An Integrative Model for the Study of Developmental Competencies in Minority Children

• Published in: Child development Vol. 67; no. 5; pp. 1891 - 1914
• Main Authors: Coll, Cynthia García, Lamberty, Gontran, Jenkins, Renee, McAdoo, Harriet Pipes, Crnic, Keith, Wasik, Barbara Hanna, García, Heidie Vázquez
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden, MA University of Chicago Press 01.10.1996; Blackwell; University of Chicago Press for the Society for Research in Child Development, etc; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: African American culture; African Americans; African Americans - psychology; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child Development; Child rearing; Child, Preschool; Children; Competence; Developmental psychology; Discrimination; Ethnic groups; Family - psychology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hispanic Americans - psychology; Humans; Minority & ethnic groups; Minority Group Children; Minority Groups; Minority Groups - psychology; Oppression; Personality Development; Poverty; Prejudice; Prejudices; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Racial Attitudes; Racial Bias; Racial Discrimination; Racial Segregation; Racism; Social Class; Social classes; Social psychology; Social Stratification; Socioeconomic Influences; Theoretical Papers; Theoretical Problems; Theories; United States of America; United States; North America; America; Human; Social environment; Theoretical model; Cultural environment; Minority; Race; Development; Family environment; Social class; Child; Ethnic group
• ISSN: 0009-3920; 1467-8624
• DOI: 10.2307/1131600

In this article, a conceptual model for the study of child development in minority populations in the United States is proposed. In support of the proposed model, this article includes (a) a delineation and critical analysis of mainstream theoretical frameworks in relation to their attention and applicability to the understanding of developmental processes in children of color and of issues at the intersection of social class, culture, ethnicity, and race, and (b) a description and evaluation of the conceptual frameworks that have guided the extant literature on minority children and families. Based on the above considerations, an integrative conceptual model of child development is presented, anchored within social stratification theory, emphasizing the importance of racism, prejudice, discrimination, oppression, and segregation on the development of minority children and families.