Low-income African American Youth Research Articles

O22 BOUNCE: A Comprehensive Healthy Lifestyle Summer Program for Minority Adolescents and Parents

Background Low-income Latino and African American youth compared to their Caucasian counterparts are at increased risk for obesity. Objective The purpose of this study was to assess fidelity and efficacy of a summer community and family-based summer healthy lifestyle intervention named BOUNCE to reduce percent body fat by promoting healthy and mindful eating and physical activity engagement among Latino and African American youth. Study Design, Setting, and Participants We utilized a quasi-experimental pre-post group design. Ninety-four low-income Latio and African American boys and girls (M age = 10.6, SD age = 1.6) and primarily their mothers participated. Participating youth received 20 nutrition education sessions including cooking demonstrations, 20 psychoeducational sessions, and 60 exercise sessions (eg, yoga, kickboxing, and circuit training). In addition, parents were asked to participate in a 2-hour health workshop “platica” once per week. This workshop included nutrition basic education, cooking demonstration, and tips for parents to be more active as a family. University-based elementary school facilities (gym, classrooms, and cafeteria) were used to implement this intervention. Analysis Pre-and post-intervention participants completed demographic, physical activity, food frequency questionnaires, and wore an accelerometer for 7 days. Participants also had their body height measured using a stadiometer Seca 210 and body weight and percent body fat measured using a Tanita (TBS 310). Repeated ANCOVA was conducted to analyze the main effects of the intervention over time. Results At post-intervention, 60% exhibited a reduction of at least 0.5 cm of waist circumference. These children lost an average of 2.2% (SD = 1.6%) body fat, and 1.6 cm in waist circumference (SD = 3.6 cm). There was a 10% decrease in percent of time spent in sedentary behavior. Conversely, there was a 5% increase in percent of time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity. That is, on average, 46 minutes converted from sedentary behavior to moderate physical activity. Conclusion This study provides valuable information about the feasibility and efficacy of a summer comprehensive healthy lifestyle intervention targeting minority youth. Funding Aetna Foundation, United Health Foundation.

Overcoming exposure to complex stressors: An examination of protective coping mechanisms for low-income urban African American youth

Low-income urban African American youth experience multiple uncontrollable stressors (e.g., community violence) that impact the severity of controllable stressors (e.g., academic stressors), leading to negative life outcomes. The literature suggests the coping response may mitigate this pathway, yet as most research has assessed individual stressors in isolation, it remains unclear how different coping strategies may benefit youths across different stressors. To address this gap, 143 youth (93.7% African American or Black; M age = 10.1 years) completed the Response to Stress Questionnaire as a measure of academic and violent stressors and respective coping strategies, as well as the Behavioral Assessment System for Children as a measure of social, emotional, and behavioral outcomes. Results indicated slightly lower levels of perceived control over violent versus academic stressors, with higher levels of violent stressors significantly associated with higher levels of academic stressors. Cluster analysis revealed two coping typologies for each type of stressor, with disengagement strategies in response to violent stressors and engagement strategies in response to academic stressors generally emerging as the most adaptive. The coping response significantly differed based on level of each stressor, and coping moderated the relationship between violent stressors and internalizing problems such that disengagement strategies were generally more beneficial but lost their status as a protective factor for youth exposed to the highest levels of violence.

Relationship Between Coping Strategies and Peer Victimization Among Low-Income African American Youth Living in Chicago

Peer victimization is experienced by an alarming number of youth. A variety of coping strategies may be used by youth to avoid the risk of peer victimization, including behaviors such as avoidance, displaying a tough demeanor, defensive behaviors, establishing a reputation, and forming affiliations with family and community members. However, little research has examined how these coping strategies are simultaneously associated with peer victimization experiences. The present study explored how these five coping strategies were associated with peer victimization among African American youth living in low-income urban communities, a group of youth at risk for high levels of exposure to violence and victimization. It was hypothesized that more use of these strategies would be associated with less peer victimization. The study comprised of 534 African American youth from low-income communities located in Chicago’s Southside. Multivariate regression analysis was conducted to identify which coping strategies, when assessed simultaneously, were associated with a lower risk of peer victimization. Results indicated that defensive behavior was negatively associated with peer victimization. Higher levels of tough demeanor and affiliation with family and community members were associated with higher levels of peer victimization. Coping strategies of avoidance and establishing a reputation were not significantly associated with peer victimization. Peer affiliation does not always contribute to positive outcomes, particularly among adolescents in urban areas. A further examination of the coping strategies and socialization processes of urban African American youth in low-resourced communities is warranted.

