African American marriage in the 20th century

It is not possible to understand African American marriages fully without attention to the social, economic, racial, and historical factors that have stressed male-female relationships beyond those stresses experienced by majority couples. I propose that the societal projection process (Bowen, 1978) has entrapped African Americans in ways that have continually and severely strained their marital and couple relationships. These experiences, and the ways in which African Americans have responded to them, have created a vulnerability that is compounded by societal shifts and changes, and is manifest in the precipitous decline of marriages at a rate higher than that found in all other racial groups in the U.S. I will examine the state of African American marriages in this cultural context, with specific attention to the effects of the unequal sex ratio, socioeconomic conditions, and overstressed male-female relationships. I will then discuss implications and offer suggestions for therapists who work with this population.     

Decoupling the Relation Between Risk Factors for Conduct Problems and the Receipt of Intervention Services: Participation Across Multiple Components of a Prevention Program

This study examined whether the link between risk factors for conduct problems and low rates of participation in mental health treatment could be decoupled through the provision of integrated prevention services in multiple easily-accessible contexts. It included 445 families of first-grade children (55% minority), living in four diverse communities, and selected for early signs of conduct problems. Results indicated that, under the right circumstances, these children and families could be enticed to participate at high rates in school-based services, therapeutic groups, and home visits. Because different sets of risk factors were related to different profiles of participation across the components of the prevention program, findings highlight the need to offer services in multiple contexts to reach all children and families who might benefit from them. Ellen Pinderhughes's and Karen Bierman's colleagues in the Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group are, in alphabetical order, John D. Coie, Duke University; Kenneth A. Dodge, Duke University; E. Michael Foster, University of North Carolina; Mark T. Greenberg, Pennsylvania State University; John E. Lochman, University of Alabama; and Robert J. McMahon, University of Washington.     

Maternal Depressive Symptoms and Child Social Preference During the Early School Years: Mediation by Maternal Warmth and Child Emotion Regulation

This longitudinal study examined processes that mediate the association between maternal depressive symptoms and peer social preference during the early school years. Three hundred and fifty six kindergarten children (182 boys) and their mothers participated in the study. During kindergarten, mothers reported their level of depressive symptomatology. In first grade, teachers rated children’s emotion regulation at school and observers rated the affective quality of mother-child interactions. During second grade, children’s social preference was assessed by peer nomination. Results indicated that mothers’ level of depressive symptomatology negatively predicted their child’s social preference 2 years later, controlling for the family SES and teacher-rated social preference during kindergarten. Among European American families, the association between maternal depressive symptoms and social preference was partially mediated by maternal warmth and the child’s emotion regulation. Although the relation between maternal depressive symptoms and children peer preference was stronger among African American families than Europrean American families, its mediation by the maternal warmth and child’s emotion regulation was not found in African American families.     

“Just Beyond my Front Door”: Public Discourse Experiences of Children Adopted from China

The phenotypic differences between children and their adoptive parents in transracial adoptions make the child’s adoptive status readily apparent in public. Consequently, adoptees field more frequent questions and comments about the adoption. The present study examines the nature of public conversations about ethnicity and adoption of 41 elementary school age girls adopted from China and the ecological factors related to less frequent occurrences of such conversations and to the positive nature of these experiences. Results indicate that family structure (single parent vs. two parents) and parental bicultural competence predict membership in the favorable condition (reporting fewer public interaction experiences and reporting more positive experiences, respectively). Child’s age and racial diversity of the town of residence do not predict these outcomes. Implications for families, adoption professionals, teachers and researchers are discussed.     

Predicting developmental outcomes at school entry using a multiple-risk model: four American communities. The Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group

The contributions of different risk factors in predicting children's psychological and academic outcomes at the end of 1st grade were examined. Using a regression model, levels of ecobehavioral risk were assessed in the following order: specific demographics, broad demographics, family psychosocial status, mother's depressive symptoms, and neighborhood quality. Participants were 337 families from 4 American communities. Predictor variables were assessed in kindergarten, and teacher, parent, and child outcomes (behavioral and academic) were assessed at the end of 1st grade. Results indicated that (a) each level of analysis contributed to prediction of most outcomes, (b) 18%-29% of the variance was predicted in outcomes, (c) a common set of predictors predicted numerous outcomes, (d) ethnicity showed little unique prediction, and (e) the quality of the neighborhood showed small but unique prediction to externalizing problems.     

Evidence for a Multi-Dimensional Latent Structural Model of Externalizing Disorders

Strong associations between conduct disorder (CD), antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and substance use disorders (SUD) seem to reflect a general vulnerability to externalizing behaviors. Recent studies have characterized this vulnerability on a continuous scale, rather than as distinct categories, suggesting that the revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) take into account the underlying continuum of externalizing behaviors. However, most of this research has not included measures of disorders that appear in childhood [e.g., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or oppositional defiant disorder (ODD)], nor has it considered the full range of possibilities for the latent structure of externalizing behaviors, particularly factor mixture models, which allow for a latent factor to have both continuous and categorical dimensions. Finally, the majority of prior studies have not tested multidimensional models. Using lifetime diagnoses of externalizing disorders from participants in the Fast Track Project (n?=?715), we analyzed a series of latent variable models ranging from fully continuous factor models to fully categorical mixture models. Continuous models provided the best fit to the observed data and also suggested that a two-factor model of externalizing behavior, defined as (1) ODD+ADHD+CD and (2) SUD with adult antisocial behavior sharing common variance with both factors, was necessary to explain the covariation in externalizing disorders. The two-factor model of externalizing behavior was then replicated using a nationally representative sample drawn from the National Comorbidity Survey-Replication data (n?=?5,692). These results have important implications for the conceptualization of externalizing disorders in DSM-5.     

Depth in Cultural Socialization in Families with Children Adopted from China

Parents raising children adopted from a different racial/ethnic group usually engage in cultural socialization—providing activities in adoptees’ birth culture—hoping to instill pride and help adoptees develop a positive identity. Adoptive parents engage in a wide variety of socialization activities, yet adult adoptees have reported not having deep enough exposure from their parents. The present study explored the depth of cultural socialization in transracial adoptive families. Informed by Pinderhughes' Ethnic‐Racial Socialization model, this study developed a continuum examining the depth in cultural socialization with three indicators: (1) the depth of cultural activities, (2) parents’ motivation for cultural socialization, and (3) parental cultural attitudes. Qualitative analyses of 41 White parents raising children adopted from China found that parents’ motivation and acknowledgement of cultural differences reflected deep appreciation of adoptees’ birth culture, however, activities they provided were not as deep. Activities that facilitated close relationships with people who shared adoptees’ background in a natural context appeared to provide the deepest cultural connection. Despite limitations, the study demonstrated that the depth continuum was able to capture variations and nuances in cultural socialization. Suggestions for future research and recommendation for practice were also included.