{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.043909348441926344, 'fraction_numerical': 0.025495750708215296, 'mean_word_length': 5.0905172413793105, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
African American Identity in Adolescence

Introduction William James, one of the founders of modern psychology, laid the groundwork for the study of self-concept by noting that the self is both content what one knows about one’s self and also process cognition, motivation, attentional processes (James, 1890). Since this early work, it has been clear that both aspects of the self are critical. That is, what I know about myself provides answers to key existential questions -‘who am I?’ and ‘where do I belong?’. But also, the self is a cognitive structure that mediates and organizes everyday experience, regulates affect and channels motivation (Markus & Wurf, 1987). Therefore, making sense of self concept provides a tool for making sense of everyday choices. Adolescence is a critical phase in the process of self-making both because it is a time during which youth create an outline of the self they will become as adults (Banaji & Prentice, 1994; Cantor & Zirkel, 1990; Harter & Marold, 1991; Kihlstrom & Klein, 1994). And also because choices made during adolescence are likely to have important consequences for the future -dropping out of school increases the likelihood of unemployment, delinquency and early, unwanted pregnancy; staying in school improves labor market participation and future earnings (Caprara & Rutter, 1995; Cernkovich & Giordano, 1992; Lynam, Moffitt, Stouthamer-Loeber, 1993).