Research
The CSULB Culture and Social Identity Development Lab aims to understand the experiences of diverse children as they begin to form their gender
and racial/ethnic identities. Our lab takes an applied approach with the goal of tackling relevant social issues that might affect
the healthy development of children and society more broadly. For example, issues like the underrepresentation of women in male-dominated fields, racial disparities
in health in the U.S., gender differences in depression, and the persistence of sexism might all have earlier developmental origins. We thus seek to investigate
children’s early attitudes (e.g., towards girls and boys, towards certain racial/ethnic groups), thoughts (e.g., stereotypes
like “boys have to be strong”), and behaviors (e.g., girls insistence on wearing very feminine clothing) that are linked with
their developing gender and racial/ethnic
identities, with the goal of informing these broader social issues.
Our research integrates approaches and theory from both developmental psychology and social psychology. Our methods include observing
children's identity-related behaviors in the laboratory through play activities and games. We also interview children and ask them about how they feel and think about
their social identities. In addition, we survey parents to share with us their observations of their children.
Consistent with the mission and strategic priorities of CSULB, our lab greatly values diversity and giving back to the community.
We include children and their families from the local Long Beach and Southern California community. Children in our studies come from multiple income, immigration,
language, and racial/ethnic backgrounds. We prioritize sharing our work with others through educational talks, staff and parent workshops, and newsletters to local
schools and community organizations. We are proud that our work has been used to inform early educational programs.
Current research topics include:
