Racial identity and self-esteem among black Brazilian men: race matters in Brazil too!

The contribution of J. E. Helms's (1990) people of color racial identity model to the collective and individual self-esteem of Black Brazilian men (N = 203) was explored. The relationships between racial identity attitudes and other racial constructs such as skin color, racial group self-designation, and racial mistrust were also examined. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that the set of racial identity attitudes (conformity, dissonance, resistance, and internalization) was significant in predicting self-esteem (collective and individual). Results from a multivariate analysis of variance showed an effect for skin color on racial attitudes. In addition, racial identity was significantly related to mistrust of Whites by Black Brazilian men. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of racial relations in Brazil.