"African(Black) Psychology is defined as a system of knowledge(philosophy, definitions, concepts, models, procedures, and practice) concerning the nature of the social universe from the perspectives of African cosmology. Black psychology is nothing more or less than the uncovering, articulation, operationalization, and application, of the principles of the African reality structure relative to psychological phenomena" -James Balwin (1986) [1]
African American Psychology is a field of African American, Black, and African psychology, which is studied from two perspectives. The first perspective is that the concepts and theories of psychology are universal, which means African Americans can be studied through these laws and theories as well as other human beings. [2] The second perspective is the Africentric scholar approach, which is that African American psychology is the psychology of people of African descent and their beliefs and behaviors important in order to study African Americans.[3] Both perspectives agree that African American psychology is a science and that it is structured and organized.[4] Both African and African American psychologies study the thoughts, behaviors, feelings, beliefs, attitudes, interactions, and well being of African Americans. [5]
African American psychology's first perspective is the term used to describe the efforts of Black scholars to reverse assumptions of inferiority of African Americans. Over time it grew to also incorporate the history and the experiences of African Americans, explaining it in a way that traditional viewpoints of White psychologists were not able to.[6]
The history of early Black psychologists is lost to many students due the minimal coverage in courses.[6] However research performed by early Black scholars on the effects of segregation and other racial matters played an important role, like the research by Kenneth Bancroft Clark whose work was cited in Brown v. Board of Education by the U.S. Supreme Court.[7]
African American Psychology can be traced to ancient Egypt in 3200 B.C. [8] Ancient Egypt was known as Kemet during this time period. The Kemites, the people ancient Egypt, studied the sophistication of the human psyche or soul and the higher mental processes as a holistic environment [9] From their perspective, they believed that there was a continuity and harmony between nature and God. The Kemites had three levels components of being which were mental, physical, and spiritual. It was based on religion. The mental and Physical levels were needed to satisfy the spiritual component.[10]. God is the spirit and nature is physical. [11]
Psychoanalysis, a field in psychology in which Sigmund Freud is most known for can be traced back to ancient Egypt.[12] This field is psychology was the groundwork of many other psychology fields such as humanistic psychology. Many of this psychoanalysis revolved around the belief of the transmigration of the soul[13]. This psychology philosophical thought influenced Plato and other Greek philosophers. Most of Plato’s understanding of human characteristics came from Black Egyptian cosmology.[14] Plato had spent thirteen years in Egypt, which explains his philosophical thinking.[15] His thoughts about “eros” (life of spiritual forces) originated in Egypt. Freud, who was a follower of Plato, was known for the Super ego, id, and the ego. The id was originally called the Ba, which is the sensitive emotional part of personality.[16] The ego was originally called the ka, which is the rational aspect of personality.[17] The super ego was originally called the nun, which is the idealistic aspect of personality.[18] The names that are unknown came from Egyptian cosmology. All of these personality aspects were also originated in ancient Egypt [19]
Following the end of the Civil War a push for education began to occur in the Black community. Moving away from secret night schools held during the time of slavery, a variety of learning centers and colleges began to open. Many of these schools were established by missionary associations and various Freedman societies. Federal government land grants such as the Morrill Act of 1862[20] helped to support these institutions and the additional aid of religious denominations allowed for the support of these schools. The years following saw the founding of Black colleges across the country including notable institutions such as Fisk University (1865), Howard University (1867), Morehouse College (1867) and Spelman College (1881).[20] By 1940 there were more than one hundred Black colleges in the seventeen southern states offering a variety of degrees with many of the earned degrees in social sciences and education.
