Sample Of Black College Students Research Articles

Student-Faculty Interactions, University Environment, and Academic Attitudes Among Black College Students: The Role of School Racial Composition

ABSTRACT This study examined student-faculty interactions and university environment as predictors of devaluing academic success and the intention to persist among a sample of Black college students attending historically and/or predominantly White institutions (H/PWIs) and historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Results indicated the hypothesized model fit the data reasonably well across schools. However, notable differences were found. The paths from respectful student-faculty interactions and university environment to devaluing academic success were significant for students attending HBCUs but not H/PWIs. Additionally, university environment was a significant mediator of devaluing academic success for HBCUs but not H/PWIs. Findings suggest that the university environment and student-faculty interactions play a more important role in the academic attitudes of Black students attending HBCUs than H/PWIs.

Exploring the association between mental health climate and depression: the protective role of positive mental health and sense of belonging among Black college students

Objective: To explore relationships between mental health climate, positive mental health, sense of belonging, and depression among a U.S. national sample of Black college students. Participants: 1303 Black undergraduate and graduate students from 15 colleges and universities throughout the U.S. Methods: Data were from the 2018–2019 Healthy Minds Study. Analysis included hierarchical regression models. Results: A more positive perception of mental health climate and higher levels of both positive mental health and sense of belonging were significantly associated with lower levels of depression. Significant interactions existed between positive mental health and climate and sense of belonging and climate with buffering effects being most pronounced for students reporting high levels of positive mental health. Conclusion: Black college students’ perceptions of an institution’s mental health climate are associated with psychological outcomes. College health stakeholders should consider the buffering effects of protective factors on mental health when designing initiatives for Black college students.

An Examination of Suicidal Behavior among Black College Students with Exposure to Police Violence.

There is limited research about suicidal behaviors among Black emerging adults (peak age of suicide risk) who report exposure to police violence. The current study applies an integrated approach to examine individual, immediate environment, and community-based risk and protective factors of suicide among Black college students who reported previous exposure to police violence. A purposive sample of Black college students (N = 300) was analyzed using bivariate analyses and binary logistic regression. Outcome variables investigated were lifetime suicidal ideation and suicide attempt. Twenty-eight percent of participants reported lifetime suicidal ideation and 14 percent reported lifetime attempts. Female students were significantly more likely to report lifetime suicidal ideation and recent symptoms of anxiety and to engage in emotional social support than male peers. Logistic regression results demonstrated that higher income and greater depression symptoms were associated with lower reporting of lifetime suicidal ideation. Reporting of more grit, the trait of perseverance and passion for long-term goals, was associated with a lower reporting of both lifetime suicidal ideation and suicide attempt. Findings have implications for how social workers in higher education are encouraged to address suicidal behavior among Black students, including the cultivation of grit.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Black College Students' Mental Health

COVID-19 has had a deleterious impact on both the Black community and college students. Studies on this topic have taken a general approach and thus do not consider how the effects of the pandemic are distinct and potentially exacerbated among subgroups of students. The current study addressed this gap in the literature by examining the psychological impact of COVID-19 on Black college students. A sample of Black college students (Mage = 20.09) was interviewed and asked to describe their emotional reactions to COVID-19 and their coping processes in response to the pandemic. Interview data were analyzed using a consensual qualitative research approach (Hill et al., 1997, 2005). Findings showed that a majority of students had a negative emotional reaction to the pandemic (e.g., low mood and stress), and a small subset of students had a positive emotional reaction (e.g., emotional growth). In addition, students tended to cope with the pandemic most commonly via engagement (e.g., positive reframing) and social support coping strategies. We discuss the implications of our findings and offer recommendations for how institutions may better support Black college students' mental health in the midst of the ongoing pandemic.

Linked fate among underrepresented groups: Investigating the relationships between Black college students’ perceptions of institutional diversity climate and mental health

Objective: Negative perceptions of institutional racial climate relate to worse mental health outcomes for Black college students. Yet, few scholars have considered how Black students’ perceptions of the institutional climate for other underrepresented groups may impact mental health. Participants and Methods: We drew on a national sample of Black college students across 15 institutions (n = 1188) to examine the effects of institutional diversity climate on students’ anxiety, depression, and positive mental health. Results: Black students who perceived the campus as more welcoming to first-generation reported higher positive mental health. Black students who perceived the campus as more welcoming to racial minorities, lesbian, gay, bisexual (LGB), and low socioeconomic status (SES) students reported lower levels of depression and anxiety. Conclusions: Black students’ perceptions of the institutional diversity climate for other groups influences their mental health outcomes, and underscores the need for more research on individual-level differences in students’ mental health processes.