A Latent Class Analysis of Factors Associated with Levels of Aggression among Low-Income African American Youth in Chicago

African American youth are often stereotyped as being more aggressive than and experience more severe negative social sanctions relative to their European American peers. This cross-sectional study assessed self-reported levels of aggression among a sample of 538 low-income African American youth in Chicago, and employed latent class analysis to determine groups of aggression. Major study findings showed low, middle high aggression group. The largest number of youth fell within the low aggression group. Social factors (e.g., low student-teacher connectedness, high risky peer norms, neighborhood violence, and family conflict) were associated with inclusion in the high aggression group. Intrapersonal factors (e.g., depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder) were associated with inclusion in the middle aggression group. Future longitudinal research should examine what factors are associated with movement across aggression groups and capitalize upon knowledge gained in the current study to develop interventions.

A multilevel, multicomponent childhood obesity prevention group-randomized controlled trial improves healthier food purchasing and reduces sweet-snack consumption among low-income African-American youth

BackgroundConsumption of foods and beverages rich in sugar remains high across all races and ages in the United States. Interventions to address childhood obesity and decrease sugar intake are needed, particularly in low-income settings.MethodsB’more Healthy Communities for Kids (BHCK) was a group-randomized, controlled trial implemented among 9–15-year olds in 30 low-income areas of Baltimore. We increased access to low-sugar foods and beverages at wholesalers and small food stores. Concurrently, we encouraged their purchase and consumption by children through youth-led nutrition education in recreation centers, in-store promotions, text messaging and a social media program directed at caregivers. Sugar consumption (sugar sweetened beverage (SSB), sweets) in youth was assessed pre- (n = 534) and post-intervention (n = 401) using the Block Kids Food Frequency Questionnaire. Purchasing of 38 healthier and 28 less healthier food/beverage varieties in the previous 7 days was assessed via self-report. Multilevel models at the community and individual levels were used. Analyses were stratified by age (younger: 9–12-year olds (n = 339) vs older: 13–15 (n = 170)). Models were controlled for child’s sex, race, total daily caloric intake, and caregiver’s age and sex.ResultsOverall baseline mean healthier food purchasing was 2.5 (+ 3.6; min. 0, max. 34 items per week), and unhealthier food purchasing 4.6 (+ 3.7; 0–19 items per week). Mean intake at baseline for kcal from SSB was 176 (+ 189.1) and 153 (+ 142.5), and % of calories from sweets (i.e. cookies, cakes, pies, donuts, candy, ice cream, sweetened cereals, and chocolate beverages) was 15.9 (+ 9.7) and 15.9 (+ 7.7) in comparison and intervention youth, respectively. Intervention youth increased healthier foods and beverages purchases by 1.4 more items per week than comparison youth (β = 1.4; 95% CI: 0.1; 2.8). After the intervention, there was a 3.5% decrease in kcal from sweets for older intervention youth, compared to the control group (β = − 3.5; 95% CI: -7.76; − 0.05). No impact was seen on SSB consumption.ConclusionBHCK successfully increased healthier food purchasing variety in youth, and decreased % calories from sweet snacks in older youth. Multilevel, multicomponent environmental childhood obesity programs are a promising strategy to improve eating behaviors among low-income urban youth.Trial registrationNCT02181010 (July 2, 2014, retrospectively registered).

