The “F” Word

In 1985, Downing and Roush introduced a model for feminist identity development for women. Their model was influenced by Cross’ (1971) Black identity development model and drew upon Cross’ non-deficit-based emphasis on identity and its “heuristic value for the development of a model of positive feminist identity” (Downing & Roush, 1985, p. 698). Downing and Roush’s (1985) model for feminist identity development includes the following five stages:

1. Passive acceptance: women lack awareness of the structural and systematic ways in which they experience gender-based oppression
2. Revelation: This stage is preceded by an experience or set of experiences that cause disequilibrium for women. This stage involves an emotional period in which women feel angry, hurt, and guilty in recognizing the systemic nature of sexism
3. Embeddedness-Emanation: During this stage, women attempt to reconcile their deep desire for greater “gender consciousness” while also negotiating their intricate connection to dominant culture through marriage, motherhood, and career. Women also begin accepting diverse perspectives
4. Synthesis: This stage is characterized by women who positively regard being women and value the qualities that their identity comprises. Women move past traditional, oppressive ideas and make sound judgments about men that are not grounded in stereotypes. 
5. Active Commitment: Women transition into a more cohesive and solid identity, which shapes their behaviors and actions toward changing the status of women in society.

If there is one theory or model from Student Development in College (Patton, Renn, Guido, & Quaye, 2016) that fully captures an aspect of my development as a student, woman, and feminist, it’s Downing and Roush’s (1985) model. Each stage essentially corresponds to my undergraduate years at the University of Oregon (UO), with stage five representing where I place myself now. I feel fully committed to using my knowledge and skills to educate others toward women’s empowerment. This was even demonstrated over Thanksgiving break. After attending my women’s, gender, and sexuality studies commencement ceremony at UO my grandfather became particularly interested in my studies, my work, and feminist theory. Since then, we’ve had compelling, complex, and challenging conversations. I appreciate his receptiveness and curiosity. I am also grateful for the opportunity to share and exchange knowledge. As a feminist, I know that my work is never really done and I embrace the many opportunities to continue learning and developing, both emotionally and cognitively. 

***I find it mildly irritating that stage four involves how women judge and perceive men. Feminism isn’t misandry and I feel like that qualification in stage four inadvertently conflates the two and reinforces that fallacy.

References:

Cross, W. E., Jr. (1971). Toward a psychology of Black liberation: The Negro-to-Black conversion experience. Black World, 20(9), 13-27.

Downing, N. E., & Roush, K. L. (1985). From passive acceptance to active commitment: A model of feminist development for women. Counseling Psychologist, 13, 695-709.

Patton, L. D., Renn, K. A., Guido, F. M., & Quaye, S. J. (2016). Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.