keith & Herring, 1991; Okazawa-Rey et al., 1986; Sandler, 1993; Scales-Trent, 1995).
Because American society is one that is primarily influenced by a Western European cultural standard, it should come
as no surprise that the primary standard of attractiveness is one rooted in Western European (unclear and implied)
ideals. African Americans are no strangers to this idea, in that they too are heavily "influenced by the values of white
racism" (Sandler, 1994, p. 106). As such, they adhere to a standard of attractiveness that argues "if you're white you're
all right; If you're yellow, you're mellow; If you're brown, stick around; But if you're black, get back!" (Freeman, Ross,
Armor, & Pettigrew, 1966; Harvey, 1995; Sandler, 1994). In other words, "a high value is placed on light skin because
white society is more accepting of African Americans whose skin color closely approximates European standards of
attractiveness" (Harvey, 1995, p. 5).
SKIN TONE
As stated earlier, skin tone is defined as the visible color gradations that exist in the African American racial group. Also
noted earlier was the idea that skin tone is used as a variable for determining levels of attractiveness and competence
among African Americans. An example is as follows:
In Black music videos, a fairly accurate barometer of trends in popular culture, fair-skinned and/or ethnically nebulous
actress/dancers with long flowing hair or hair weaves, are more often than not depicted as the love interests of featured
artists. Women of darker complexions are often relegated to lesser roles in the background if they appear at all. ("Why
Skin Color," 1992, p. 121)
This is a particularly compelling argument given the preponderance of African American music executives, directors,
and producers who dictate African American music video content. Regarding levels of attractiveness, many
explanations have been offered to explain the fine distinctions that African Americans make about group members.
Leeds (1993) provided a strong example of the pervasive nature of this paradox using young African American women
as a focal point. The young women she interviewed "frequently stated that there was a beauty standard that valued
lighter skin and longer and straighter hair" (p. 153). Even though the girls she interviewed espoused disdain for this
particular standard and argued for a more inclusive standard of beauty, "their own taunts about skin color and hair
length indicate[d] that they, to some degree, accepte[d] a Eurocentric ideal" (p. 153). The significance of her study was
that its primary goal was to address the effect of the Black Power movement of the 60s on perceptions of skin tone,
beauty, and other judgments in the African American community. She concluded that even though this movement
sought to alter perceptions associated with African American skin tones, its effects were possibly quite minimal and
short-lived.
As alluded to earlier, one mechanism that might explain the internalization of cues of color consciousness by African
Americans from European Americans is racial identity. The various theorists of racial identity (Cross, 1991; Helms,
1990; Parham, 1989) proposed that as African Americans are socialized into the dominant European American culture
they develop a complex understanding of race. Within this understanding "there is an intuitive recognition that the ability
to successfully negotiate one's way through life may be contingent upon how well one assimilates the values, lifestyle,
and behaviors of the White norm group" (Parham, 1989, p. 203). Stated another way, it is quite possible that many
African Americans subconsciously understand that the "less Black" one is, the easier it will be to assimilate and be
upwardly mobile. As such, it is quite possible that African Americans are simply acting within this frame of reference
when they make distinctions about each other based on skin tone.
By offering empirical data that build on the aforementioned sociohistorical and psychological notions of color
consciousness, various researchers have concluded that lighter skinned African Americans have greater educational

attainment, occupational prestige, and family income than their darker skinned peers. Edwards (1972) used a
questionnaire with 2,809 African Americans ages 16 to 69 to determine stratification outcomes regarding social status,
economic level, and personal beliefs regarding race. Participants were categorized as either light, medium, or dark
skinned, and demographic and other background information was collected (e.g., African American cultural pride).
Edwards and his colleagues found that significant differences existed among African Americans socioeconomically and
socially. Darker skinned African Americans were found to report more experience with White racial discrimination,
whereas lighter skinned African Americans reported higher educational attainment, income, and occupational prestige.
Hughes and Hertel (1990) conducted a similar analysis of data to examine differences between light and dark skinned
African Americans on a variety of variables. These researchers analyzed data from the 1980 Survey of Black Americans
(a probability household survey of 2,107 African Americans ages 18 and older) to examine the relationship of skin color
with (a) socioeconomic status; (b) socioeconomic status of spouse; and (c) scales measuring African American identity,
African American separatism, and racial self-esteem. Respondents' skin tone was judged by the African American
examiners who administered the survey. To evaluate whether skin tone correlates were due purely to the respondents'
socioeconomic status, the authors controlled for age, sex, and parental socioeconomic status. In addition, to evaluate
whether skin tone correlates were due to the socioeconomic status of the spouse and to evaluate the relationship
between skin tone and African American consciousness, the authors controlled for age, sex, education, occupational
prestige, family income, and parental socioeconomic status. They concluded that African Americans with lighter skin
have greater education, occupational prestige, personal income, and family income than their darker skinned peers
and that these differences were not due to the historical prevalence of lighter skinned African Americans in the higher
socioeconomic stratum. Specifically, Hughes and Hertel stated that "Skin color has significant relationships with all
indicators of socioeconomic status, and these relationships are not eliminated by the control variables [age, gender,
and parents' socioeconomic status]" (p. 1109). One very disturbing determination made by the researchers is that for
education and occupation, the differences between lighter skinned and darker skinned African Americans is nearly
identical to the differences between African Americans and European Americans. A final conclusion reached from this
study indicated that no significant change occurred regarding the socioeconomic disparities between lighter skinned
African Americans and darker skinned African Americans from 1950 to 1980. In general, it can be said that the
differences in skin tone among African Americans are associated with intraracial stratification measures. As Keith and
Herring (1991) noted, "These facts suggest that the effects of skin tone are not only historical curiosities from a legacy
of slavery and racism, but present day mechanisms that influence who gets what in America" (p. 777). Indeed, it is
possible that lighter skinned African Americans are still viewed stereotypically as more competent despite their
socioeconomic status and education. Furthermore, when viewed within the context of African American racial identity
theory, which argues that African Americans understand that a certain level of "invisibleness" is necessary for them to
succeed in mainstream America (Parham, 1989), it becomes easier to understand how lighter skin has maintained an
association with greater competence. It is worth noting, in conclusion, that lighter skinned African Americans might be
considered more the benefactors than the perpetrators of this phenomenon of stratification outcomes.
ATTRACTIVENESS
"Attractiveness as a status characteristic may be of particular relevance in the U.S. where beauty and fitness are highly
valued" (Umberson & Hughes, 1987, p. 235). Images abound that reiterate this point. Attractive individuals are
portrayed as more competent in every venue from children's books to popular films. Books such as Cinderella and
Snow White juxtapose beautiful heroines who defeat ugly or unattractive villains. In addition, television commercials
frequently associate attractive individuals with exciting, interesting, and fun activities as a means of enticing viewers to
purchase products. Several authors have reviewed this literature and concluded that there is indeed a relationship
between attractiveness and perceptions of competence. As an example of this research, Stephan and Langlois (1984)
conducted a cross-cultural study of African American, Hispanic American, and European American children and adults.
Participants rated pictures of infants from the same ethnic groups at three stages of the first year of life: immediately
after birth, at 3 months of age, and at 9 months of age. The adults were asked to assess the infants on 12 bipolar
adjectives that were then collapsed into four categories that reflected infant behavior and competence. For three of the
four collapsed categories, attractive infants were rated more positively than their unattractive counterparts. Those
categories included good baby, smart-likeable baby, and causes parents problems. It seems from these studies that
adults hold higher and more positive expectations regarding interpersonal behavior, academic ability, and performance
for attractive children than they do for unattractive children.
In other studies (Langlois & Stephan, 1977; D. F. Perkins & Lerner, 1995), researchers concluded that for children and
adolescents, physical attractiveness is related positively to peer relations and indexes of academic ability (e.g., grade
point average and scholastic competence).

There have been numerous theories posited for why attractive people are evaluated more positively than unattractive
people. Some research asserts that "physical attractiveness, especially facial attractiveness, draws attention to
distinctive aspects of the individual apart from group allegiances and established social hierarchies" (Dion, Pak, & Dion,
1990, p. 381). Such a sociocultural perspective may explain why physical attractiveness is such a prevalent issue
regarding competence in a Western nation like the United States. Other research asserts that "physically attractive
people may develop desirable qualities, in response to other's expectations" (Feingold, 1992, p. 305). This model is
based on the expectancy model of Rosenthal and Jacobson (1968) and suggests that people interact with the attractive
in a manner that encourages a strong sense of self and social desirability. As a result, attractive people tend to behave
better and are thus viewed as more competent. A modern extension of this model might include the research of Scarr
(1987) who asserted that people, particularly children and adolescents, influence their environment through their
personal characteristics, which influences the way that they are treated by others.
