Communication, Race, and Family

This groundbreaking volume explores how family communication influences the perennial and controversial topic of race. In assembling this collection, editors Thomas J. Socha and Rhunette C. Diggs argue that the hope for managing America's troubles with &quote;race&quote; lies not only with communicating about race at public meetings, in school, and in the media, but also--and more fundamentally--with families communicating constructively about race at home. African-American and European-American family communication researchers come together in this volume to investigate such topics as how Black families communicate to manage the issue of racism; how Black parent-child communication is used to manage the derogation of Black children; the role of television in family communication about race; the similarities and differences between and among communication in Black, White, and biracial couples and families; and how family communication education can contribute to a brighter future for all. With the aim of developing a clearer understanding of the role that family communication plays in society's move toward a multicultural world, this volume provides a crucial examination of how families struggle with issues of ethnic cultural diversity.

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Contents: M.K. Asante, Foreword. Preface. T.J. Socha, R.C. Diggs, At the Crossroads of Communication, Race, and Family: Toward Understanding Black, White, and Biracial Family Communication. J.L. Daniel, J.E. Daniel, African-American Childrearing: The Context of a Hot Stove. I.B. Ferguson, African-American Parent-Child Communication About Racial Derogation. S.L. Parks, Race and Electronic Media in the Lives of Four Families: An Ethnographic Study. R.A. Davilla, White Children's Talk About Race and Culture: Family Communication and Intercultural Socialization. R.C. Diggs, African-American and European-American Adolescents' Perceptions of Self-Esteem as Influenced by Parent and Peer Communication and Support Environments. M. Dainton, African-American, European-American, and Biracial Couples' Meanings for and Experiences in Marriage. M.P. Orbe, Communicating About "Race" in Interracial Families. B.K. Alexander, H.P. LeBlanc, III, Cooking Gumbo--Examining Cultural Dialogue About Family: A Black-White Narrativization of Lived Experience in Southern Louisiana. T.J. Socha, J. Beigle, Toward Improving Life at the Crossroads: Family Communication Education and Multicultural Competence. K. Galvin, Epilogue: Illuminating and Evoking Issues of Race and Family Communication.