School Desegregation and Self-Concept: A Pilot Study on the Psychological Impact of School Desegregation on 7th, 8th and 9th Graders in a Southern City

This pilot study on the psychological impact of school desegregation on seventh, eighth, and ninth graders in a Southern city was done by giving a Self-Concept Scale and a Socio-Familial Questionnaire to 614 white and black students in segregated and desegregated schools. In addition to comparing the effect of desegregation, the investigators are interested in identifying the variables related to positive or negative self concepts. The report concludes that there is a self concept gap between Negro and white students, with Negro students having significantly higher scores than white students on the self concept scale. Those Negro students achieving the higher self concept scores are those in segregated or predominantly black schools. [This document is not available in hard copy due to marginal legibility of the original. Also, part of the bibliography (page 22) was missing from the original.] (Author/JW)