SKIN TONE, ATTRACTIVENESS, AND COMPETENCE
An associated aspect of attractiveness is its influence on perceptions of competence. As mentioned earlier, Wheeler
and Kim (1997) reported that people direct positive behavioral cues toward attractive others that indicate that they view
them (attractive individuals) as being more competent than the general population. As a result of receiving these
behavioral cues, attractive people actually tend to behave better socially. In other words, because attractive people are
led to believe that they are more competent than others, they begin to believe it and become more adept at prospering
in the social, educational, and financial arenas than their unattractive counterparts. Indeed, it is possible that African
Americans have internalized the European American standard of attractiveness and hence perceive African Americans
of lighter skin tones as being more competent. Many African Americans overtly and covertly believe that lighter skinned
African Americans are more competent and have more societal advantages regardless of their own skin tone (Porter,
1991; Wade, 1996).
LIMITATIONS OF MODEL
Although the aforementioned model is presented to explain the differential success of African Americans, there are
phenomena that it does not address. Included in these unexplained phenomena are successful darker skinned African
Americans and unsuccessful lighter skinned African Americans as well as those phenotypic variables that are often
regarded as essential in the study of color consciousness.
It is worth considering that people in each of the skin tone groups may be afforded differential treatment. Specifically,
it is possible that successful darker skinned African Americans receive encouragement and validation beyond what is
normally afforded African Americans because they are more visibly less Eurocentric in skin tone. Various biographies
and narratives by darker skinned African Americans lend support to this notion (Vanzant, 1998). Furthermore, it may
be possible that unsuccessful darker skinned African Americans are punished more severely than other African
Americans and are relegated to occupying the lowest rung of the stratification ladder. One need only observe the media
images of the African American welfare mother (e.g., Justice Clarence Thomas' sister during his campaign for the
Supreme Court seat) and the African American criminal (e.g., Willie Horton, or the fictitious man accused by Susan
Smith) to find informal support for this notion.
It is possible that lighter skinned African Americans who are unsuccessful might be punished for not taking advantage
of the opportunities that their light skin affords them (Wiltz, 1995). In addition. many lighter skinned African Americans
may also be regarded as possessing a lesser degree of ethnic pride and identity than their darker skinned peers (Wiltz,
1995).
Some researchers (e.g., Neal, 1988) have argued that it is impossible to study color consciousness without addressing
phenotypic characteristics such as facial features and hair textures. These researchers posit that the racism inherent
in the phenomenon cannot be addressed without studying all of the mechanisms that contribute to it. Of the researchers
who have studied this phenomenon, most have included facial features and hair texture with skin tone as influential
factors in creating perceptions of competence (Berry, 1988; Neal, 1988). Although researchers have made worthwhile
efforts in this regard, few have attempted to define the mechanisms by which skin tone affects perceptions of
competence. As such, this model focuses on the effect of skin color only. Even though facial features and hair texture
may contribute to the differential attention to racial appearance, it is hypothesized that an individual's skin color is the
primary stimulant of perceptions.
CONCLUSION
Stated succinctly, the literature demonstrates that European Americans view African Americans differently based on
their skin tone and that these differences are rooted in slavery. As a result, African Americans differ in their perceptions
of each other in part based on their internalization of cues from European Americans and in part based on racial identity

developmental process. In addition, there is strong evidence to suggest that in a society dominated by European
American standards, including heavy emphasis on individuality and attractiveness, a higher value is placed on
attractiveness and that attractiveness is correlated positively with perceptions of competence. As such, it is argued that
perceptions of attractiveness within the African American community are positively correlated with color consciousness
and that this correlation explains African American bias regarding observations of skin tone and perceptions of
competence.
IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE AND RESEARCH
Counselors, mental health professionals, educators, and employers should be aware of the manners in which skin tone
stratification affects the daily lives of African Americans. The proposed model may offer a mechanism for the exploration
and understanding of these issues in a multitude of therapeutic, employment, and educational contexts.
Regarding therapy and counseling, many proponents of crosscultural counseling have suggested that counselors be
aware of their own cultures, including biases and prejudices, before they attempt to assist clients (Sue, Arredondo, &
McDair, 1992). As such, it seems imperative that mental health professionals delve into their own experiences regarding
color consciousness to determine where biases, if any, lie. This may be especially true for those therapists of color who
have life experience with color consciousness. As has been demonstrated in much of the literature on color
consciousness among African Americans, this is an issue affecting many in the African American community that
suggests that mental health professional members of this group pay particular attention to the transference or other
feelings that this topic may engender. Because color consciousness has been articulated as a topic of concern in the
Latino/ Hispanic American (Vazquez, Garcia-Vazquez, Bauman, & Sierra, 1997) and East Indian (Jayakar, 1994)
community, therapists of these ethnic groups may want to personally explore the issue also.
Training for mental health professionals might include teaching therapists to listen for any descriptions of color
consciousness when conducting the family and personal history portions of a counseling intake. To foster such
education, mental health training programs might require trainees to read literature and view films that describe the
issue of color consciousness. Books such as Thurman's (1969) The Blacker the Berry and Morrison's (1970) The Bluest
Eye and films such as Nair's (1991) Mississippi Masala and Lee's (1988) School Daze, along with many others, might
be especially useful in this regard. Furthermore, trainees might use these media in learning to recognize and understand
the many descriptive terms that people of color use to describe the many hues existent in their respective cultures.
Based on the prevalence of color consciousness in the African American culture, it is reasonable to expect that some
clients will arrive with color consciousness as a presenting problem. However, in many instances such may not be the
case, and color consciousness may indeed be a secondary or tertiary issue. It is quite possible that at the root of many
of the problems that African Americans face is self-perception vis-a-vis skin tone. As an example, the earlier allusions
in this article point to the notion that some darker skinned African American women's self-esteem may be particularly
affected if they do not meet the standards of attractiveness set forth by and adhered to by the majority culture and their
peers (Iijima-Hall, 1995; Leeds, 1993; K. R. Perkins, 1996). Issues such as not feeling attractive enough to obtain a
mate or not competent enough to reach one's goals may surface in the context of therapy. The author Vanzant (1998)
spoke to the issue of feeling unattractive repeatedly in her writings about growing up dark skinned. Conversely, for
many lighter skinned women who do meet society's standards of attractiveness, feelings of objectification and anger at
others who display envy may affect feelings of self-worth and ethnic identity (Scales-Trent, 1995). African American
men too may struggle with this issue in that lighter skinned African American men may battle challenges to their
masculinity and "toughness" from darker skinned peers who view themselves as more physically fit or dominant (Hall,
1996; Wade, 1996). It is also possible that African American men of any hue may feel limited in their abilities to pursue
certain career or educational goals based on their skin tone.
Given the variety of skin tones that exists in an African American family, it is possible that such issues can cause
strained relationships among family members and communities (Okazawa-Rey et al., 1986). Often, "In many African
American families, color can be a vehicle of the 'scapegoating' process in which darker members may be devalued
and/or ridiculed because of their skin color. In some families, light color is prized" (Boyd-Franklin, 1991, p. 32). Given
these factors, culturally competent counselors might consider appropriate probing of African American clients on this
issue to determine its relevance to the presenting problem. Psychoeducational grouporiented workshops developed to
discuss these issues in an open yet confidential environment may facilitate discussion and allow African American
clients to see the issue as one that is universal and not necessarily taboo. It is quite possible that many African
Americans recognize the prevalence of the issue of skin tone in their lives yet feel unable to either discuss or address
it for reasons delineated earlier in this work.

Because parents play a primary role in the socialization of African American children, it is imperative that they too learn
to openly discuss and address this issue. Indeed, "manifestations of Black identity at earlier stages of a youngster's life
(childhood) may be a reflection of externalized parental attitudes ... that a youngster has incorporated" (Parham, 1989,
p. 195). Educational workshops on parenting skills as well as group discussions on the effect that color consciousness
may have had on individual parents' developmental process may assist African American parents in many ways.
