Date of Award

Winter 1-21-2026

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Christine Li-Grining

Abstract

The development of a strong and positive sense of ethnic-racial identity (ERI) has been identified as an asset for ethnically and racially marginalized adolescents. Peer interactions during the adolescent years can support ERI development. In particular, a subtle micro-level form of peer support—microaffirmations—may be protective for ERI processes. However, the field of microaffirmations is very small, and there is no scale that captures adolescents’ experiences of ethnic-racial microaffirmations from their peers. The current study developed an ethnic-racial peer microaffirmations scale based on extant literature and feedback from 4 focus groups with 22 sophomore high school students. Findings indicated that 5 themes emerged regarding the draft measure the students discussed during the focus groups: scale items were relatable, no experience with scenarios in scale items, more nuance is needed in scale items, consider additional components for the survey, and phrasing of scale items. Students’ suggestions across these themes were used to revise the measure, which is comprised of 11 items and 2 subscales. This scale will provide researchers with a novel and valuable tool for better understanding ethnic-racial peer microaffirmations in adolescents’ lives and how such experiences may impact ERI development more broadly.

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