The impact of culture and national origin on educational aspiration, personal responsibility, and self-efficacy: A comparative analysis of views by African Americans and African Caribbeans

The United States is a country of many cultures and peoples. The different cultures need to be understood in order to best support the success of all individuals in the country. One group that has been present, but has only recently received attention as a valid culture, is African Americans. Further complicating the black identity in the country is the presence of immigrants of African descent. While there is existing research on the subjects of race relations, cultural identities, and perceptions regarding opportunities for success, much of this research is qualitative and some of the research uses a deficit approach toward minorities (Waters, 1999, Rascoe, 2003, Greif, Hrabowski, & Maton, 2000). While the qualitative literature offers important insight into the experiences and beliefs of the participants, it is difficult to generalize to the larger population of African descendants in the country. The current study seeks to address the issue by using a quantitative method.The study used a cross-sectional design, with a self-administered survey distributed to a purposive sample of African American and African Caribbean participants in several cities in the United States. Statistical analyses were completed using SPSS 17. Findings indicated that African Americans reported higher levels of educational aspiration and self-efficacy, while African Caribbeans reported higher levels of personal responsibility. Possible reasons included the relative age difference, marital status, spirituality, perceptions of racism and prejudice, and the recent historical election. Implications for social workers include a need for an understanding that African Americans and African Caribbeans are not part of one group, but separate and culturally distinct groups of African descendents.Another suggestion for social workers with regard to working with people in need of greater personal responsibility and self-efficacy include providing roles and tasks with levels of responsibility, interdependence, and consequence, in an environment that provides a safe and comfortable way for clients to test their understanding of ability and responsibility.