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Black in Germany : A TikTok-Based Analysis of Coping with Racism through Learned Helplessness, Hypervigilance, and Resilience
Benneh, Priscilla (2025) Black in Germany : A TikTok-Based Analysis of Coping with Racism through Learned Helplessness, Hypervigilance, and Resilience.
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| Abstract: | The way someone responds to racism can be influenced by previous encounters with racism and their lasting effects. Interestingly, learned helplessness, hypervigilance and resilience can be viewed as underlying mechanisms guiding coping with racism. The focus of the current study is exploring the underlying mechanisms that influence how Black individuals cope with racism in Germany. For the purpose of the current study, the mixed-method framework by Andreotta et al. (2019) was employed and adapted into a qualitative research design for the study. Drawing on existing research and the analysis of TikTok data, this study identified several patterns rooted in learned helplessness, hypervigilance and resilience. (1) Learned helplessness is the psychological state of powerlessness and a perceived inability to change one’s situation. (2) Hypervigilance describes a constant mental and emotional anticipation of racial discrimination and racism followed by a constant adaptation in self-presentation and performance. (3) Resilience refers to a self-affirming response to racial discrimination that combats the effects of it on one’s mental health. The current findings affirm that coping with racism is influenced by these three mechanisms. These dimensions were not mutually exclusive but rather influenced each other in a complex way. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 77 psychology |
| Programme: | Psychology MSc (66604) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/107602 |
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