Black Students’ Perception of Racialized Sense of Self and Its Effects on Self-Determination and Sense of Belonging

Abstract

This study examined how Black secondary students' perceptions of their racialized sense of self influence their experiences of self-determination and belonging within a majority-Latinx school district in California's Central Valley. Framed by Morrison's (1997) metaphor of the "racialized house," this research explored how systemic racism embedded in educational environments shapes the basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness among Black students. Using a QuantCrit lens combined with self-determination theory (SDT), the study employed a quantitative correlational design to investigate the relationships among racial identity dimensions, perceptions of racism, school climate, and psychological need satisfaction and frustration. Participants included 201 Black students who completed a combined instrument integrating validated scales: the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity-Teen, Perceptions of Racism in Children and Youth, Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale, Psychological Sense of School Membership, and School Climate for Diversity. Analyses included descriptive statistics, correlational analyses, multiple regressions, and moderation modeling (Hayes, 2017, 2022).

Findings revealed that perceived racism and racialized school climates were associated with higher frustration and lower satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs. Stronger private regard and racial centrality were protective factors associated with greater belonging and need satisfaction, even within unsupportive environments. Conversely, low public regard, or the belief that others devalue Blackness, weakened students' sense of belonging and motivation. These findings suggest that students' internal racial identity beliefs can buffer against, but not fully shield them from, the systemic barriers embedded in educational structures.

This research challenges deficit frameworks that locate failure within Black students or families and instead expose how systemic racism constrains students' development. By centering Black students' using quantitative methods in a critically manner, this study offers a blueprint for reimagining educational environments that affirm Black identity, belonging, and meet their needs for self-determination. It argues that dismantling the racialized house and rebuilding educational spaces grounded in justice is not a matter of reform but of radical reimagining, led by the experiences and aspirations of the very students the system has historically marginalized.