Sociocultural Perspective In Psychology: Kenneth Bancroft Clark

This paper highlights the life of one the most influential psychologist in history: Kenneth Bancroft Clark. He made many contributions to psychology, and in the process he empowered African Americans and black people in general to rise above social oppression. His research of the doll test contributed to the end of racial segregation in schools when the Supreme Court decided to rely on social science in the Brown v. Board of Education. Clark left a legacy, and the findings in his work are far reaching even to the Caribbean. In the same manner, the Caribbean that has a history of racial segregation has benefited from psychology in different areas. The information in this paper was gathered using secondary sources. The researcher discovered that

This school of thought teaches that it is important to understand the history and cultural heritage of an ethnic group in order to understand their aspirations and problems. The Sociocultural Perspective also shows how people are different from each other and how ethnicity, gender, culture, and socioeconomic status influence behaviour and mental processes (Rathus, 2007). This perspective allows psychologists to gain insight into how culture affects morals, conducts, and attitudes. The Sociocultural Perspective was birthed from the work of psychologist Lev Vygotsky. Vygotsky believed that culture played a large role in children’s development, and they adapt to their own culture by using their mental abilities (McLeod, 2014). This is how Clark gained the knowledge that racial segregation in schools was a result of the beliefs held in society. Clark found this out by his famous research of the “doll test”, where African American children were shown black dolls and white dolls, and were asked to show the pretty doll or the doll that looks bad. When Clark noticed that many African American children showed a preference for white dolls, he understood that society had damaged the self-esteem of black children who saw themselves as inferior to the

Board of Education case. This case put an end to the then Plessy v. Ferguson case that allowed segregation of black and white children in schools, but believed in equality of facilities, teachers, and resources. The Plessy v. Ferguson case was an oxymoron due to the fact that its basis was “separate but equal” for children. The Brown v. Board of Education case revolutionized the education system in America because it not only remedied the poor conditions in black schools; but it also served as a foundation for the integration of black and white schools. This created true equality in education and other opportunities for black children. This influenced the way blacks viewed themselves in society. The Supreme Court understood that segregation creates inferiority in black children, and it gave them a limited level of motivation to learn, and it hinders their educational and mental development (Perlstein, 2004). In the end, it was social sciences that prevailed when the court decided to use the report of a group of social scientists to make their decision, of one which was Kenneth Clark. There were some people who believed that the Supreme Court went against established laws in the ruling because of the heavy reliance on social