Examining Critical Reflection as a Mediator Between School Racial Climate Experiences and Anti-Racist Action.

Abstract

Little is known about how different school racial climate experiences influence the critical reflection and subsequent critical action behaviors of racially minoritized youth. Therefore, the current study examined how critical reflection mediated the relationship between school racial climate profiles and critical action behaviors. Participants were 559 Black and Latinx adolescents, aged 13–17 who completed an online survey. Results indicated that critical reflection significantly mediated the relationships between interpersonal interactions (i.e., equal status) and anti‐racist critical action behaviors. Similarly, the relationships between school racial socialization messages (i.e., cultural and critical consciousness socialization) and anti‐racist critical action behaviors were also mediated by critical reflection. Findings have implications for how dimensions of the school racial climate differentially relate to racially minoritized youth's critical consciousness.