Primarily, such training can help African Americans recognize the color consciousness that they may have incorporated
as a result of socialization. Furthermore, such training might allow them to halt the phenomenon in interactions with
their children. In addition, such training could assist African American parents in developing positive ways to reinforce
for their children the beauty of and appreciation for the multitude of skin tones existent within the community.
As alluded to in earlier portions of this work, African Americans attain different levels of educational and occupational
status in society based in large part on the tone of their skin. As such, it is quite possible that many African Americans
have experienced the effects of discrimination in this manner both inside and outside the African American community
via the workplace. In this decade, there was at least one regionally famous reported instance of discrimination in the
workplace based on skin tone between African Americans. In Atlanta in 1990, Internal Revenue Service employee
Tracy L. Walker sued her darker skinned supervisor for discriminating against her because she had light skin. Although
Ms. Walker subsequently lost her case, she did set a precedent in which it was determined that the Civil Rights Act of
1964 included skin color as part of its language (Morrow v. Internal Revenue Service, 1990). This case was probably
the first and most famous of the intraracial discrimination cases. It is essential that mental health professionals who
work with public and private employers consider educating the workforce about the issue of color consciousness. As
stated earlier, color consciousness may be a mechanism by which employers decide who to hire. As such, it should be
regarded as another form of discrimination to be eradicated. Professional workshops and diversity training might
incorporate a component that addresses this issue along with the other issues of discrimination (including sexism and
ageism) that are currently incorporated into diversity training and awareness modules.
Of the research conducted on color consciousness, some highlights the fact that African Americans achieve
differentially regarding educational attainment. As such, one might speculate about the effect that educators'
perceptions have on interactions with African American students and the effects of these interactions on educational
attainment. There is literature in the field of psychology that addresses the impact of teacher expectations on student
performance (Wentzel, 1997). Therefore, it seems important to train educators of both European American and African
American descent not to judge their students' competence by their individual skin tones. In-service training and informal
focus groups in which trained African American educators could share their experiences regarding color consciousness
might elevate all educators' awareness of this issue.
It has been carefully demonstrated that African Americans are not a monolithic group. Therefore, future research may
seek to empirically address the various ways in which color consciousness affects African Americans. Research
demonstrating the relationship between skin tone bias, as measured by perceptions of competence, and self-esteem
might be quite beneficial in understanding this phenomenon. Given the earlier discussion regarding color
consciousness and African American racial identity, it may be important for researchers to study the relationship
between the two either for correlation or for causality. Future research might also empirically document the prevalence
of color consciousness among African Americans by determining if skin tone itself is a status characteristic among
African Americans.
As alluded to in earlier portions of this article, color consciousness may not be limited to the African American
community. Vazquez et al. (1997) along with Codina and Montalvo (1994) documented the presence of color
consciousness among Hispanic/Latino Americans. In addition, Jayakar (1994) suggested that post-British Indian people
have also struggled with the phenomenon of color consciousness in that "Inferior status [is] linked to skin color in a
profound way, [with] darker skin being explicitly associated with inferiority" (pp. 162-163). The presence of this
phenomenon in other ethnic minority groups engenders important future research questions including (a) what
influenced the development and occurrence of color consciousness and (b) how is color consciousness manifested
among members of these ethnic minority groups? One possible explanation offered by Wiltz (1995) and by Jayakar
(1994) suggests that the European colonialism of many countries of color has contributed to the development of
standards of beauty and attractiveness in much the same manner as that developed among African Americans. Another
possible explanation offered by me is that the development of an international media, which fosters the export of
European American standards of beauty, has contributed to the prevalence of color consciousness among many
communities of color. K. R. Perkins (1996) offered excellent evidence of this notion in her work on television images
and women's perceptions of attractiveness. Finally, it is hoped that future research expounds on a preliminary study

conducted by Atkinson et al. (1996) by addressing the existence of interracial color consciousness between European
Americans and African Americans. This article combines a review of the psychological and sociohistorical literature on
African American color consciousness with a model that explains how it may contribute to differential outcomes for
group members. It is hypothesized that attractive individuals are viewed as more competent than unattractive
individuals on multiple dimensions, It is hypothesized that African Americans who approximate European American
standards of physical attractiveness are viewed as more attractive and that lighter skinned African Americans may be
viewed as more competent on a variety of dimensions. Implications for research and mental health practice are
discussed.
Color consciousness is the process by which African Americans, "differentially attend and respond to shades of Black
skin" (Bond & Cash, 1992; Neal, 1988; Neal & Wilson, 1989). It is an issue with which most African Americans are quite
familiar and by which many are affected (Harvey, 1995; K. R. Perkins, 1996). As an example, there is a preponderance
of colloquial terms used to describe various African American shades of skin. These terms include dark skinned, brown
skinned, light skinned, ebony, chocolate, fair skinned, and cafe au lair, among others. In their seminal study of African
Americans and skin tone variance, Keith and Herring (1991) revealed that African Americans achieve different levels
of success regarding occupational prestige, educational attainment, and family income. They suggested that African
Americans operate in a highly stratified socioeconomic structure. Furthermore, they compiled strong empirical evidence
to support the idea that the stratification might be accounted for primarily by the various skin tones existent within the
group. They concluded that even though strong evidence existed to support this "skin tone hypothesis," further research
would need to confirm their postulates and address the reasons and processes by which the stratification occurred.
The following model is proposed to address possible reasons and processes by which skin tone stratification outcomes
occur among African Americans.
Color consciousness and skin tone stratification seem to be related in that color consciousness may be the antecedent
of skin tone stratification. As an example, Keith and Herring stated that "darker skinned Blacks still face a greater degree
of social and economic barriers, with darker skinned Blacks earning sometimes up to 50 percent less that lighter Blacks
with similar educational backgrounds and occupational status" ("Why Skin Color," 1992). In a contrary fashion, lighter
skinned African Americans also face this stratification because they are often viewed as not being "Black enough" (i.e.,
not having strong ties to their ethnic identity) by their darker skinned peers. The film documentary, A Question of Color
(Sandler, 1993), expanded on the aforementioned views of color consciousness and revealed how insidious and
integral a factor color consciousness is in the African American experience.
Given that African Americans exist in a culture predominated by European Americans, it is possible that European
Americans are also affected by color consciousness. In fact, European Americans, "may ... play a role in the
perpetuation of the [stratified] relationship ... [due to] their control of employment in middle class occupations in whitedominated corporations and institutions" (Hughes & Hertel, 1990, p. 1116). Generally, it seems that color
consciousness and skin tone stratification are widely recognized aspects of African American culture.
Each of these points leads to the question of why stratification outcomes exist among African Americans. One possible
reason to consider is level of attractiveness. The fact that African Americans live in a society that emphasizes physical
attractiveness is one possible reason why issues regarding skin tone are so powerful. Like people in many societies,
Americans ascribe numerous traits, both positive and negative, to individuals based on their physical appearance. The
physical attractiveness, or "what is beautiful is good," stereotype has been demonstrated frequently in Western nations.
"In general, more facially attractive individuals are rated more positively on a wide range of traits than are less attractive
individuals" (Wheeler & Kim, 1997, p. 795). Some of the traits that more attractive people have been rated more
positively on include social competence, intellectual competence, integrity, potency, dominance, sexual warmth, and
good mental health (Feingold, 1992; Wheeler & Kim, 1997).
Given the factors of skin tone variance, color consciousness, and attractiveness, I propose that (a) European Americans
have adopted and perpetuated a standard that associates attractiveness with individual levels of competence; (b)
African Americans have internalized this standard via socialization into the majority culture; (c) as a result, a European
standard is the primary mechanism used to measure attractiveness in both cultures; and (d) because lighter skinned
African Americans' skin is closest to the European ideal, African Americans with lighter skin are perceived as more
competent than their darker skinned peers. Figure 1 is a graphic representation of the aforementioned model.

This theoretical model is further supported by the notion that many European Americans may perceive themselves as
more generally competent than members of ethnic minority groups including African Americans. An example is the
research of Herrnstein and Murray (1994) or the research of Jensen (1985, 1987, 1994), which purports that inherent
racial differences may account for the differences in social and academic competence between African Americans and
European Americans. In fact, Jensen (1994) stated the following:
social pathology ... is disproportionately concentrated (for blacks and whites alike) in the segment of the population with
IQs below 75 ... [and] at least one fourth of the black population (compared to one-twentieth of the white population)
falls below that critical IQ point. (p. 49)
As such, it is probably safe to say that these authors, and those who support them, would agree that many European
Americans demonstrate more social and intellectual competence than their African American peers.
