Development and Preliminary Validation of the Racism-Related Coping Scale

This paper describes the development and preliminary validation of the Racism-Related Coping Scale (RRCS), which we designed as a measure of the specific strategies Blacks use to deal with and resist racism. Factor analyses found 8 domains (59 items) of Racism-Related Coping for Blacks: Racially Conscious Action, Hypervigilance, Confrontation, Empowered Action, Resistance, Bargaining, Spiritual Coping, and Anger Regulation. Preliminary reliability and validity were assessed with a sample of Black participants (N = 307) using correlations with the Black Racial Identity Attitudes Scale (Helms & Parham, 1996), the Africultural Coping Systems Inventory (Utsey, Ponterotto, Reynolds, & Cancelli, 2000), and regression analyses with symptom scales of the Brief Symptom Inventory (Derogatis & Melisaratos, 1983). RRCS domains were correlated with Racial Identity Status Attitudes, Africultural Coping, and psychological symptoms.