Peer Work Positive Assignment:

Directions:

Give positive feedback to the 2 peer's work posts below. The goal of positive feedback is to further the discussion with questions or statements thatexpand upon ideas in the original postand encourage others to respond in kind. Use yourcritical thinking skills. Responding with simple comments such as "I agree" or "Huh?" fail to meet the goal of continuing or enlarging the discussion. You must respond to the two peer's work posts below with 100 words minimum each.

The peer's work posts focuses on this question. Discuss one example of African-centered psychology theories. What are the key differences of the African-centered perspective from Eurocentric psychology theories?

Peer Work 1:

The African-centered perspective and the Eurocentric psychology theories diverge significantly in many important ways. Due to long-standing European cultural and societal dominance, examining the underlying assumptions of societal notions and structures is crucial to identify any potential gaps. The need for insights from outside the European area was necessary because the field of psychology is prone to Eurocentric attitudes.

Between the African-centered viewpoint and the Eurocentric psychological ideas, there are several significant distinctions. First and foremost, the development of African-centered psychology was a reaction to the failure to acknowledge the struggles that African Americans face as well as to disprove the presumptions and biases that were placed on them by the United States, as Eurocentric beliefs frequently indulge in negative attitudes towards any group other than their own. "The behavior of African Americans was interpreted as inferior and nonnormative, whereas the behavior of White Americans was viewed as appropriate and normative." (Heisser-Metoyer) Joseph White, the Father of modern African-American Psychology, stated in his interview that "there are multiple realities in America and multiple realities in psychology, and no one group should try to define everyone else from their experience." This constrained view ignores the interconnectedness of the mind, body, and spirit that African-centered psychology highlights. African-centred psychology is a holistic approach to addressing the mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical components of well-being. Because of this, we see that African-American psychology emphasizes how mental health is directly related to well-being in a larger social construct. On the other hand, individualism and personal success are usually prioritized in Eurocentric psychology, which frequently ignores the social aspect of mental health. In conclusion, the African-centered perspective in psychology challenges the Eurocentric prejudices that have historically dominated the field and strives for a more inclusive and culturally sensitive approach to understanding and supporting mental health. By expanding our understanding of the human experience and showing the diversity of cultural influences, African-centered psychology contributes significantly to the field of psychology.

The main reason why I believe African American psychology is a great advancement is because it demonstrates how to successfully get rid of some of the deeply ingrained habits that Eurocentric academia has instilled. Making a difficult subject of study much more understandable to the general people appeals to me in particular as a means of combating the existing elitism that dominates academia. Additionally, as someone who enjoys learning about history, I think it's a good thing that African American Psychology uses historical and cultural events to explain behavior. I think that identifying and analyzing Eurocentrism will be beneficial in the future for many fields, including music and even history.

Peer Work 2:

There are many key differences between the African American-centered perspectives from the European psychological perspectives. The article in the textbook, "The History and Vision of African American Psychology", describes how African American psychology can be used for the betterment for African Americans who is dealing with discrimination. The article also describes the major and significant events that associates with African American psychology over the years (Heisser-Metoyer, pg 7).

According to the PowerPoint from module one, one of the approaches to African-American psychology is assimilation (cite). This connects to the article as African Americans felt as if they were forced to be assimilated into the 'white society'. This is a common theme in black psychology. The idea of assimilation has caused stress and depression amongst many African Americans as they are pressured to talk, act, and look white to fit into society. This is common in environments such as workplaces and schools. Many African Americans wanted to be more freely in their environment to be more like themselves. Being told to talk a certain way and how to wear their hair can be psychologically draining.

African American perspectives mainly focus on social justice and the basis of race while European psychological perspectives lack the social justice themes. With the lack of social just themes it can be pretty challenging to assist African Americans. Western society believes that racism is not as bad as it was in the past or nonexistence. This common belief negatively affects minorities as they describe that they still face racial discrimination today not how it was in Jim Crow or slavery. I would like to add in microaggressions which is prevalent in today's society and negatively affects many African Americans daily. Microaggressions are verbal, behavioral, and environmental disrespect towards an individual usually based on race. It can be intentional or on purpose and could be hostile, derogatory, or negative to target a person or group. Europeans' psychology methods are not effective with African Americans as they at times tend to ignore their deepest issues that revolve around race as many of them lack the understanding and experiences of what blacks in America must go through. The reasoning can be cultural where European psychology lacks understanding of African-American culture. Gaining full understanding and insight of the black culture should be beneficial. African American-centered psychology is more constructive as they tackle common African-American psychological themes such as assimilation and how appropriately approach these issues.