INFLUENCE OF RACIAL IDENTITY ATTITUDES ON AFRICAN-AMERICAN COLLEGE-STUDENTS VOCATIONAL IDENTITY AND HOPE

Although there have been numerous appeals for such research in the pro fessional literature, this study was the first to empirically investig ate individual difference Variables influencing vocational identity an d hope in setting and achieving goals in African American college stud ents. One-hundred twenty-two African American college students attendi ng a predominantly White university completed measures assessing stude nts' racial identity attitudes, vocational identity, and sense of hope to achieve goals. Results from a series of multiple linear regression s indicated that both racial identity attitudes and demographic variab les significantly accounted for variability in one's sense of hope. Sp ecifically, internalization of one's racial identity, academic classif ication, and highest level of parental educational attainment signific antly related to hope. Similarly, internalization of one's racial iden tity accounted for a significant amount of vocational identity varianc e for women. Conversely, for men, racial identity attitudes did not ac count for a significant amount of variance in vocational identify scor es; however, demographic variables collectively accounted for a signif icant amount of vocational identity scores for men, but not for women. Findings suggest that racial identity attitudes accounted for additio nal variance in hope over and above demographic variables for both men and women and in vocational identity for women only. Implications for practice and future research are discussed. (C) 1998 Academic Press.