Sensitivity to status-based rejection: implications for African American students' college experience.

Full Abstract

The authors proposed a process model whereby experiences of rejection based on membership in a devalued group can lead people to anxiously expect, readily perceive, and intensely react to status-based rejection. To test the model, the authors focused on race-based rejection sensitivity (RS-race) among African Americans. Following the development and validation of the RS-Race Questionnaire (Studies 1 and 2), the authors tested the utility of the model for understanding African American students' experiences at a predominantly White university (Study 3). Students high in RS-race experienced greater discomfort during the college transition, less trust in the university, and relative declines in grades over a 2- to 3-year period. Positive race-related experiences, however, increased feelings of belonging at the institution among students high in RS-race.

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Author information

Author/s: Mendoza-Denton, Rodolfo (R); Downey, Geraldine (G); Purdie, Valerie J (VJ); Davis, Angelina (A); Pietrzak, Janina (J);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027, USA. rmd@socrates.berkeley.edu

Grants: MH39349 (Agency:United States NIMH) ; MH51113 (Agency:United States NIMH)

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

Journal: Journal of personality and social psychology (J Pers Soc Psychol), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2002-Oct; vol 83 (issue 4) : pp 896-918

Dates: Created 2002/10/10; Completed 2003/03/14; Revised 2007/11/14;

PMID: 12374443, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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