Your Friend Is Designing a Study for Her Honors Thesis

Multiple Choice

Your friend is designing a study for her honors thesis in psychology. She plans to ask white and African American sixth graders to write periodic affirmation essays about their positive qualities and the things they value. She will track their grades over the course of the school year. Based on your knowledge of stereotype threat research, what effect do you think the essays might have on the grades of the African American students?

A) The essays will produce sizeable improvements in the students' performance, and these gains will persist for a long time.
B) The essays will produce sizeable improvements in the students' performance, but they will be short-lived.
C) The essays will produce lasting gains in performance, but the gains will be very modest in size.
D) The essays will have little or no effect on students' performance.