"Dark skin girls are unworthy of protection": Black girls perceptions of colorism and its influence on psychological and sexual development.

OBJECTIVES

Black girls are at elevated sexual risk due to the combined effects of sexual development, adultification, gendered racist stereotyping, and lack of protection. Colorism is a skin-tone stratification system that privileges lighter skinned people of color over their darker skinned counterparts. Although colorism has been conceptualized as a determinant of Black girls' mental, physical, and sexual health, little is known about Black girls' understanding of the influence of colorism on psychological and sexual development. This qualitative study examined the influence of colorism on Black girls' psychological and sexual development.

METHOD: Twenty-five multiethnic Black girls between 9 and 18 participated in semistructured interviews. Directed content analysis utilizing an intersectional approach was conducted to better understand the relationship between colorism and Black girls' health.

RESULTS

Our analysis confirmed that Black girls perceive colorism as a significant factor influencing their psychological and sexual development. A conceptual model was developed demonstrating that Black girls perceive skin-tone-related messaging and colorist stereotypes as contributing to an increased risk of violence, internalization of colorist notions, and elevated sexual risk behaviors among Black girls.

CONCLUSIONS

Current systems, such as families, schools, and media, should seek to address stereotyped messages and mistreatment that harm Black girls' development. Programming surrounding colorism, gendered racism, and discrimination may serve as an opportunity to begin dismantling systems rooted in Eurocentric preferences that encourage the oppression and mistreatment of Black girls based on skin tone. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).