Psychology of Black Womanhood: Where Research Meets the Real World

Black and Brown transgender women are particularly vulnerable to being treated as subjects of research rather than empowered collaborators throughout the research process. Challenging this history, the TRUST project—“To Reach Unrestricted Services for Transwomen (TRUST)”—based at University of Central Florida and funded by the National Institutes of Health, centers authenticity, empowerment, and h...

Given the physical and psychological impact of puberty, research shows that it is critical for girls to navigate this normative stage of development through open discussions with knowledgeable and supportive adults. This is especially important for Black girls, whose earlier experiences with pubertal development can increase their risk for both short- and long-term negative health outcomes, includ...

How would you score on the paper bag test? Does skin color influence how you are able to move through this world? This podcast explores how skin color influences African American women’s mental health and overall wellbeing, particularly in relation to interpersonal relationships. We examine colorism and the concept of skin color as a form of social capital. This framework explains how beauty stand...

Hip Hop Feminism is a dynamic and critical paradigm that addresses the intersection of race, gender, and class within the context of Hip Hop culture. Emerging in response to pervasive misogyny and the underrepresentation of African American women in the Hip Hop industry, Hip Hop Feminism is a transformative movement that seeks to challenge and reshape the cultural landscape of Hip Hop by centering...

Mainstream psychology in the U.S. has historically overlooked critical aspects of the lives and experiences of African American women since the foundation of the field. The documented inequities and research biases have contributed to psychological frameworks that fail to authentically capture the realities, mental health experiences, and lived perspectives of Black women, reflecting broader gaps...