Commemorating Brown : The Social Psychology of Racism and Discrimination

Brown v. Board of Education was the landmark 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision that declared racial segregation illegal in the United States. Commemorating Brown offers a critical retrospective on the role of psychological research in the fight against racism and discrimination and an up-to-date review of the psychology of racism and its implications for schools, the workplace, and public policy. The chapters provide a historical perspective on the Brown decision, including its promise as a mechanism for social justice, the reasons why its promise remains unfulfilled, and its ongoing relevance in a contemporary context of increasing resegregation. Equally important, chapter authors identify emerging directions for action in the continuing struggle against racism and oppression, including multicultural and international perspectives on racism that highlight the role of identity processes and collectively constructed realities (e.g., social representations of fairness, integration, merit, and American history). Finally, the editors describe a sociocultural approach to the psychology of racism and oppression that integrates diverse programs of theory and research in social psychology.

Glenn Adams is Assistant Professor of Psychology and director of the Culture and Psychology Research Group at the University of Kansas. He is a social psychologist who investigates the cultural grounding of personal relationship, the psychology of systemic oppression, and processes involved in the collective construction of reality.

Monica Biernat is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Ph.D. program in Social Psychology at the University of Kansas. Her research examines the processes of stereotyping and prejudice, and focuses specifically on how stereotypes guide (and often distort) judgments of individual members of stereotyped groups.

Nyla R. Branscombe is Professor of Social Psychology at University of Kansas. Her research is focused on Intergroup Relations involving both devalued and privileged groups--with an emphasis on the importance of group history and its implications for emotional reactions in the present.

Christian S. Crandall is Professor of Psychology at the University of Kansas. He is a social psychologist who studies prejudice, stereotyping, and social influence. He also has interests in political psychology, particularly in the psychology of ideology and political legitimacy.

Lawrence S. Wrightsman is Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of Kansas. His current interests deal with the relationship of psychology and the law, specifically Supreme Court decision making.