As stated earlier, many European Americans may perpetuate the skin tone stratification among African Americans
through their control of access to higher status occupations. Furthermore, given the historical literature that supports
some European Americans' belief that African Americans who possess traces of European American ancestry are more
competent (Hughes & Hertel, 1990; Keith & Herring, 1991; Reuter, 1918), it is quite possible that lighter skinned African
Americans are afforded more opportunities for advancement. As a consequence, many African Americans may have
internalized the belief that lighter skinned African Americans are more competent, based on longitudinal observations
of interracial interactions. This notion is further supported by the theoretical models of racial identity that suggest that
African Americans progress through cycles of development whereby they are influenced at some level (both positively
and negatively) by the ideals of Eurocentrism (Cross, 1991; Helms, 1990; Parham, 1989).
In the following section, theories regarding attractiveness, competence, and the sociohistorical aspects of African
American skin tone are addressed to support the aforementioned model regarding the reasons for the existence of
stratification outcomes among African Americans.
SOCIOHISTORICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Bond and Cash (1992) stated that 'Black history provides considerable evidence that the ... skin tone of African
Americans has exerted powerful and persistent influences on societal attitudes toward and treatment of Black persons-within both Black and White cultures" (p. 874). Even though the "Black is Beautiful" movement of the 60s sought to
eradicate some of the negative notions associated with color consciousness, the phenomenon persists. Although skin
color and tone are an integral part of the African American experience both intraracially and in interactions with
European Americans, most research has been devoted to the effects of skin color on the latter. Also the research on
these interracial interactions has been more rooted in the theory of racism and stereotypes than in the theory of color
consciousness described here. In other words, most research has been devoted to studying the general stereotypes
that European Americans hold about African Americans as a group in contrast to the distinctions that European
Americans make about African Americans based on their individual skin tones. As an example, the literature that
describes how "people perceive out-group members, including other racial groups as more homogeneous in their traits
and behavior than in-group members" (see Linville, Salovey, & Fischer, 1986; see also Quattrone, 1986, for reviews of
this literature). To clarify, the general point is that although many European Americans probably do subconsciously
note the differences in African American skin tones, they are conditioned to hold stereotypical beliefs about the African
American population in general.
Conversely, African Americans consciously and subconsciously exert considerable energy in noting the various shades
of African American skin, Unfortunately, very little has been done to ascertain the role that this notation of skin tone
plays in the African American community. The dearth of research exists for a variety of reasons. First, it is possible that
the subject is too painful a topic for public discussion among the multitude of African Americans affected by it. Second,
many African Americans fear that discussing this issue in culturally mixed groups will lead to misinterpretation and will
be used to defeat much of the positive civic and political change for which so many African Americans fought and died
(Wiltz, 1995). Third, many African Americans fear that the rise and perpetuation of the skin tone issues in the group
stems from an attempt by some group members to distance themselves from their African cultural roots (Wiltz, 1995).
African American issues of skin tone are rooted in the history of oppression and the enslavement of Africans forcibly
transported to the shores of America. It is a widely held belief that during slavery the offspring of African women who
were sexually assaulted by European American men were of lighter hues and were afforded privileges that most other
enslaved Africans were not (Keith & Herring, 1991; Okazawa-Rey, Robinson, & Ward, 1986; Sandler, 1994; ScalesTrent, 1995). They were often freed from slavery, provided with formal and informal education, and allowed to acquire

the training necessary to become skilled artisans. With the eradication of slavery in 1865, lighter skinned African
Americans, who had disproportionately been established in what were then considered high status occupations, were
placed in the position of interracial liaison class. In addition, due to a stratification process that provided African
Americans of mixed parentage with opportunities for acquiring property and socialization into the dominant European
American culture, lighter skinned African Americans emerged in the upper stratum of the social hierarchy in African
American communities (Edwards, 1972; Frazier, 1957; Hughes & Hertel, 1990; Keith & Herring, 1991; Seltzer & Smith,
1991). As African Americans moved from the plantations to cities and towns, the color-based caste system followed
(Keith & Herring, 1991; Okazawa-Rey et al., 1986; Sandler, 1993; Scales-Trent, 1995).
Because American society is one that is primarily influenced by a Western European cultural standard, it should come
as no surprise that the primary standard of attractiveness is one rooted in Western European (unclear and implied)
ideals. African Americans are no strangers to this idea, in that they too are heavily "influenced by the values of white
racism" (Sandler, 1994, p. 106). As such, they adhere to a standard of attractiveness that argues "if you're white you're
all right; If you're yellow, you're mellow; If you're brown, stick around; But if you're black, get back!" (Freeman, Ross,
Armor, & Pettigrew, 1966; Harvey, 1995; Sandler, 1994). In other words, "a high value is placed on light skin because
white society is more accepting of African Americans whose skin color closely approximates European standards of
attractiveness" (Harvey, 1995, p. 5).
SKIN TONE
As stated earlier, skin tone is defined as the visible color gradations that exist in the African American racial group. Also
noted earlier was the idea that skin tone is used as a variable for determining levels of attractiveness and competence
among African Americans. An example is as follows:
In Black music videos, a fairly accurate barometer of trends in popular culture, fair-skinned and/or ethnically nebulous
actress/dancers with long flowing hair or hair weaves, are more often than not depicted as the love interests of featured
artists. Women of darker complexions are often relegated to lesser roles in the background if they appear at all. ("Why
Skin Color," 1992, p. 121)
This is a particularly compelling argument given the preponderance of African American music executives, directors,
and producers who dictate African American music video content. Regarding levels of attractiveness, many
explanations have been offered to explain the fine distinctions that African Americans make about group members.
Leeds (1993) provided a strong example of the pervasive nature of this paradox using young African American women
as a focal point. The young women she interviewed "frequently stated that there was a beauty standard that valued
lighter skin and longer and straighter hair" (p. 153). Even though the girls she interviewed espoused disdain for this
particular standard and argued for a more inclusive standard of beauty, "their own taunts about skin color and hair
length indicate[d] that they, to some degree, accepte[d] a Eurocentric ideal" (p. 153). The significance of her study was
that its primary goal was to address the effect of the Black Power movement of the 60s on perceptions of skin tone,
beauty, and other judgments in the African American community. She concluded that even though this movement
sought to alter perceptions associated with African American skin tones, its effects were possibly quite minimal and
short-lived.
As alluded to earlier, one mechanism that might explain the internalization of cues of color consciousness by African
Americans from European Americans is racial identity. The various theorists of racial identity (Cross, 1991; Helms,
1990; Parham, 1989) proposed that as African Americans are socialized into the dominant European American culture
they develop a complex understanding of race. Within this understanding "there is an intuitive recognition that the ability
to successfully negotiate one's way through life may be contingent upon how well one assimilates the values, lifestyle,
and behaviors of the White norm group" (Parham, 1989, p. 203). Stated another way, it is quite possible that many
African Americans subconsciously understand that the "less Black" one is, the easier it will be to assimilate and be
upwardly mobile. As such, it is quite possible that African Americans are simply acting within this frame of reference
when they make distinctions about each other based on skin tone.
By offering empirical data that build on the aforementioned sociohistorical and psychological notions of color
consciousness, various researchers have concluded that lighter skinned African Americans have greater educational
attainment, occupational prestige, and family income than their darker skinned peers. Edwards (1972) used a
questionnaire with 2,809 African Americans ages 16 to 69 to determine stratification outcomes regarding social status,
economic level, and personal beliefs regarding race. Participants were categorized as either light, medium, or dark
skinned, and demographic and other background information was collected (e.g., African American cultural pride).
Edwards and his colleagues found that significant differences existed among African Americans socioeconomically and

socially. Darker skinned African Americans were found to report more experience with White racial discrimination,
whereas lighter skinned African Americans reported higher educational attainment, income, and occupational prestige.
