Intersecting Socialization Practices: How Parents Shape Emerging Adults’ Critical Consciousness in Contexts of Prolonged Intergroup Conflict

Little is known about how parents in post-conflict societies socialize youth about both historically-conflicting communities and racially minoritized groups. This study examined how parental socialization in both domains shapes critical consciousness (CC) among youth in post-conflict Northern Ireland. Two cross-sectional studies (N₁ = 284; N₂ = 289; ages 16–25; 70% female) identified four profiles for community socialization and three for socialization about racially minoritized groups using multigroup latent profile analysis, and found alignment between these domains. Youth in mistrustful and non-egalitarian profiles in both domains reported lower CC, while those in culture-focused and egalitarian profiles reported higher CC. Findings highlight how distinct parental messages co-occur and relate to youth CC, highlighting the relevance of family-based approaches in CC interventions.