Friends and Family: How African-American Adolescents’ Perceptions of Dietary Beliefs and Behaviors of Others Relate to Diet Quality

BackgroundAdolescents’ dietary intake often fails to meet national dietary guidelines, especially among low-income African-American youth. The dietary habits established in adolescence are likely to continue into adulthood, and a poor-quality diet increases the risk of developing obesity and chronic disease. Based on principles from ecological and social-cognitive behavior change health theories, perceptions of parental beliefs about healthy eating, perceptions of peer eating behaviors, and parental monitoring of what adolescents eat may positively influence adolescent diet quality. ObjectiveThe purposes of this study were to determine whether perceived parental beliefs about nutrition, perceived peer eating behaviors, and reported parental monitoring of the adolescent diet were related to African-American adolescent diet quality and whether these relationships were moderated by adolescent age or sex. DesignThis secondary cross-sectional study used baseline data (2002 to 2004) from an urban community sample of low-income adolescents participating in a health promotion trial. Participants/settingParticipants were 216 African-American adolescent-caregiver dyads in Baltimore, MD. Main outcome measuresThe 2010 Healthy Eating Index was used to estimate adolescent diet quality. Statistical analyses performedAnalyses included correlations, t tests, age- and sex-by-perception regression interactions, and multivariate regressions adjusted for body mass index–for-age percentile, caregiver weight status, and caregiver depressive symptoms. ResultsHigher diet quality scores were related to higher levels of perceived parental and peer support for healthy eating behaviors among adolescents (β=.21; P<0.05; β=.15; P<0.05, respectively) and to caregiver reports of parental monitoring of adolescent dietary behavior (β=1.38, P<0.01). Findings were not moderated by age or sex. ConclusionsConsistent with ecological and social-cognitive theories, adolescents look to their friends and family in making healthy food choices. The relationships uncovered by this study describe some of the contextual, interpersonal influences associated with diet quality among low-income, urban African-American adolescents and warrant further exploration in future intervention studies.

Resilience against marijuana use initiation in low-income African American youth

IntroductionRecent increases in marijuana use among adolescents, in concert with decreases in perceptions of harm caused by marijuana use, documented associations of marijuana use with health problems and academic disengagement, and the increase in cannabis potency over the past two decades highlight the need for effective prevention and intervention efforts to delay and/or curb marijuana use among adolescents. The present study investigated the role of four promotive factors in the role of abstinence from marijuana use initiation. MethodsLow-income, urban, African American youth (N = 302; 54.6% female; M age = 12.05 years, SD = 1.57 years, Range = 10 to 16) participating in a larger study of stress and coping who had not initiated marijuana use at baseline were included in the sample. Goal directedness, emotion regulation, perceived support from mother, and religious coping, assessed at baseline, were evaluated for their contributions to marijuana use initiation two years later." ResultsBy time 3, 14.7% of the sample reported having initiated marijuana use. Univariate analyses indicated that abstainers were younger, better able to regulate their emotions, and marginally more likely to use religious coping. Logistic regression analysis was used to develop a best-fitting model describing abstinence from marijuana use; this model revealed age and emotion regulation as unique contributors to abstinence. ConclusionsEmotion regulation is a teachable skill, and is included in many school-based prevention and parenting programs. Recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of self-regulation interventions in African American youth are discussed.

Challenges in Reach with Online Sexual Health Information Among African American Youth: Assessing Access and Engagement

There is a need for sexual health promotion among African American youth. The internet is an efficient means of delivering sexual health information (SHI). However, there may be disparities that reduce internet reach to low-income African American youth. The present mixed-methods study analyzed data from the U.S. Current Population Survey (national household sample; ages 14–17) and the Two-Cities Study (Chicago, San Francisco; low-income African Americans, ages 15–17) to examine internet reach, defined as access and engagement. We found that nationally, in-home internet access and cell/smartphone ownership varied by income and race/ethnicity. In-home internet access (52%) and cell/smartphone ownership (75%) were lowest among low-income African American youth. Access from other locations (e.g., libraries, schools) was also quite low. The Two-Cities Study showed that internet access and site engagement were limited by site blocking, poor privacy, affordability, and trust. Youths’ trust in SHI was conditional on their ability to authenticate SHI websites. Our study suggests that there is limited reach into African American and low-income groups, which may be addressed by decreasing internet blocking, enhancing privacy, and supporting community programs and policies to facilitate internet access. Trust in sexual health websites may be increased through directed engagement and authentication by health experts. Without higher levels of access and implementation of strategies to enhance engagement, the potential of the internet as a vehicle for sexual health promotion among African American youth will not be realized.

