Toward the Development of the Stereotypical Roles of Black Young Men Scale

There is a significant amount of literature on identity development in general, but there is a dearth of research focusing on identity development in relation to how other processes and constructs influence the identity development of African American young men. One such construct is the presence of stereotypical roles. The primary purpose of this study was to create a reliable and valid measure of the stereotypical roles of African American young men. This study explored the relationship between the endorsement of stereotypical roles, stigma consciousness, and masculinity of African American young men. African American young men (n = 164) between the ages of 15 and 18 participated. Participants completed 4 measures including a measure of Black male stereotypical roles, stigma consciousness, male role norms, and internalized racism. An exploratory factor analysis was conducted on the Stereotypical Roles of Black Young Men Scale (SRBYM). The study used a correlational design to establish construct validity for the SRBYM. Results of the factor analysis reveal that the SRBYM is best interpreted as a single factor, or a unitary dimension of black male stereotypical roles. Results of the correlational analysis suggest that stereotypical roles are positively correlated with internalized racism. There was no relationship found between stereotypical roles and male roles norms and stigma consciousness. Implications for intervention, prevention, and research are discussed.