The Development of Racial Evaluation and Preference: A Cognitive Approach

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Abstract
The paper presents the results of an empirical study designed to investigate impersonal and racial cognitive development in Black American children. It is hypothe sized that "impersonal" cognitive factors (specifically physical constancy) are precursors of the development of "social" cognitive factors (appropriate racial classifica tion of family members, and racial constancy). Further more, it is hypothesized that social cognitive functioning is a precursor of the development of affective responses and preferences. Various measures of the three dimensions above were administered to samples of Black American children in the age range of 4-11 years, with comparisons of results for children in the 4-5, 6-7, 8-9, and 10-11 age groups. The results are partially supportive of the hypothesized relationship between impersonal cognition and social cognition, but suggest that the relationship between social cognition and social affect is more com plex than hypothesized.