Hughes and Hertel (1990) conducted a similar analysis of data to examine differences between light and dark skinned
African Americans on a variety of variables. These researchers analyzed data from the 1980 Survey of Black Americans
(a probability household survey of 2,107 African Americans ages 18 and older) to examine the relationship of skin color
with (a) socioeconomic status; (b) socioeconomic status of spouse; and (c) scales measuring African American identity,
African American separatism, and racial self-esteem. Respondents' skin tone was judged by the African American
examiners who administered the survey. To evaluate whether skin tone correlates were due purely to the respondents'
socioeconomic status, the authors controlled for age, sex, and parental socioeconomic status. In addition, to evaluate
whether skin tone correlates were due to the socioeconomic status of the spouse and to evaluate the relationship
between skin tone and African American consciousness, the authors controlled for age, sex, education, occupational
prestige, family income, and parental socioeconomic status. They concluded that African Americans with lighter skin
have greater education, occupational prestige, personal income, and family income than their darker skinned peers
and that these differences were not due to the historical prevalence of lighter skinned African Americans in the higher
socioeconomic stratum. Specifically, Hughes and Hertel stated that "Skin color has significant relationships with all
indicators of socioeconomic status, and these relationships are not eliminated by the control variables [age, gender,
and parents' socioeconomic status]" (p. 1109). One very disturbing determination made by the researchers is that for
education and occupation, the differences between lighter skinned and darker skinned African Americans is nearly
identical to the differences between African Americans and European Americans. A final conclusion reached from this
study indicated that no significant change occurred regarding the socioeconomic disparities between lighter skinned
African Americans and darker skinned African Americans from 1950 to 1980. In general, it can be said that the
differences in skin tone among African Americans are associated with intraracial stratification measures. As Keith and
Herring (1991) noted, "These facts suggest that the effects of skin tone are not only historical curiosities from a legacy
of slavery and racism, but present day mechanisms that influence who gets what in America" (p. 777). Indeed, it is
possible that lighter skinned African Americans are still viewed stereotypically as more competent despite their
socioeconomic status and education. Furthermore, when viewed within the context of African American racial identity
theory, which argues that African Americans understand that a certain level of "invisibleness" is necessary for them to
succeed in mainstream America (Parham, 1989), it becomes easier to understand how lighter skin has maintained an
association with greater competence. It is worth noting, in conclusion, that lighter skinned African Americans might be
considered more the benefactors than the perpetrators of this phenomenon of stratification outcomes.
ATTRACTIVENESS
"Attractiveness as a status characteristic may be of particular relevance in the U.S. where beauty and fitness are highly
valued" (Umberson & Hughes, 1987, p. 235). Images abound that reiterate this point. Attractive individuals are
portrayed as more competent in every venue from children's books to popular films. Books such as Cinderella and
Snow White juxtapose beautiful heroines who defeat ugly or unattractive villains. In addition, television commercials
frequently associate attractive individuals with exciting, interesting, and fun activities as a means of enticing viewers to
purchase products. Several authors have reviewed this literature and concluded that there is indeed a relationship
between attractiveness and perceptions of competence. As an example of this research, Stephan and Langlois (1984)
conducted a cross-cultural study of African American, Hispanic American, and European American children and adults.
Participants rated pictures of infants from the same ethnic groups at three stages of the first year of life: immediately
after birth, at 3 months of age, and at 9 months of age. The adults were asked to assess the infants on 12 bipolar
adjectives that were then collapsed into four categories that reflected infant behavior and competence. For three of the
four collapsed categories, attractive infants were rated more positively than their unattractive counterparts. Those
categories included good baby, smart-likeable baby, and causes parents problems. It seems from these studies that
adults hold higher and more positive expectations regarding interpersonal behavior, academic ability, and performance
for attractive children than they do for unattractive children.
In other studies (Langlois & Stephan, 1977; D. F. Perkins & Lerner, 1995), researchers concluded that for children and
adolescents, physical attractiveness is related positively to peer relations and indexes of academic ability (e.g., grade
point average and scholastic competence).
There have been numerous theories posited for why attractive people are evaluated more positively than unattractive
people. Some research asserts that "physical attractiveness, especially facial attractiveness, draws attention to
distinctive aspects of the individual apart from group allegiances and established social hierarchies" (Dion, Pak, & Dion,
1990, p. 381). Such a sociocultural perspective may explain why physical attractiveness is such a prevalent issue

regarding competence in a Western nation like the United States. Other research asserts that "physically attractive
people may develop desirable qualities, in response to other's expectations" (Feingold, 1992, p. 305). This model is
based on the expectancy model of Rosenthal and Jacobson (1968) and suggests that people interact with the attractive
in a manner that encourages a strong sense of self and social desirability. As a result, attractive people tend to behave
better and are thus viewed as more competent. A modern extension of this model might include the research of Scarr
(1987) who asserted that people, particularly children and adolescents, influence their environment through their
personal characteristics, which influences the way that they are treated by others.
SKIN TONE, ATTRACTIVENESS, AND COMPETENCE
An associated aspect of attractiveness is its influence on perceptions of competence. As mentioned earlier, Wheeler
and Kim (1997) reported that people direct positive behavioral cues toward attractive others that indicate that they view
them (attractive individuals) as being more competent than the general population. As a result of receiving these
behavioral cues, attractive people actually tend to behave better socially. In other words, because attractive people are
led to believe that they are more competent than others, they begin to believe it and become more adept at prospering
in the social, educational, and financial arenas than their unattractive counterparts. Indeed, it is possible that African
Americans have internalized the European American standard of attractiveness and hence perceive African Americans
of lighter skin tones as being more competent. Many African Americans overtly and covertly believe that lighter skinned
African Americans are more competent and have more societal advantages regardless of their own skin tone (Porter,
1991; Wade, 1996).
LIMITATIONS OF MODEL
Although the aforementioned model is presented to explain the differential success of African Americans, there are
phenomena that it does not address. Included in these unexplained phenomena are successful darker skinned African
Americans and unsuccessful lighter skinned African Americans as well as those phenotypic variables that are often
regarded as essential in the study of color consciousness.
It is worth considering that people in each of the skin tone groups may be afforded differential treatment. Specifically,
it is possible that successful darker skinned African Americans receive encouragement and validation beyond what is
normally afforded African Americans because they are more visibly less Eurocentric in skin tone. Various biographies
and narratives by darker skinned African Americans lend support to this notion (Vanzant, 1998). Furthermore, it may
be possible that unsuccessful darker skinned African Americans are punished more severely than other African
Americans and are relegated to occupying the lowest rung of the stratification ladder. One need only observe the media
images of the African American welfare mother (e.g., Justice Clarence Thomas' sister during his campaign for the
Supreme Court seat) and the African American criminal (e.g., Willie Horton, or the fictitious man accused by Susan
Smith) to find informal support for this notion.
It is possible that lighter skinned African Americans who are unsuccessful might be punished for not taking advantage
of the opportunities that their light skin affords them (Wiltz, 1995). In addition. many lighter skinned African Americans
may also be regarded as possessing a lesser degree of ethnic pride and identity than their darker skinned peers (Wiltz,
1995).
Some researchers (e.g., Neal, 1988) have argued that it is impossible to study color consciousness without addressing
phenotypic characteristics such as facial features and hair textures. These researchers posit that the racism inherent
in the phenomenon cannot be addressed without studying all of the mechanisms that contribute to it. Of the researchers
who have studied this phenomenon, most have included facial features and hair texture with skin tone as influential
factors in creating perceptions of competence (Berry, 1988; Neal, 1988). Although researchers have made worthwhile
efforts in this regard, few have attempted to define the mechanisms by which skin tone affects perceptions of
competence. As such, this model focuses on the effect of skin color only. Even though facial features and hair texture
may contribute to the differential attention to racial appearance, it is hypothesized that an individual's skin color is the
primary stimulant of perceptions.
CONCLUSION
Stated succinctly, the literature demonstrates that European Americans view African Americans differently based on
their skin tone and that these differences are rooted in slavery. As a result, African Americans differ in their perceptions
of each other in part based on their internalization of cues from European Americans and in part based on racial identity
developmental process. In addition, there is strong evidence to suggest that in a society dominated by European
American standards, including heavy emphasis on individuality and attractiveness, a higher value is placed on
attractiveness and that attractiveness is correlated positively with perceptions of competence. As such, it is argued that
perceptions of attractiveness within the African American community are positively correlated with color consciousness

and that this correlation explains African American bias regarding observations of skin tone and perceptions of
competence.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE AND RESEARCH

Counselors, mental health professionals, educators, and employers should be aware of the manners in which skin tone
stratification affects the daily lives of African Americans. The proposed model may offer a mechanism for the exploration
and understanding of these issues in a multitude of therapeutic, employment, and educational contexts.