What does self-esteem have to do with behavioral health among low-income youth in Chicago?

ABSTRACTMany studies have examined risk factors associated with poorer behavioral health among low-income African American youth, such as low school engagement, delinquency, mental health problems, drug use, and risky sex. However, fewer studies have examined protective factors for such behavioral health risk behaviors. This study sought to address this gap by examining whether high levels of self-esteem were associated with better behavioral health factors for this population. A survey was administered to a sample of 638 low-income African American adolescents in Chicago to examine the degree to which high self-esteem was associated with less delinquency, substance use, and sexual risk behaviors, and more school engagement, and whether such associations varied by gender. Stepwise linear and logistic regression models were estimated to assess the influence of self-esteem. Higher self-esteem for this sample of low-income African American adolescents was associated with lower rates of delinquency, drug use, and risky sexual behaviors and increased rates of school engagement. Gender moderated only a few of these relationships. These findings suggest that programs that promote high self–esteem alone or in combination with other resilience factors may promote better behavioral health factors for African American adolescents.

Youth empowerment implementation project evaluation results: A program designed to improve the health and well-being of low-income African-American adolescents

ABSTRACTAdolescent obesity is a major health issue facing today’s youth. This may be the first generation to have a lower life expectancy than their parents. The Youth Empowerment Implementation Project’s (YEIP) goal was to increase fruit and vegetable intake, lower junk food consumption, and increase physical activity among low-income African-American youth living in the Midwest. Thirty middle school aged youth participated in an evidenced-based program (i.e., Botvin’s Life Skills Training) and were engaged in health education and physical activities. The results from baseline to follow-up demonstrated a reduction in junk food intake for participants and an increase in fruit and vegetable intake but not for physical activity. The health behaviors of participants improved for three out of four indicators following the intervention. Limitations, future research, and implications for future programs are also discussed.

Exploring attrition, fidelity, and effectiveness of wraparound services among low-income youth of different racial backgrounds.

Wraparound services (i.e., community-based collaborative care) for children with severe mental health needs have been reported as effective. Yet, no attention has been given to aggregating treatment results across racially and economically diverse groups of youth. While controlling for socioeconomic status (i.e., free/reduced lunch status) this study explored potential racial disparities in response to wraparound services. Data from a diverse statewide sample (N = 1,006) of low-income youth (ages 6-18 years) identified as having a serious emotional disturbance were analyzed for differences in wraparound attrition, fidelity, and effectiveness. African American youth receiving free/reduced lunch failed to complete wraparound services at significantly higher rates when compared to Caucasian youth. For those who met treatment goals (i.e., completed services), mean intervention fidelity scores showed services to be implemented similarly across youth. Furthermore, wraparound services resulted in improvements in mental health functioning, though racial background and attrition status impacted exit scores. Collaborative community-based mental health services improve youth outcomes and physicians and school personnel should strive to be part of these teams. Further research is needed to more closely examine the challenges of helping youth to meet the goals associated with their wraparound services. Relatively higher service attrition rates in low-income African American youth warrants further investigation. (PsycINFO Database Record

Testing three pathways to substance use and delinquency among low-income African American adolescents

ObjectiveMounting literature suggests that parental monitoring, risky peer norms, and future orientation correlate with illicit drug use and delinquency. However, few studies have investigated these constructs simultaneously in a single statistical model with low income African American youth. This study examined parental monitoring, peer norms and future orientation as primary pathways to drug use and delinquent behaviors in a large sample of African American urban adolescents. MethodsA path model tested direct paths from peer norms, parental monitoring, and future orientation to drug use and delinquency outcomes after adjusting for potential confounders such as age, socioeconomic, and sexual orientation in a sample of 541 African American youth. ResultsGreater scores on measures of risky peer norms were associated with heightened risk of delinquency with an effect size that was twice in magnitude compared to the protective effects of future orientation. Regarding substance use, greater perceived risky peer norms correlated with the increased likelihood of substance use with a standardized effect size 3.33 times in magnitude compared to the protective effects of parental monitoring. ConclusionsFindings from this study suggest that interventions targeting risky peer norms among adolescent African American youth may correlate with a greater impact on reductions in substance use and delinquency than exclusively targeting parental monitoring or future orientation.

