Nigrescence theory from 1971 to 2021: The critical contributions of William E. Cross, Jr.

Identity is one of the most important constructs in psychology, speaking to who we are, what groups we belong to, how we perceive ourselves, and how we are perceived by others. William E. Cross, Jr., has spent the past 50 years theorizing about Black identity. He has contributed to our understanding of what Black identity is and how it functions in daily life. Beginning with the publication of his initial nigrescence model in 1971 and the revisions in 1991 and 2001, Cross' model evolved from a developmental stage model to a multidimensional attitudinal model. In this article, we review the evolution of Cross' nigrescence models, showcasing the elegant interplay of theory and empirical research in his work. We also describe his contributions to the measurement of racial identity, as Cross' theory provides the theoretical foundation for two widely used measures of racial identity, the Racial Identity Attitude Scale and the Cross Racial Identity Scale. In the final section of the article, we review Cross' contributions that have changed the conceptualization of racial identity in the field and provided answers to several key questions. Is racial identity a developmental construct? What are the practical implications of a multidimensional model of racial identity? Does having assimilationist attitudes signal low self-esteem? How do assimilationist and multiculturalist attitudes differ? And why are deficit views of Black identity wrong? And we highlight Cross' contention that positive Black identities can and did flourish in the most difficult of life circumstances. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).