Being vs. Becoming: Transcending STEM Identity Development through Afropessimism, Moving toward a Black X Consciousness in STEM

Abstract:Research investigating Black student engagement in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) postsecondary education connects their racial identity to STEM identity development and persistence. How Black students perceive and understand their Blackness in relationship to STEM learning environments to embody their identity; however, are not fully illuminated. This study presents insights from 44 Black undergraduate students studying STEM at a predominantly White institution (PWI). Using phenomenological focus group interviews, analyzed through the Afropessimist principles of the afterlife of slavery and anti-Blackness, the authors find that Black students’ rationale for coping mechanisms employed is shaped by individualism and Black collectivism. They name this rationale Black X Consciousness, and provide implications for its importance in Black student STEM education research.