Regarding therapy and counseling, many proponents of crosscultural counseling have suggested that counselors be
aware of their own cultures, including biases and prejudices, before they attempt to assist clients (Sue, Arredondo, &
McDair, 1992). As such, it seems imperative that mental health professionals delve into their own experiences regarding
color consciousness to determine where biases, if any, lie. This may be especially true for those therapists of color who
have life experience with color consciousness. As has been demonstrated in much of the literature on color
consciousness among African Americans, this is an issue affecting many in the African American community that
suggests that mental health professional members of this group pay particular attention to the transference or other
feelings that this topic may engender. Because color consciousness has been articulated as a topic of concern in the
Latino/ Hispanic American (Vazquez, Garcia-Vazquez, Bauman, & Sierra, 1997) and East Indian (Jayakar, 1994)
community, therapists of these ethnic groups may want to personally explore the issue also.
Training for mental health professionals might include teaching therapists to listen for any descriptions of color
consciousness when conducting the family and personal history portions of a counseling intake. To foster such
education, mental health training programs might require trainees to read literature and view films that describe the
issue of color consciousness. Books such as Thurman's (1969) The Blacker the Berry and Morrison's (1970) The Bluest
Eye and films such as Nair's (1991) Mississippi Masala and Lee's (1988) School Daze, along with many others, might
be especially useful in this regard. Furthermore, trainees might use these media in learning to recognize and understand
the many descriptive terms that people of color use to describe the many hues existent in their respective cultures.
Based on the prevalence of color consciousness in the African American culture, it is reasonable to expect that some
clients will arrive with color consciousness as a presenting problem. However, in many instances such may not be the
case, and color consciousness may indeed be a secondary or tertiary issue. It is quite possible that at the root of many
of the problems that African Americans face is self-perception vis-a-vis skin tone. As an example, the earlier allusions
in this article point to the notion that some darker skinned African American women's self-esteem may be particularly
affected if they do not meet the standards of attractiveness set forth by and adhered to by the majority culture and their
peers (Iijima-Hall, 1995; Leeds, 1993; K. R. Perkins, 1996). Issues such as not feeling attractive enough to obtain a
mate or not competent enough to reach one's goals may surface in the context of therapy. The author Vanzant (1998)
spoke to the issue of feeling unattractive repeatedly in her writings about growing up dark skinned. Conversely, for
many lighter skinned women who do meet society's standards of attractiveness, feelings of objectification and anger at
others who display envy may affect feelings of self-worth and ethnic identity (Scales-Trent, 1995). African American
men too may struggle with this issue in that lighter skinned African American men may battle challenges to their
masculinity and "toughness" from darker skinned peers who view themselves as more physically fit or dominant (Hall,
1996; Wade, 1996). It is also possible that African American men of any hue may feel limited in their abilities to pursue
certain career or educational goals based on their skin tone.
Given the variety of skin tones that exists in an African American family, it is possible that such issues can cause
strained relationships among family members and communities (Okazawa-Rey et al., 1986). Often, "In many African
American families, color can be a vehicle of the 'scapegoating' process in which darker members may be devalued
and/or ridiculed because of their skin color. In some families, light color is prized" (Boyd-Franklin, 1991, p. 32). Given
these factors, culturally competent counselors might consider appropriate probing of African American clients on this
issue to determine its relevance to the presenting problem. Psychoeducational grouporiented workshops developed to
discuss these issues in an open yet confidential environment may facilitate discussion and allow African American
clients to see the issue as one that is universal and not necessarily taboo. It is quite possible that many African
Americans recognize the prevalence of the issue of skin tone in their lives yet feel unable to either discuss or address
it for reasons delineated earlier in this work.

Because parents play a primary role in the socialization of African American children, it is imperative that they too learn
to openly discuss and address this issue. Indeed, "manifestations of Black identity at earlier stages of a youngster's life
(childhood) may be a reflection of externalized parental attitudes ... that a youngster has incorporated" (Parham, 1989,
p. 195). Educational workshops on parenting skills as well as group discussions on the effect that color consciousness
may have had on individual parents' developmental process may assist African American parents in many ways.
Primarily, such training can help African Americans recognize the color consciousness that they may have incorporated
as a result of socialization. Furthermore, such training might allow them to halt the phenomenon in interactions with
their children. In addition, such training could assist African American parents in developing positive ways to reinforce
for their children the beauty of and appreciation for the multitude of skin tones existent within the community.
As alluded to in earlier portions of this work, African Americans attain different levels of educational and occupational
status in society based in large part on the tone of their skin. As such, it is quite possible that many African Americans
have experienced the effects of discrimination in this manner both inside and outside the African American community
via the workplace. In this decade, there was at least one regionally famous reported instance of discrimination in the
workplace based on skin tone between African Americans. In Atlanta in 1990, Internal Revenue Service employee
Tracy L. Walker sued her darker skinned supervisor for discriminating against her because she had light skin. Although
Ms. Walker subsequently lost her case, she did set a precedent in which it was determined that the Civil Rights Act of
1964 included skin color as part of its language (Morrow v. Internal Revenue Service, 1990). This case was probably
the first and most famous of the intraracial discrimination cases. It is essential that mental health professionals who
work with public and private employers consider educating the workforce about the issue of color consciousness. As
stated earlier, color consciousness may be a mechanism by which employers decide who to hire. As such, it should be
regarded as another form of discrimination to be eradicated. Professional workshops and diversity training might
incorporate a component that addresses this issue along with the other issues of discrimination (including sexism and
ageism) that are currently incorporated into diversity training and awareness modules.
Of the research conducted on color consciousness, some highlights the fact that African Americans achieve
differentially regarding educational attainment. As such, one might speculate about the effect that educators'
perceptions have on interactions with African American students and the effects of these interactions on educational
attainment. There is literature in the field of psychology that addresses the impact of teacher expectations on student
performance (Wentzel, 1997). Therefore, it seems important to train educators of both European American and African
American descent not to judge their students' competence by their individual skin tones. In-service training and informal
focus groups in which trained African American educators could share their experiences regarding color consciousness
might elevate all educators' awareness of this issue.
It has been carefully demonstrated that African Americans are not a monolithic group. Therefore, future research may
seek to empirically address the various ways in which color consciousness affects African Americans. Research
demonstrating the relationship between skin tone bias, as measured by perceptions of competence, and self-esteem
might be quite beneficial in understanding this phenomenon. Given the earlier discussion regarding color
consciousness and African American racial identity, it may be important for researchers to study the relationship
between the two either for correlation or for causality. Future research might also empirically document the prevalence
of color consciousness among African Americans by determining if skin tone itself is a status characteristic among
African Americans.
As alluded to in earlier portions of this article, color consciousness may not be limited to the African American
community. Vazquez et al. (1997) along with Codina and Montalvo (1994) documented the presence of color
consciousness among Hispanic/Latino Americans. In addition, Jayakar (1994) suggested that post-British Indian people
have also struggled with the phenomenon of color consciousness in that "Inferior status [is] linked to skin color in a
profound way, [with] darker skin being explicitly associated with inferiority" (pp. 162-163). The presence of this
phenomenon in other ethnic minority groups engenders important future research questions including (a) what
influenced the development and occurrence of color consciousness and (b) how is color consciousness manifested
among members of these ethnic minority groups? One possible explanation offered by Wiltz (1995) and by Jayakar
(1994) suggests that the European colonialism of many countries of color has contributed to the development of
standards of beauty and attractiveness in much the same manner as that developed among African Americans. Another
possible explanation offered by me is that the development of an international media, which fosters the export of
European American standards of beauty, has contributed to the prevalence of color consciousness among many
communities of color. K. R. Perkins (1996) offered excellent evidence of this notion in her work on television images
and women's perceptions of attractiveness. Finally, it is hoped that future research expounds on a preliminary study

conducted by Atkinson et al. (1996) by addressing the existence of interracial color consciousness between European
Americans and African Americans.
DIAGRAM: FIGURE 1: The Model of Differential Perceptions of Competence Based on SkinTone
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skin tone and clinical judgments of African American and European American psychologists. Professional Psychology:
Research & Practice, 27, 500-505.
Berry, B. (1988). Black-on-Black discrimination: The phenomenon of colorism among African Americans (Doctoral
dissertation, Kent State University, 1988). Dissertation Abstracts International, 49, 3167.
Bond, S., & Cash, T. F. (1992). Black beauty: Skin color and body images among African-American college women.
Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 874-888. Boyd-Franklin, N. (1991). Recurrent themes in the treatment of
African American women in group psychotherapy. Women and Therapy, 11, 24-40.
