Afrocentric Cultural Consciousness and African-American Male-Female Relationships

The subject of Black male-female relationships is not a new area of focus in psychology. However, the dominant thrust of the existing research has been pathology-centered. It suggests that Black heterosexual relationships are characterized by a plethora of conflicts and problems (Farley & Hermalin, 1971), such as instability, disintegration, and pathological weaknesses (Frazier, 1957; Glazier & Moynihan, 1965; Thomas & Sillen, 1972). In this type of pathology-centered research, it is typically assumed that Black heterosexual relationships are based on the same values, beliefs, and life-styles as those governing EuroAmerican heterosexual relationships. Supportive of this viewpoint is the emphasis on Black-White comparisons, and the cross-cultural insensitivity of the item content in the various measures of heterosexuality used in this research (Allen, 1978; Nobles, 1974; Staples, 1971). The various measures have focused on issues pertaining to communication barriers, an egalitarian relationship structure, gender-role differences, and educational-professional status, among other issues (Cazenave, 1983; Fairchild, 1985; McAdoo, 1983). These issues, it has been argued, are a primary focus of relationships in the Euro-American worldview or cultural orientation (Akbar, 1981; Baldwin, 1985;