Lifetime marijuana use and sexually transmitted infection history in a sample of Black college students

BackgroundSexually transmitted infections (STIs) and marijuana use are more prevalent in African Americans/Blacks (Blacks) than any other ethnicity in the United States. Given the significant health care costs and deleterious health correlates of using marijuana or contracting a STI, it is imperative to examine their association, especially in the vulnerable and underrepresented group of young adult Blacks. PurposeThe current study examines the association between lifetime marijuana use on history of STI diagnosis in a sample of Black college students. ResultsApproximately 81% of the 213 participants were female, with approximately 81% also being 21years of age or younger. Alcohol (88%) led the prevalence of substances ever used, followed by marijuana (75%), and cigarettes (57%). When including demographic and substance use covariates, lifetime marijuana use (AOR=2.51; 95% CIs, 1.01, 6.21) and age (AOR=2.72; 95% CIs, 1.32, 5.64) were associated with history of STI. ConclusionThese findings will inform intervention and prevention methods used to reduce STI prevalence and marijuana use among Black young adults. Both epidemiological and biological foundations will be discussed.

Accusations of Acting White

The acting White accusation is a negative insult that many Black students encounter from peers, and research suggests that these experiences may be potentially detrimental to psychosocial outcomes. The current study examined the relationship between specific aspects of the acting White accusation (e.g., frequency of occurrence, induced discomfort), racial/ethnic identity (e.g., racial regard, exploration, commitment), and mental health (e.g., depressive symptoms, anxiety, emotional stress). Data from a sample of Black college students ( n = 198) were evaluated using both variable-centered and person-centered analytical techniques. Results indicated that frequency of the accusation predicted lower racial/ethnic identity and more severe mental health symptoms, whereas the level of discomfort predicted higher racial/ethnic identification. Latent class analysis revealed that perceived experiences with the acting White accusation were represented by four distinct profiles, three of which differed significantly in dimensions of racial/ethnic identity. Findings suggest that the accusation of acing White is perceived differently by individual Black students and carries a distinctive risk for psychosocial outcomes.

Health-Related Stereotype Threat Predicts Health Services Delays Among Blacks.

To our knowledge, no published research has developed an individual difference measure of health-related stereotype threat (HRST). We adapted existing measures of academic stereotype threat to the health domain on a sample of black college students (N = 280). The resulting health-related stereotype threat scale-24 (HRST-24) was assessed for internal consistency, construct and incremental validity, and whether it explains variance in self-reported delays among four preventive health behaviors-blood pressure and cholesterol assays, physical exams, and routine checkups. After adjusting for several control variables, the HRST-24's (full scale α = 0.96) perceived black health inferiority (18 items; α = 0.96) and perceived physician racial bias (6 items; α = 0.85) sub-scales explained unique variance in delays among two of the four behaviors including a blood cholesterol check (p < .01) and routine checkup-albeit at marginal levels (p = .063) in the case of the latter. Overall, these data provide preliminary evidence of construct and incremental validity for the HRST-24 among blacks. Recommendations for administering the scale are provided and future directions for HRST research are discussed.

Racial Homogenization and Stereotypes

Using data from an original survey with a localized convenience sample of Black college students, the 2004 Black American Socialization and Trust Survey (BASTS), this article examines whether Black American college students view other racial groups in stereotypic ways. Results of BASTS suggest that, despite some stereotypic views of racial groups, there is limited support for extreme subscription to either positive or negative stereotypes of racial groups. However, certain positive and negative stereotypes are more evident for specific racial groups. Respondents tend to think about Blacks, Asians, and Latinos in more positive ways than Whites and people in general.

The Comprehensive Race Socialization Inventory

This pilot study introduces the comprehensive race socialization inventory (CRSI), an amalgam and extension of existing inventories that systematically captures the race socialization process within Black families. Using survey data collected in 2000 and 2001 from a convenience sample of Black adolescents ( n= 18) and a random sample of Black college students ( n= 225), the authors compare data yielded from the CRSI with data yielded from existing inventories of race socialization. The authors find that CRSI components such as (a) onset and recency, (b) the most useful message, (c) multiple sources, (d) anticipatory socialization messages, and (e) socializing behaviors are absent from existing race socialization inventories. Because the CRSI captures these critical components of the race socialization process, the authors argue that it is an improvement over existing inventories. The authors report measures of central tendency and dispersion to demonstrate the utility of the CRSI and also discuss its reliability and validity.