Dissertation
Exploring racial socialization: using photo elicitation to invite college students into deeper reflection on messaging about race in their college environment
University of Iowa
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Iowa
Spring 2025
DOI: 10.25820/etd.007836
Abstract
This study explores the racial socialization of eight white undergraduate students at a historically white institution, addressing a critical gap in traditional approaches to understanding how white college students learn to make meaning of race. By focusing on students who have experienced racial interruptions, the research delves into an exploration of the way white students navigate ongoing tension, contradiction, and curiosity in their racial exploration. The study aims to move beyond existing limitations in racial socialization research by capturing the nuanced, engaged process of racial meaning-making among white students. The purpose of this study is to explore the racial socialization of white undergraduate students who have experienced an interruption by capturing the messages they receive about race in their college environment at a historically white institution. The research questions are: 1) What are the messages that white undergraduate students who have experienced an interruption receive about their racial socialization at a historically white institution? and 2) How do white undergraduate students who have experienced an interruption understand the messages that they receive about their racial socialization at a historically white institution?
This study comes at a pivotal moment when Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in higher education face active dismantling efforts, making it crucial to understand how white students make meaning the varying racial messaging ever present in their college environment. By examining the racial socialization process, this study addresses the enduring conflict of racism in higher education and the need for intentional socializing processes of all students. The research seeks to invite white students to move from passive detachment toward meaningful engagement, recognizing that fostering critical racial awareness is essential to interrupting systemic racism.
Employing a critical qualitative case study methodology with photo elicitation, the research invited participants to capture and critically reflect on racial messages in their college environment. The study utilized critical conceptual frameworks, including Critical Whiteness Studies and Critical Constructivism, to interrogate assumptions and generate possibilities for social change.
Findings of this study resulted in a proposed model that represents: the (Dis)Engagement Process of white Racial Socialization. Key findings highlight the crucial role of building stamina and importance of a sense of belonging in white students’ willingness to engage with racial discussions and the ongoing exercises of noticing, processing, and practicing, to understand the racial socialization messages around them. The study offers significant implications for higher education, recommending approaches that foster holistic citizenship, encourage curiosity over certainty, and provide structured opportunities for white students to critically examine their reflections about race. Ultimately, the research provides a pathway for more intentional and transformative racial engagement for white students in the collegiate environments.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Exploring racial socialization: using photo elicitation to invite college students into deeper reflection on messaging about race in their college environment
- Creators
- Mackenzie Lechlitner Kirby
- Contributors
- Sherry K. Watt (Advisor)Duhita Mahatmya (Committee Member)Christine A. Ogren (Committee Member)Saba R. Ali (Committee Member)
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Iowa
- Degree in
- Educational Policy and Leadership Studies
- Date degree season
- Spring 2025
- DOI
- 10.25820/etd.007836
- Publisher
- University of Iowa
- Number of pages
- xv, 238 pages
- Copyright
- Copyright 2025 Mackenzie Lechlitner Kirby
- Language
- English
- Date submitted
- 04/25/2025
- Description illustrations
- illustrations, tables
- Description bibliographic
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 200-220).
- Public Abstract (ETD)
- Traditional approaches to understanding how white college students learn to make meaning of race have been valuable, but they present limitations in capturing the full complexity of racial socialization as an engaged process. This study offers an in-depth exploration of how eight white undergraduate students at a historically white institution (HWI) experience racial socialization through the messages they encounter in their college environment. The purpose of this research was to understand what these messages are and how students make sense of them. The research questions are: 1) What are the messages that white undergraduate students who have experienced an interruption receive about their racial socialization at a historically white institution? and 2) How do white undergraduate students who have experienced an interruption understand the messages that they receive about their racial socialization at a historically white institution? This critical qualitative study used photo elicitation to invite white students into deeper self and societal awareness by asking them to capture messages about race in their college environment. This process yielded important findings, particularly the development of the (Dis)Engagement Process of white Racial Socialization, a model that explains how white students navigate and engage with the complexities of racial socialization. This model emphasizes the importance of stamina in sustaining engagement. Implications of this study include pathways for fostering greater engagement from white students in efforts that interrupt racism and promote racial equity.
- Academic Unit
- Educational Policy and Leadership Studies
- Record Identifier
- 9984831123802771
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