Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to develop a scale to measure the extent to which African American women engage in shifting behavior—defined as changing or altering various aspects of oneself such as how one looks, feels, thinks, and acts—in response to living within a perceived racist and sexist society (Jones & Shorter-Gooden, 2003). Participants included a diverse sample of 318 African American women who ranged in age from 18 to 72 years of age and who were recruited through social media and online sites catered to African American women. Results from an exploratory factor analysis suggest a 13-item, 3-factor solution of the African American Women's Shifting Scale (AAWSS). The three subscales include: The Strong Black Woman, Awareness of Shifting Behavior, and Sensitivity to the Perceptions of Blacks, with acceptable internal consistency. Furthermore, bivariate correlational analyses were conducted to assess the degree to which the newly identified AAWSS subscales correlated with measures of coping, color-blind racial attitudes, gendered racism, stereotype concern, African American acculturation, and social desirability. Low correlations among all AAWSS subscales and the corollary measures seem to lend preliminary evidence for the uniqueness of the shifting construct. Standard multiple regression analyses were then conducted with each AAWSS subscale serving as the criterion variable. Results revealed that greater endorsement of gendered racism and stereotype concern predicted higher levels of shifting behavior. Further, lower scores on measures of color-blind racial attitudes and social desirability predicted higher shifting scores. African American acculturation status exhibited a bi-directional relationship with the AAWSS while coping was not found to be a significant predictor. Study limitations along with clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.