Abstract
Critical reflection is a necessary yet not sufficient prerequisite for critical action, but little is known about conditions that facilitate associations between the two. This study investigates when associations between critical reflection on racism and antiracist action among White youth in the Netherlands are stronger, examining critical motivation, parental ethnic-racial socialization, and intergroup friendships as facilitating conditions. 338 17–21-years old White youth (M = 19.44, SD = 1.28, 73% female) participated in a survey study. The identified positive association between critical reflection and action was stronger for youth with higher levels of critical motivation. Parental ethnic-racial socialization and intergroup friendships, in contrast, did not moderate the association. Boosting critical motivation seems a promising avenue to fostering antiracism among White youth.
| Original language | English |
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| Article number | e20191765 |
| Journal | Journal of Youth and Adolescence |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 26 Mar 2025 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© The Author(s) 2025.
Funding
I would like to thank Herman Horzelenberg for his contribution to this project as student assistant. Additionally, I want to thank prof. dr. Eddie Denessen, prof. dr. Judi Mesman, and dr. Antoinette Kroes for their help with adapting the critical reflection measure to the Dutch context. The study design and its hypotheses were preregistered, https://osf.io/unz59.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues |
Keywords
- Antiracism
- Critical consciousness
- Ethnic-racial socialization
- Intergroup contact
- Youth