Caregiver Experiences of Discrimination and African American Adolescents' Psychological Health Over Time

• Published in: Child development Vol. 84; no. 2; pp. 485 - 499
• Main Authors: Ford, Kahlil R., Hurd, Noelle M., Jagers, Robert J., Sellers, Robert M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden, MA Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-03-2013; Wiley Blackwell; Wiley-Blackwell
• Subjects: Adaptation, Psychological; Adolescent; Adolescents; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Africa; African Americans; African Americans - psychology; Age Differences; Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Black American people; Blacks; Caregivers; Caregivers - psychology; Carers; Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale; Child; Child development; Child psychology; Children; Correlation; Depression; Depression (Psychology); Depressive Disorder - psychology; Depressive disorders; Developmental psychology; Discrimination; Economic discrimination; EMPIRICAL ARTICLES; Family; Family Income; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gender Differences; Gender discrimination; Hierarchical Linear Modeling; Humans; Income; Interaction; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Medical sciences; Mental depression; Mental Health; Mental health outcomes; Middle Aged; Mood disorders; Mothers; Parents - psychology; Psychological factors; Psychological functioning; Psychological Patterns; Psychological wellbeing; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Racial Discrimination; Racism - psychology; Risk; Risk Factors; Sex Factors; Social Identification; Symptoms (Individual Disorders); Teenagers; Time Factors; U.S.A; United States; Well Being; Wellbeing; Young Adult; Youth; United States; North America; America; Human; Mood disorder; Socioeconomic status; Depression; Ethnic group; Stress; Parent child relation; Sociodemographic factor; Social interaction; Adolescent; Parental attitude; Risk factor; Family environment; Psychological well-being; Racism; African American
• ISSN: 0009-3920; 1467-8624
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2012.01864.x

The present study examined the effect of caregivers' experiences of racial discrimination on their adolescent children's psychological functioning among a sample of 264 African American dyads. Potential relations between caregiver discrimination experiences and a number of indicators of adolescents' (aged 12–17) psychological functioning over time were examined. It was found that caregiver discrimination experiences were positively related to adolescents' symptoms of depression and negatively related to their psychological well-being. Additional analysis revealed interactions between the effects of caregiver discrimination experiences and family income on all 3 outcomes. Greater caregiver discrimination experiences and lower family income were risk factors for the youth in the sample. These findings underscore the deleterious consequence of caregivers' discrimination experiences on African American youth's psychological health.