"The current study used questionnaires in order to survey a sample of rural high school students regarding their self-esteem, attitudes toward acculturation, and their sense of ethnic identity. Students' ratings of self-esteem were not related to their sense of ethnic or racial identity nor their generational status, or how far removed they are from their cultural background. However, when acculturation attitudes were examined, the results were somewhat unexpected. The students who endorsed integration, or the idea that immigrants should both maintain their cultural traditions and try to adapt to their new culture, reported higher levels of self-esteem and identified themselves as completely American. The current findings were discussed in comparison to the results of previous studies conducted in inner-city communities such as New York City. Also discussed were the implications the current study has for educating and counseling adolescents in an increasingly diverse American school system."--Abstract.

The purpose of the present study was to explore the extent to which racial identity attitudes and self-esteem could predict academic performance for African American middle school students. A total of 175 African American adolescents in 7th grade attending one of two urban schools participated in the study. The Multi-Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE) were used to measure children's feelings toward themselves and their group. Cumulative grade point average (gpa) was used to measure academic achievement. The findings partially supported the hypothesis that racial identity and self-esteem are predictors of academic performance. Self-esteem and racial affiliation were significant predictors of academic achievement, but not the racial identity search component of the MEIM. The results revealed self-esteem to be less predictive of academic achievement than racial affiliation. The second part of the study was to examine the effects of racial identity and self-esteem on African American adolescents' academic performance. The hypothesis was supported. Students who exhibited high levels of self-esteem and racial identity performed better academically than students who showed low levels of self-esteem and racial identity. (Contains 7 tables.).

This Handbook presents current research on children and youth in ethnic minority families. It reflects the development currently taking place in the field of social sciences research to highlight the positive adaptation of minority children and youth. It offers a succinct synthesis of where the field is and where it needs to go. It brings together an international group of leading researchers, and, in view of globalization and increased migration and immigration, it addresses what aspects of children and youth growing in ethnic minority families are universal across contexts and what aspects are more context-specific. The Handbook examines the individual, family, peers, and neighborhood/policy factors that protect children and promote positive adaptation. It examines the factors that support children’s social integration, psychosocial adaptation, and external functioning. Finally, it looks at the mechanisms that explain why social adaptation occurs.