{"title":"Speaking the Unspoken: Understanding Internalized Racial Oppression from the Perspective of Black Women Psychotherapists","authors":"LaTasha L. Smith","doi":"10.1080/00377317.2022.2026855","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT This article focuses on internalized racial oppression, a less understood yet detrimental aspect of racism. This article is based on a qualitative grounded theory study that explored how Black women psychotherapists understand the phenomenon. Literature and findings reveal that there is no existing shared understanding of how Black women experience IRO. Findings support how systemic racism upholds IRO and how IRO is intersectional. I use sociopolitical concepts and psychological object relations to discuss the findings as understood by Black women. In this, colorism, hair texturism, double consciousness were unexpected but important findings. Implications and future directions are discussed.","PeriodicalId":45273,"journal":{"name":"SMITH COLLEGE STUDIES IN SOCIAL WORK","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4000,"publicationDate":"2022-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"2","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"SMITH COLLEGE STUDIES IN SOCIAL WORK","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00377317.2022.2026855","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"SOCIAL WORK","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 2
Abstract
ABSTRACT This article focuses on internalized racial oppression, a less understood yet detrimental aspect of racism. This article is based on a qualitative grounded theory study that explored how Black women psychotherapists understand the phenomenon. Literature and findings reveal that there is no existing shared understanding of how Black women experience IRO. Findings support how systemic racism upholds IRO and how IRO is intersectional. I use sociopolitical concepts and psychological object relations to discuss the findings as understood by Black women. In this, colorism, hair texturism, double consciousness were unexpected but important findings. Implications and future directions are discussed.
期刊介绍:
Smith College Studies in Social Work focuses on the vital issues facing practitioners today, featuring only those articles that advance theoretical understanding of psychological and social functioning, present clinically relevant research findings, and promote excellence in clinical practice. This refereed journal addresses issues of mental health, therapeutic process, trauma and recovery, psychopathology, racial and cultural diversity, culturally responsive clinical practice, intersubjectivity, the influence of postmodern theory on clinical practice, community based practice, and clinical services for specific populations of psychologically and socially vulnerable clients.