Master Narratives

ABOUT

The social constructs of race and gender structure society and often govern how we see ourselves and how we make sense of our world. In the Master Narrative project, DICE asks how children (ages 7-14) perceive and negotiate their own racial and gender identities in the context of macro-level inequalities.

The master narrative framework, which serves as a guide for how to be “good” members of society through culturally shared beliefs, provides an analytical framework to examine how children are affected by the power structures of race and gender, and how they act as agents within them. When children describe their own gender identities, do they voice “master narratives” that reinforce gender norms and existing inequality or do they articulate “alternative narratives” which disrupt these structures? Do they speak about race in terms of a master “colorblind” narrative or do they challenge this racial silence by articulating the significance of race? We explore these and other questions using longitudinal interview data from Asian, Black, White, Latino, and Mixed-Race children in racially-diverse elementary schools.

If you are interested in learning more, please contact us at thedicelab@gmail.com

Readings

  1. McLean, K., & Syed, M., (2015). Personal, master, and alternative narratives: An integrative framework for understanding identity development in context. Human Development, 58, 318-349. [LINK]
  2. Rogers, L. O., & Meltzoff, A. N., (2017). Is gender more important and meaningful than race? An analysis of racial and gender identity among black, white, and mixed-race children. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 23, 323-334. [LINK]
  3. Robinson, T., & Ward, J. V., (1991). “A belief in self far greater than anyone’s disbelief”: Cultivating resistance among african american female adolescent. Women & Therapy, 11, 87-103. [LINK]