The Impact of Racial Socialization on the Academic Performance and Prosocial Involvement of Black Emerging Adults

Despite evidence linking racial socialization processes to the functioning of Black youth, the effect of these parenting practices among Black college students is less clear. This study examined the relationship among racial socialization messages, academic performance, and prosocial involvement for 295 Black college students. Results revealed that participants who received messages alerting them to the existence of racism were more involved in prosocial activities on campus and in the community; conversely, disparaging racial messages were negatively related to academic performance. Despite the college students’ newfound autonomy, findings suggest parental messages about race continue to impact Black college students.