Mamie Phipps Clark
Mamie Phipps Clark
Mamie Phipps Clark started her college career in 1934. She began going to college at Howard University as a math major which she graduated magna cum laude in 1938 but when she went back she changed her major to psychology after her husband Kenneth Clark persuaded her to do so. He told her that there would not be that many job opportunities for her and thought it would be better if she got a degree in psychology.
When she entered the master’s program, she started on her thesis titled “The Consciousness of Self in Negro Pre-school Children”, which was the start of her research about the negativity of segregation. This research was used to determine that segregation was unconstitutional. The conclusion her thesis stated that she remembered the “blackness” of her childhood referring to segregation. This was the foundation for her famous doll tests which is where she asks a series of questions regarding a white and a black doll.
The purpose of these tests where to see if there was a psychological issue with being segregated. Most of the time the children would state that the white was nice and the black doll was bad. Even the African American children wanted to be like the white doll because they were good and the black doll was bad. This test helped with ending segregation in the United States. It proved that it psychologically impacted African Americans.
African Americans became aware of the negative view of them around the age three. She presented her findings to several desegregation boards and trials, to try and end segregation. After she finally showed her findings at the Brown v. Board of Education, it was finally founded that segregation was unnecessary and unconstitutional.
Some of the African Americans children thought they could not do anything or be anybody because they were African American. After these tests and several others like it where performed it was founded that it was not right to keep African Americans and other
Mamie Phipps Clark started her college career in 1934. She began going to college at Howard University as a math major which she graduated magna cum laude in 1938 but when she went back she changed her major to psychology after her husband Kenneth Clark persuaded her to do so. He told her that there would not be that many job opportunities for her and thought it would be better if she got a degree in psychology.
When she entered the master’s program, she started on her thesis titled “The Consciousness of Self in Negro Pre-school Children”, which was the start of her research about the negativity of segregation. This research was used to determine that segregation was unconstitutional. The conclusion her thesis stated that she remembered the “blackness” of her childhood referring to segregation. This was the foundation for her famous doll tests which is where she asks a series of questions regarding a white and a black doll.
The purpose of these tests where to see if there was a psychological issue with being segregated. Most of the time the children would state that the white was nice and the black doll was bad. Even the African American children wanted to be like the white doll because they were good and the black doll was bad. This test helped with ending segregation in the United States. It proved that it psychologically impacted African Americans.
African Americans became aware of the negative view of them around the age three. She presented her findings to several desegregation boards and trials, to try and end segregation. After she finally showed her findings at the Brown v. Board of Education, it was finally founded that segregation was unnecessary and unconstitutional.
Some of the African Americans children thought they could not do anything or be anybody because they were African American. After these tests and several others like it where performed it was founded that it was not right to keep African Americans and other
Bibliography: Heiskell, A. (2006). Notable New Yorkers. Retrieved from Columbia University: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/nny/clarkm/profile.html Kerera, A. (2010). Psychology of Feminist Voices. Retrieved from Feminist Voices: http://www.feministvoices.com/mamie-phipps-clark/