Psychology courses became both popular and integral courses in Black colleges, with at least one course being that as early as 1906. Formally trained professors both Black and White taught courses. Although many universities had programs of great influences, the most prominent was Howard University. Howard's success in the training of Black students in psychology is notable when compared to other colleges who could not match the number of graduates Howard managed to produce. These successes were due largely in part to the efforts of Francis Cecil Sumner. Often considered the father of Black psychologists, Sumner structured the psychology program teaching not only the ideas of Edward Titchener, John Watson, and Sigmund Freud, but a myriad of courses in other topics such as learning, personality, mental hygiene, and a strong focus on the laboratory-experimental side of psychology.[21] This focus reflected Sumner's three objectives: to provide students preparation in professional fields, stress the cultural significance of psychology, and prepare students who wish to pursue graduate study. This not only made Howard different from other Black universities, but created a strong program that carried over to graduate studies. Although Howard only offered master's degrees, it offered a strong foundation for those who went on to pursue doctorate degrees.[22]
Although psychology was a popular course to teach in Black colleges, in the late 1930s only four Black colleges, including Howard, offered psychology as an undergraduate degree. Emphasis was usually on educational psychology, leaving statistics and experimental focuses by the wayside. The lack led to the survey conducted by Herman George Canady between 1930 and 1940 concerning the nature of undergraduate courses, research in psychology, and other areas of concern in Black colleges. The survey revealed that out of fifty schools, fourteen had a department in psychology, and that theoretical and lab courses were rare. Departments of education and not those in psychology were the ones that mainly offered psychology courses allowing the development of educational psychology and emphasizing the focus on practical applications of education.[23]
Naturally, psychology was taught differently in White and Black colleges directly due to differences of funds and materials available. Not only were those differences present, the focus on the study varied widely. Black colleges tended to focus on practical and relevant matters due to the need to train students for trades or teaching posts. Conversely White colleges taught psychology as laboratory science very focused on research and instrumentation. Along with course objectives, Black colleges differed in another way as well. Much of the focus in psychology in Black colleges laid in studying similarities among people instead of differences. Professors emphasized that situation and environmental circumstances affected intelligence, not skin color. This contrasts White colleges and professionals who were busy studying IQ scores and other psychometric methods to prove that differences between races laid in skin color. The idea that environmental factors affect intelligence not only helped to remove the stigma in Black communities but led to groundbreaking work by Black psychologists later in the 20th century.[24]
Between 1920 and 1970, Black colleges around the nation produced more than 1,300 bachelor's degrees that eventually earned a doctorate in psychology. However difficulties laid in attempts to obtain the degree. Many Black students were denied acceptance into southern White schools, and looked north for educational opportunities. Clark University was the foremost in gradating Black scholars at the time, its notable alumni including Sumner and J. Henry Alston. This, unfortunately, was not the norm for other schools. Beyond acceptance or provisions that required Black students to take on an extra year of undergraduate work to prove their caliber to attending White schools, finances was the most troubling factor. Fees toward tuition, living maintenance, and other expenses caused many to delay or to give up pursuing graduate studies for dependable wages in menial positions. The combination of these factors meant that out of the 3,767 doctorates awarded in psychology between 1920 and 1966 from the ten most prestigious universities in the nation, only eight were awarded to Black candidates.[25]
Many of the African contributions were ignored about its origin, taken by Greek cosmologists, and used by the early pioneers of psychology, but even after that the African Americans received more racism instead of credibility. Most of this took place after the Civil war, when Jim Crow emerged. [26] Even the Rat was White, a book published in 1976, encouraged African American psychology. A second edition of this book was published in 1996. The author Robert Guthrie explains different the different ways that White American scientists contributed to racists criticism against African Americans. Many of these explained that African Americans are inferior to White Americans. Many scientists did intelligence testing on African American and White American which resulted in African Americans being the inferior race. [27] Charles Darwin’s natural selection theory was published in 1859. The assumption of this theory was that only the strongest and intelligent individuals or organisms could survive. In the 20th century many studies were done to compare the differences in African Americans and White Americans. The results mainly showed that African Americans were inferior [28] Sir Frances Galton’s studies in the 19th century attributed the racial inferiority of African Americans intelligence to inheritance. Through his theory he predicted that if intelligence is inherited, then it would not be expected for lower intelligences to be improved through ability. Galton thought that through selective mating, the improvement of race could be done controlling the inferior intelligence genetically. The results showed that African Americans and other minorities were considered to be those who were unfit and inferior and White Americans as superior. [29] Anthropology studies were done in 18th and 19th century that compared African American and White American’s physical characteristics. These characteristic were characteristics such as, skin color, hair texture, posture, face structure, and skull structure. These qualities were observed and resulted in favor of the White Americans each time as superior and the African American as inferior. [30] William McDougall's theory of instinct created many racists concepts about African Americans. One of his studies characterized African Americans as easy going, happy, and lazy. Another study was done that tested hearing, vision, taste, acuity, pain, and motor speed of African Americans. The result was that minorities, such as, African American were inferior to White Americans.
In 1968, the Association of Black Psychologists was formed as a protest toward the American Psychological Association’s lack of interest in African American Psychologists. In 1974, the Association of Black Psychologists created their official journal called The Journal of Black Psychology. This journal is directed toward understanding of experiences and behavior of African American populations. It covers many issues in the African American society, such as, HIV, sickle cell, racial identity, African American children, and substance abuse prevention. Psychology fields that are covered in this journal are counseling, clinical, social, cognitive, educational, and organizational psychology [31]