It's extremely difficult to design a field study that addresses these questions about the role of
various environmental variables, given all of the uncontrolled factors in an urban environment.
The primary constructs within the hypothesized framework are: (1) social position
variables — characteristics that are used within societies to hierarchically stratify groups (race, gender, socioeconomic status); (2) parenting
variables — familial mechanisms that may influence African American adolescents well - being, perceptions of competence, and attitudes towards others in
various contexts (e.g., parenting practices and racial socialization messages); (3) racial discrimination — negative racially driven experiences that may influence feelings of competence, belongingness, and self - worth; (4)
environmental / contextual factors — settings and surroundings that may impede or promote healthy identity development (e.g., academic settings); and (5) learner characteristics — individual characteristics that may promote or hinder positive psychological adjustment outcomes (e.g., racial identity, coping styles).