Do Neighborhood Effects on Low-Income Minority Children Depend on Their Age? Evidence From a Public Housing Natural Experiment

We analyze data from a natural experiment involving Denver public housing that quasirandomly assigns low-income Latino and African American youth to neighborhoods. Intent-to-treat and treatment-on-treated models reveal substantial effects of neighborhood socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and safety domains on youth and young adult educational, employment, and fertility outcomes. Effects are contingent on when a youth was first assigned to public housing and the neighborhood characteristic in question. Benefits from neighbors of higher occupational prestige are stronger if a child begins experiencing them at a younger age, whereas negative consequences of neighborhood crime are only manifested for teens. Neighborhood effect sizes apparently depend on the interaction among exposure duration, disruption effects of mobility, and developmental stage-specific differences in vulnerability to the given neighborhood effect mechanism operative. Our results hold powerful and provocative implications for where assisted housing should be developed and how applicants should be assigned to neighborhoods.

Exposure to Community Violence Among Low-Income African American Youth in Chicago: A Latent Class Analysis.

African American youth are exposed to some of the highest rates of exposure to community violence. However, few studies have explored factors related to exposures and various subtypes of exposures to community violence (i.e., no exposure, witnessing only and being a witness/victim). Among a matched sample of 129 African American youth and their caregivers, no exposure to community violence was correlated with being heterosexual versus being a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) person, having parents who owned their homes versus rented, and having higher authoritarian parenting attitudes. In addition, being a witness/victim of community violence was correlated with any youth substance use, lower levels of school bonding, having less future orientation, less parental home ownership, and an adverse family history. Practice and programmatic considerations are discussed based on these findings.

How Living in the ‘Hood Affects Risky Behaviors Among Latino and African American Youth

Using data from a natural experiment in Denver, we investigate whether the initiation of running away from home, aggressive or violent behavior, and marijuana use during adolescence are statistically related to the neighborhood contexts in which low-income Latino and African American youth were raised. Our analysis is based on retrospective child, caregiver, household, and neighborhood data for a sample of approximately 850 Latino and African American youth whose families were quasi-randomly assigned to public housing operated by the Denver (CO) Housing Authority during part of their childhood. We used Cox PH models and accelerated failure time models to estimate ethnic differentials in the hazards and timing of initiation of these risky behaviors during adolescence. We found that multiple dimensions of neighborhood context—especially safety, ethnic and nativity composition, and socioeconomic status—strongly and robustly predicted initiation of running away, aggressive or violence behavior, and marijuana use during adolescence.

Feeling Safe in a Dangerous Place: Exploring the Neighborhood Safety Perceptions of Low-Income African American Youth

Research shows that neighborhood safety is strongly associated with the health and well-being of adolescents. However, few studies examine what shapes these perceptions of safety, especially for adolescents who grow up in more dangerous neighborhoods. The present study explores what factors shape the neighborhood safety perceptions of a sample of low-income, African American adolescents aged 15 to 19 years ( n = 46) from Baltimore who lived in public housing as children. The study reveals the complexity in how adolescents perceive safety, especially among those living in dangerous neighborhoods. The results highlight the importance of the type of danger (e.g., drug activity vs. gun-related violence) and social connections in shaping neighborhood safety perceptions. Sample youth are more likely to report feeling safe when there is little perceived danger. In more dangerous neighborhoods, youth feel safe where there is low violence, they have protective social ties, and they can avoid perceived danger. However, social connections can also tie youth to violence and victimization, which threatens their perception of safety. This more nuanced understanding of youth perceptions of safety has implications for the ways in which neighborhoods affect adolescents and the role of housing policy in improving the well-being of low-income youth.