Codina, G. E., & Montalvo, F. F. (1994). Chicano phenotype and depression. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences,
16, 296-306.
Cross, W. E., Jr. (1991). Shades of Black: Diversity in African American identity. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Dion, K. K., Pak, A. W. P., Dion, K. L. (1990). Stereotyping physical attractiveness: A sociocultural perspective. Journal
of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 21, 378-398.
Edwards, O. L. (1972). Skin color as a variable in racial attitudes of Black urbanites. Journal of Black Studies, 3, 473483.
Feingold, A. (1992). Good looking people are not what we think. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 304-341.
Frazier, E. F. (1957). The Negro in the United States. New York: Macmillan.
Freeman, H. E., Ross, M. J., Armor, D., & Petrigrew, T. F. (1966). Color gradation and attitudes among middle-income
Negroes. American Sociological Review. 31, 365-374.
Hall, R. E. (1996). Dark skin and the cultural ideal of masculinity. Journal of African American Men, 1(3), 37-62.
Harvey, A. (1995. January). The issue of skin color in psychotherapy with African Americans. Families in Society: The
Journal of Contemporary Human Services, 76, 3-8.
Helms. J. E. (Ed.). (1990). Black and White racial identity: Theory, research, and practice. New York: Greenwood Press.
Herrnstein, R. J., & Murray C. A. (1994). The bell curve: Intelligence and class structure in American life. New York:
The Free Press.
Hughes, M., & Hertel, B. R. (1990). The significance of skin color remains: A study of life chances, mate selection, and
ethnic consciousness among Black Americans. Social Forces, 68, 1105-1120.
Iijima-Hall, C. C. (1995), Beauty is in the soul of the beholder: Psychological implications of beauty and African American
women. Cultural Diversity and Mental Health, 1, 125-137.
Jayakar, K. (1994). Women of the Indian subcontinent. In L. Comas-Diaz & B. Greene (Eds.), Women of color: A portrait
of heterogeneity (pp. 161-184). New York: Guilford.
Jensen, A. R. (1985). The nature of the Black-White difference on various tests: Spearman's hypothesis. Behavioral
and Brain Sciences, 8, 193-219.
Jensen, A. R. (1987). Further evidence for Spearman's hypothesis concerning Black-White differences on psychometric
tests. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 10, 512-519.
Jensen, A. R. (1994). Paroxysms of denial. National Review, 46, 48-50.
Keith, V. M., & Herring, C. (1991). Skin tone and stratification in the Black community. The American Journal of
Sociology, 97, 760-778.
Langlois, J. H., & Stephan, C. (1977). The effects of physical attractiveness and ethnicity on children's behavioral
attributions and peer preferences. Child Development, 48, 1694-1698.
Lee, S. (Director), & Blake, G. (Producer). (1988). School daze [Film]. CA: Columbia Pictures/40 Acres and a Mule
Filmworks.
Leeds, M. (1993). Young African American women and the language of beauty. In K. A. Callaghan (Ed.), Ideals of
feminine beauty (pp. 147-159). Connecticut: Greenwood Press.
Linville, P. W., Salovey, P., & Fischer, G. W. (1986). Stereotyping and perceived distributions of social characteristics:
An application to ingroup-outgroup perception. In J. F. Dovidio & S. L. Gaertner (Eds.), Prejudice, discrimination and
racism (pp. 165-208). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Morrison, T. (1970). The bluest eye. New York: Pocket Books.
Morrow v. Internal Revenue Service, 742 F. Supp. 670 (N. D. Ga. 1990).
Nair, M. (Producer/Director), Epstein, M. (Producer), Nozik, M. (Producer), & Pilcher, L. D. (Producer). (1991).
Mississippi masala [Film]. CA: Orion Pictures.

Neal, A.M. (1988). The influence of skin color and facial features on perceptions of Black female physical attractiveness
(Doctoral dissertation, DePaul University Chicago). Dissertation Abstracts International. 50, 754.
Neal, A.M., & Wilson, M. L. (1989). The role of skin color and features in the black community: Implications for Black
women and therapy. Clinical Psychology Review, 9, 323-333.
Okazawa-Rey, M., Robinson, T., & Ward, J. V. (1986). Black women and the politics of skin color and hair. Women's
Studies Quarterly, 14(1&2), 13-14.
Parham, T. A. (1989). Cycles of psychological nigrescence. The Counseling Psychologist, 17, 187-226.
Perkins, D. F., & Lerner. R. M. (1995). Single and multiple indicators of physical attractiveness and psychosocial
behaviors among young adolescents. Journal of Early Adolescence, 15, 267-298.
Perkins, K. R. (1996). The influence of television images on Black females self-perceptions of physical attractiveness.
Journal of Black Psychology, 22, 453-469.
Porter, C. (1991). Social reasons for skin tone preferences of Black school-age children. American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, 61(1), 149-154.
Quattrone, G. A. (1986). On the perception of a groups' variability. In S. Worchel & W. Austin (Eds.), Psychology of
intergroup relations (Vol. 2, pp. 25-48). Chicago: Nelson-Hall.
Reuter, E. B. (1918). The superiority of the mulatto. The American Journal of Sociology, 23(1), 83-106.
Rosenthal, R., & Jacobson, L. (1968). Pygmation in the classroom. New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston.
Sandler, K. (Director), & Bourne, S. (Executive Producer), (1993). A question of color [Film]. (Available from Film Two
Productions, San Francisco, CA, and California Newsreel).
Sandler, K. (1994). Finding a space for myself in my film about color consciousness. In D. Willis (Ed.), Picturing us:
African American identity in photography (pp. 105112), New York: The New Press.
Scales-Trent, J. (1995). Notes of a White Black woman: Race, color, community. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania
State University Press.
Scarr, S. (1987). Distinctive environments depend on genotypes. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 10(1), 38-39.
Seltzer, R., & Smith, R. C. (1991). Color differences in the Afro-American community and the differences they make.
Journal of Black Studies, 21, 279-286.
Stephan, C., & Langlois, J. H. (1984). Baby beautiful: Adult attributions of infant competence as a function of infant
attractiveness. Child Development, 55, 576-585.
Sue D. W., Arredondo, P., & McDair, R. J. (1992). Multicultural counseling competencies and standards: A call to the
profession. Journal of Counseling & Development, 70, 477-486.
Thurman, W. (1969). The blacker the berry. New York: Arno Press.
Umberson, D., & Hughes, M. (1987). The impact of physical attractiveness on achievement and psychological wellbeing. Social Psychology Quarterly, 50,227-236.
Vanzant, I. (1998). One day my soul just opened up. New York: Fireside Publishers.
Vazquez, L. A., Garcia-Vazquez, E., Bauman, S, A., Sierra, A. (1997). Skin color, acculturation, and community interest
among Mexican American students: A research note. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 19, 377-386.
Wade, T. J. (1996). The relationship between skin color and self-perceived global. physical. and sexual attractiveness,
and self-esteem for African Americans. Journal of Black Psychology, 22,358-373.
Wentzel, K. R. (1997). Student motivation in middle school: The role of perceived pedagogical caring. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 89, 411-419.
Wheeler. L., & Kim, Y. (1997). What is beautiful is culturally good: The physical attractiveness stereotype has different
content in collectivistic cultures. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 795-800.
Why skin color suddenly is a big issue again. (1992, March). Ebony, 47, 120-122.
Wiltz. T. (1995. February 26). Who defines race. The Chicago Tribune. pp. 4-1, 4-4.
~~~~~~~~
By Alfiee M. Breland
Alfiee M. Breland is an assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special
Education at Michigan State University, East Lansing. The research for this article is part of a study to fulfill the author's
requirements for a doctoral dissertation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Correspondence regarding this article
should be sent to Alfiee M. Breland, Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special Education,
Michigan State University, 450 Erickson Hall, East Lansing, MI 48824-1034 (e-mail: breland@pilot. msu.edu).
Copyright of Journal of Multicultural Counseling & Development is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may
not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written
permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.

DIAGRAM: FIGURE 1: The Model of Differential Perceptions of Competence Based on SkinTone

REFERENCES
Atkinson, D. R., Brown, M. T., Parham, T. A., Matthews, L. G., Brown, J., & Kim, A. U. (1996). African American client
skin tone and clinical judgments of African American and European American psychologists. Professional Psychology:
Research & Practice, 27, 500-505.
