Black Men's Perspectives on Social Success

• In Event: Brilliance of Black Youth: Perspectives on Student Success

Abstract

Most studies about social success use rigidly defined criteria that are based primarily on the values of privileged populations. These limited perspectives exclude context-rich data about the social skills and successes valued by historically oppressed communities. This paper aims to fill gaps in research on social success by utilizing a phenomenological approach that explores these missing viewpoints. Interview data from 15 Black men from an ongoing larger study about social success was examined. This paper details the participants’ beliefs about social success, the factors that influence these beliefs, the actions the research participants took in pursuit of social success, and the factors that encourage or discourage those behaviors.

Author

• Darnel Degand, University of California - Davis