"Broken windows": Relationship between neighborhood conditions and behavioral health among low-income African American adolescents.

This study explored the association between neighborhood conditions and behavioral health among African American youth. Cross-sectional data were collected from 683 African American youth from low-income communities. Measures for demographics, neighborhood conditions (i.e. broken windows index), mental health, delinquency, substance use, and sexual risk behaviors were assessed. Major findings indicated that participants who reported poorer neighborhood conditions compared to those who lived in better living conditions were more likely to report higher rates of mental health problems, delinquency, substance use, and unsafe sexual behaviors. Environmental factors need to be considered when addressing the behavioral health of low-income African American youth.

Assessing the Relationship Between Parental Influences and Wellbeing Among Low Income African American Adolescents in Chicago

African American youth in urban centers often reside in poorly resourced communities and face structural disadvantage, which can result in higher rates of poor behavioral health factors such as mental health problems, juvenile justice system involvement, substance use, risky sex and lower school engagement. While parental monitoring has been shown to be protective with regards to these risk factors, less understood are the effects of parental warmth in conjunction with monitoring. This study examined whether parental monitoring and warmth had a main or mediated relationship to behavioral health factors among low income African American youth. African American youth (n = 638) completed self-administered questionnaires on parenting factors (i.e., monitoring and warmth), mental health, juvenile justice system involvement, substance use, school engagement, and sexual risk behaviors. Participants reported higher mean parental monitoring versus warmth. Parental monitoring was correlated with lower substance use, delinquency, unsafe sex and higher school engagement. Higher parental warmth in contrast was uniquely correlated with better youth mental health but also higher rates of alcohol, cigarette and marijuana use. Monitoring their youth at high levels appears to be a common and effective strategy by parents in poorly resourced communities and was associated with lower behavioral health risks. By contrast, parental warmth had both positive and negative associations with behavioral health, suggesting that more research is needed to clarify the circumstances within which parental warmth may be protective or not.

Elementary School Difficulties of Low-Income Latino and African American Youth: The Role of Geographic Context

ABSTRACT:Do the geographic contexts in which disadvantaged children are raised influence whether they have difficulties in elementary school? We address this question by estimating Cox proportional hazard models with instrumental variable measures of context, using data for 410 low-income Latino and African American children who lived in Denver public housing before age six. The Denver Housing Authority’s procedure for allocating families to dwellings mimics random assignment, thus offering an unusual natural experiment for measuring context effects isolated from geographic selection bias. We find that several socioeconomic and demographic contextual indicators are statistically and substantively important predictors of low-income Latino and African American children’s difficulties in elementary school, though sometimes in nonlinear and interactive ways. Generally, the hazard of being assigned to special education classes, suspended, or forced to repeat a grade is greater in neighborhoods with higher occupational prestige and percentages of immigrants and lower in those with higher percentages of African American residents.

“Why Wait Years to Become Something?” Low-income African American Youth and the Costly Career Search in For-profit Trade Schools

Increasing numbers of low-income and minority youth are now pursuing shorter-duration sub-baccalaureate credentials at for-profit trade and technical schools. However, many students drop out of these schools, leaving with large debts and few job prospects. Despite these dismal outcomes, we know very little about students’ experiences in for-profit programs and how these institutions shape postsecondary attainment. Using data from fieldwork with 150 inner-city African American youth, we examine why disadvantaged youth are attracted to these schools and why they struggle to complete certifications. In contrast to previous research, we find that the youth in our study have quite modest ambitions and look to for-profit trade schools as the quickest and most direct route to work. However, youth receive little information or guidance to support such postsecondary transitions. Therefore, the very element that makes for-profit trade school programs seem the most appealing—a curriculum focused on one particular career—becomes an obstacle when it requires youth to commit to a program of study before they have explored their interests. When youth realize they do not like or are not prepared for their chosen career, they adopt coping strategies that keep them in school but swirling between programs, rather than accumulating any credentials.