The Relationship between Child and Adolescent Risk and Protective Factors and Racial Microagression, Ethnic Identity, and Well-Being in Young Adulthood

Session 4: Risk and Protective Factors in Adolescent and Young Adults. Presenter: Shandra Forrest-Bank, University of Denver (2012) - "The Relationship between Child and Adolescent Risk and Protective Factors and Racial Microagression, Ethnic Identity, and Well-Being in Young Adulthood".The Ohio State University College of Social Wor

The Relationship Between Risk and Resilience, Racial Microaggression, Ethnic Identity, and Well-Being in Young Adulthood

Young adulthood is the developmental period characterized by the transition from adolescence to the roles and responsibilities of adulthood. While most young adults experience positive growth and accomplishments, many others struggle, especially those with disadvantaged childhoods who lack financial, social, and emotional resources. Substance abuse, crime, educational failure, unemployment, and mental health problems are common among young adults. Unfortunately, many of these problems occur at disproportionately high rates for young people of color. Considerable knowledge of the child and adolescent risk and protective factors that contribute to the onset of problem behavior or to well-being during adolescence has been developed. However, evidence from longitudinal studies spanning childhood, adolescence, and adulthood indicates that little is known about the influence of early risk and protective factors on the onset, remittance, or persistence of problem behavior or well-being during adulthood. In addition, few studies have examined the effects of racial discrimination and ethnic identity on problem behavior and well-being. This study examined the relationship between child and adolescent risk and protective factors for problem behavior, perceived racial and ethnic microaggression, ethnic identity, and the young adult outcomes of self-efficacy, substance abuse, and criminal intention. Data were collected from a randomly selected sample of college students (N=486; Mean Age=24) attending an urban college in Denver, Colorado. Findings from structural equation modeling revealed that the early onset of problem behavior was significantly related to both substance abuse and criminal intentions during young adulthood. Childhood school engagement was positively related to college self-efficacy, and negatively related to criminal intentions. Perceived racial microaggression and ethic identify were significantly related to academic self-efficacy. One-way analysis of variance tests revealed significant differences in mean scores on the microaggression and ethnic identity scales between racial and ethnic groups. All nonwhite groups reported significantly higher levels of microaggression than their white peers. Mean cognitive ethnic identity scores were significantly higher for black and Latino/Hispanic subjects compared to Asian and white participants. The implications of these findings for practice, policy, and research with young adult populations are identified

Understanding Appalachian Microaggression from the Perspective of Community College Students in Southern West Virginia

The term Appalachian is wrongly understood to represent a single culture of rural White poverty (Keefe, 2005). This conception contains stereotypical images that obscure hardships many rural White Central Appalachians face. Similar to other oppressed minorities in the U.S., what it means to be Appalachian is a social construction based on what differs them from the White hegemony. Recent scholarship on discrimination recognizes the importance of microaggression, small insults and slights experienced frequently by people from minority groups (Sue, et. al., 2007). Microaggression may be an especially insidious mechanism in the oppression of Appalachian people, since the derogatory stereotypes are broadly accepted while their oppressed status tends to not be acknowledged. This study applied qualitative focus group methodology to understand perceptions of microaggression and oppression among a sample of college students living in rural Central Appalachia. Results reveal themes of microaggression. Identifying Appalachian microaggression provides evidence of marginalized status and offers a framework for understanding how the social construction of White Appalachian perpetuates reduced status, stereotypes, and prejudice. Implications are discussed to consider how to foster resilience to oppression among rural White Central Appalachian people

Healthcare Professional Students’ Perspectives on Substance Use Disorders and Stigma: A Qualitative Study

Background: Access to and quality of care for Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) remain a major public health issue. Stigma associated with SUDs contributes to the gap between the number of patients who need treatment and the much smaller fraction that receive it. Healthcare professional students are future care providers; an opportunity exists to characterize their collective perspectives on patients with SUDs and how that informs the care they provide. Methods: Healthcare professional students participated in online, semi-structured focus group (FGs) between March and April 2021. The FGs were conducted until thematic saturation was achieved. All verbatim transcripts were analyzed applying Thematic Analysis using Dedoose® qualitative software. Inductive codes were grouped into categories based on similarities that facilitated the emergence of themes. Results: Thematic Analysis revealed one theme (1) Decreasing stigma among healthcare professionals by viewing substance use disorder as a disease; and two sub-themes: Subtheme 1a: Relating with the patients, “It could be me…”; Subtheme 1b: Interactions with patients, “We just don’t know exactly how to counsel these patients…” These themes describe how future healthcare professionals might perceive and approach patients with SUDs and highlight the importance of SUD training in the curriculum. Conclusion: Medical and pharmacy students are uniquely positioned to apply critical thinking from their didactic training to their real-world clinical experiences, and their collective perspectives inform gaps in training and opportunities to develop best practices for SUD care. An opportunity exists to leverage these findings in order to train future healthcare professionals to ensure access to and quality of SUD care.</jats:p