The Relationships among Racial Identity,Perceived Ethnic Fit,and Organizational Involvement for African American Students at a Predominantly White University

Abstract

In the present study, the idea of person-environment fit was explored for African American college students in a predominantly White university. The relationships among African American students’demographic backgrounds, beliefs regarding race (racial ideology and racial centrality), and their perceived fit in the college environment due to their ethnicity (PEF) were examined. These factors were used to predict student organizational involvement in race-specific organizations and mainstream campus organizations. Participants were 164 African American students from a predominantly White university. It was found that both the meaning of race (ideology) and the importance of race (centrality) were related to the extent to which students felt comfort in expressing their ethnicity and, subsequently, their social participation in ethnic group affirming activities. The findings suggest the importance of the students’ perceptions of congruence between themselves and their educational environment.