Racial Identity Development Models

The primary objective of this encyclopedia is an explication of intercultural theory, research, and practice as it relates to intercultural competence. The current entry takes as its points of departure the intracultural dynamics of the United States and the evolution of monocultural or, more specifically, racialethnic identity development models. It differentiates the intercultural narrative from the racial-ethnic narrative in the following ways. Starting with a monocultural context (the home country), the intercultural narrative traces entrance into a different cultural space, usually requiring extensive overseas travel and living experiences, and ends with the demonstration of authentic intercultural perspective taking and intercultural competence. As this summary suggests, intercultural narratives are inherently polyphonic. By comparison, intracultural narratives, the focus of the current entry, are typically more monoculturally oriented ...