Nkemka Anyiwo

Research Interests and Current Projects

Dr. Anyiwo examines cultural factors that promote Black youth’s empowerment and wellbeing. Central to her work is the examination of proximal (e.g., family) and distal (e.g., public figures) cultural forces that shape Black youth’s social identities, sociopolitical beliefs, and behaviors. Given the ubiquity of media in the lives of youth, Dr. Anyiwo also investigates the role of digital contexts and art as sociocultural influences on Black youth.

Dr. Anyiwo’s current work, the Black Youth Identity, Media, and Political Action (IMPAct) project analyzes the racial and cultural experiences that shape Black youth’s sociopolitical development, which involves an awareness of cultural, economic, and political factors that shape inequality and participation in behaviors to promote social justice. Major goals of Black Youth IMPAct include 1) understanding how Black youth make meaning of racial inequity, 2) identifying the strategies they engage in to promote racial justice, and 3) unpacking the implications of their sociopolitical beliefs and behaviors on their psychological and academic outcomes.

She believes that this work should be done in collaboration with youth and their communities in order to translate findings from an emic perspective. She seeks to use her work and collaborations to inform programming that supports the positive development of Black youth as well as social policies which impact the lives of Black communities.