Berry, B. (1988). Black-on-Black discrimination: The phenomenon of colorism among African Americans (Doctoral
dissertation, Kent State University, 1988). Dissertation Abstracts International, 49, 3167.
Bond, S., & Cash, T. F. (1992). Black beauty: Skin color and body images among African-American college women.
Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 874-888. Boyd-Franklin, N. (1991). Recurrent themes in the treatment of
African American women in group psychotherapy. Women and Therapy, 11, 24-40.
Codina, G. E., & Montalvo, F. F. (1994). Chicano phenotype and depression. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences,
16, 296-306.
Cross, W. E., Jr. (1991). Shades of Black: Diversity in African American identity. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Dion, K. K., Pak, A. W. P., Dion, K. L. (1990). Stereotyping physical attractiveness: A sociocultural perspective. Journal
of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 21, 378-398.
Edwards, O. L. (1972). Skin color as a variable in racial attitudes of Black urbanites. Journal of Black Studies, 3, 473483.
Feingold, A. (1992). Good looking people are not what we think. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 304-341.
Frazier, E. F. (1957). The Negro in the United States. New York: Macmillan.
Freeman, H. E., Ross, M. J., Armor, D., & Petrigrew, T. F. (1966). Color gradation and attitudes among middle-income
Negroes. American Sociological Review. 31, 365-374.
Hall, R. E. (1996). Dark skin and the cultural ideal of masculinity. Journal of African American Men, 1(3), 37-62.
Harvey, A. (1995. January). The issue of skin color in psychotherapy with African Americans. Families in Society: The
Journal of Contemporary Human Services, 76, 3-8.
Helms. J. E. (Ed.). (1990). Black and White racial identity: Theory, research, and practice. New York: Greenwood Press.
Herrnstein, R. J., & Murray C. A. (1994). The bell curve: Intelligence and class structure in American life. New York:
The Free Press.
Hughes, M., & Hertel, B. R. (1990). The significance of skin color remains: A study of life chances, mate selection, and
ethnic consciousness among Black Americans. Social Forces, 68, 1105-1120.
Iijima-Hall, C. C. (1995), Beauty is in the soul of the beholder: Psychological implications of beauty and African American
women. Cultural Diversity and Mental Health, 1, 125-137.
Jayakar, K. (1994). Women of the Indian subcontinent. In L. Comas-Diaz & B. Greene (Eds.), Women of color: A portrait
of heterogeneity (pp. 161-184). New York: Guilford.
Jensen, A. R. (1985). The nature of the Black-White difference on various tests: Spearman's hypothesis. Behavioral
and Brain Sciences, 8, 193-219.
Jensen, A. R. (1987). Further evidence for Spearman's hypothesis concerning Black-White differences on psychometric
tests. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 10, 512-519.
Jensen, A. R. (1994). Paroxysms of denial. National Review, 46, 48-50.
Keith, V. M., & Herring, C. (1991). Skin tone and stratification in the Black community. The American Journal of
Sociology, 97, 760-778.
Langlois, J. H., & Stephan, C. (1977). The effects of physical attractiveness and ethnicity on children's behavioral
attributions and peer preferences. Child Development, 48, 1694-1698.
Lee, S. (Director), & Blake, G. (Producer). (1988). School daze [Film]. CA: Columbia Pictures/40 Acres and a Mule
Filmworks.
Leeds, M. (1993). Young African American women and the language of beauty. In K. A. Callaghan (Ed.), Ideals of
feminine beauty (pp. 147-159). Connecticut: Greenwood Press.
Linville, P. W., Salovey, P., & Fischer, G. W. (1986). Stereotyping and perceived distributions of social characteristics:
An application to ingroup-outgroup perception. In J. F. Dovidio & S. L. Gaertner (Eds.), Prejudice, discrimination and
racism (pp. 165-208). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Morrison, T. (1970). The bluest eye. New York: Pocket Books.
Morrow v. Internal Revenue Service, 742 F. Supp. 670 (N. D. Ga. 1990).
Nair, M. (Producer/Director), Epstein, M. (Producer), Nozik, M. (Producer), & Pilcher, L. D. (Producer). (1991).
Mississippi masala [Film]. CA: Orion Pictures.
Neal, A.M. (1988). The influence of skin color and facial features on perceptions of Black female physical attractiveness
(Doctoral dissertation, DePaul University Chicago). Dissertation Abstracts International. 50, 754.

Neal, A.M., & Wilson, M. L. (1989). The role of skin color and features in the black community: Implications for Black
women and therapy. Clinical Psychology Review, 9, 323-333.
Okazawa-Rey, M., Robinson, T., & Ward, J. V. (1986). Black women and the politics of skin color and hair. Women's
Studies Quarterly, 14(1&2), 13-14.
Parham, T. A. (1989). Cycles of psychological nigrescence. The Counseling Psychologist, 17, 187-226.
Perkins, D. F., & Lerner. R. M. (1995). Single and multiple indicators of physical attractiveness and psychosocial
behaviors among young adolescents. Journal of Early Adolescence, 15, 267-298.
Perkins, K. R. (1996). The influence of television images on Black females self-perceptions of physical attractiveness.
Journal of Black Psychology, 22, 453-469.
Porter, C. (1991). Social reasons for skin tone preferences of Black school-age children. American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, 61(1), 149-154.
Quattrone, G. A. (1986). On the perception of a groups' variability. In S. Worchel & W. Austin (Eds.), Psychology of
intergroup relations (Vol. 2, pp. 25-48). Chicago: Nelson-Hall.
Reuter, E. B. (1918). The superiority of the mulatto. The American Journal of Sociology, 23(1), 83-106.
Rosenthal, R., & Jacobson, L. (1968). Pygmation in the classroom. New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston.
Sandler, K. (Director), & Bourne, S. (Executive Producer), (1993). A question of color [Film]. (Available from Film Two
Productions, San Francisco, CA, and California Newsreel).
Sandler, K. (1994). Finding a space for myself in my film about color consciousness. In D. Willis (Ed.), Picturing us:
African American identity in photography (pp. 105112), New York: The New Press.
Scales-Trent, J. (1995). Notes of a White Black woman: Race, color, community. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania
State University Press.
Scarr, S. (1987). Distinctive environments depend on genotypes. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 10(1), 38-39.
Seltzer, R., & Smith, R. C. (1991). Color differences in the Afro-American community and the differences they make.
Journal of Black Studies, 21, 279-286.
Stephan, C., & Langlois, J. H. (1984). Baby beautiful: Adult attributions of infant competence as a function of infant
attractiveness. Child Development, 55, 576-585.
Sue D. W., Arredondo, P., & McDair, R. J. (1992). Multicultural counseling competencies and standards: A call to the
profession. Journal of Counseling & Development, 70, 477-486.
Thurman, W. (1969). The blacker the berry. New York: Arno Press.
Umberson, D., & Hughes, M. (1987). The impact of physical attractiveness on achievement and psychological wellbeing. Social Psychology Quarterly, 50,227-236.
Vanzant, I. (1998). One day my soul just opened up. New York: Fireside Publishers.
Vazquez, L. A., Garcia-Vazquez, E., Bauman, S, A., Sierra, A. (1997). Skin color, acculturation, and community interest
among Mexican American students: A research note. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 19, 377-386.
Wade, T. J. (1996). The relationship between skin color and self-perceived global. physical. and sexual attractiveness,
and self-esteem for African Americans. Journal of Black Psychology, 22,358-373.
Wentzel, K. R. (1997). Student motivation in middle school: The role of perceived pedagogical caring. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 89, 411-419.
Wheeler. L., & Kim, Y. (1997). What is beautiful is culturally good: The physical attractiveness stereotype has different
content in collectivistic cultures. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 795-800.
Why skin color suddenly is a big issue again. (1992, March). Ebony, 47, 120-122.
Wiltz. T. (1995. February 26). Who defines race. The Chicago Tribune. pp. 4-1, 4-4.
~~~~~~~~
By Alfiee M. Breland
Alfiee M. Breland is an assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special
Education at Michigan State University, East Lansing. The research for this article is part of a study to fulfill the author's
requirements for a doctoral dissertation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Correspondence regarding this article
should be sent to Alfiee M. Breland, Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special Education,
Michigan State University, 450 Erickson Hall, East Lansing, MI 48824-1034 (e-mail: breland@pilot. msu.edu).
Copyright of Journal of Multicultural Counseling & Development is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may
not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written
permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.