Could one hour—the amount of time it takes to watch American Idol—make black college freshman more likely to succeed in college and close the racial achievement gap? Two Stanford University professors say yes, as long those students spend that hour doing confidence building psychological exercises that make them feel like they actually belong on campus.
In a new paper published in the March 18 edition of Science, Gregory Walton, an assistant professor of psychology, and Geoffrey Cohen, a professor of psychology and education, say a sense of belonging is especially essential for black students who are underrepresented on campus and face a slew of negative stereotypes about their intelligence. Walton told the Stanford News that when a student comes from a minority background,