Asset Ownership and Academic Achievement Among Youth in Ghana: Examining Associations Based on Asset Type and Academic Subject

This cross-sectional study examined the relationships between asset type and academic achievement among Ghanaian junior high school students. Results suggest that the positive relationship between asset ownership and academic achievement depends on the type of asset and academic subject. Homeownership was positively and significantly associated with math achievement. Ownership of transport-related assets was positively and significantly associated with English achievement. Findings have implications for asset-building programs to promote academic proficiency and progress for all youth.     

School Cultural Socialization and Academic Performance: Examining Ethnic-Racial Identity Development as a Mediator Among African American Adolescents

Historic racial disparities in the United States have created an urgent need for evidence-based strategies promoting African American students’ academic performance via school-based ethnic-racial socialization and identity development. However, the temporal order among socialization, identity, and academic performance remains unclear in extant literature. This longitudinal study examined whether school cultural socialization predicted 961 African American adolescents’ grade point averages through their ethnic-racial identities (49.6% males; M_age = 13.60; 91.9% qualified for free lunch). Results revealed that youth who perceived more school cultural socialization had better grades 1 and 2 years later. In addition, identity commitment (but not exploration) fully mediated these relations. Implications for how educators can help adolescents of color succeed in schools are discussed.     

Relationship Between Psychosocial Factors and Academic Achievement Among African American Students

Abstract

The authors of this cross-sectional study used surveys based on the noncognitive model of W. E. Sedlacek and C. G. Brooks (1976) to determine psychosocial factors associated with African American students' high school achievement Psychosocial variables explored included community service, academic motivation, social support, and students' methods of handling unfair treatment. Results showed that after gender and absenteeism were controlled for, only the method of handling unfair treatment was positively associated with grade point average (GPA), p < .05. Those findings suggest that students who talk to others about being treated unfairly instead of keeping it to themselves are more likely to have higher GPAs; the findings also have important implications for individuals involved in the counseling and education of high school students. Sedlacek and Brooks's model provides an effective guide for predicting academic achievement and for developing programs to improve academic achievement among students of color. Further research is needed into psychosocial factors and their effects on academic achievement.     

Positive Youth Development and Resilience: Growth Patterns of Social Skills Among Youth Investigated for Maltreatment

Maltreated children are a vulnerable population, yet many of these youth follow positive developmental pathways. The primary aim was to identify social skills growth trajectories among at‐risk youth to understand processes underlying resilience. Nationally representative, longitudinal data from 1,179 families investigated for child maltreatment (M_age = 12.75) were obtained from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well‐Being. Four trajectories were identified—stress‐resistant, emergent resilience, breakdown, and unresponsive‐maladaptive. Protective resources from multiple levels of the youth ecology (individual, family, school, and social service) predicted positive growth social skills trajectories. Resilience process and attendant positive outcomes in multiple domains of functioning were evident among the stress‐resistant and emergent resilience trajectories. Results underscore the saliency of social skills development for resilient outcomes in youth.     

Developmental Transactions Between Self-Regulation and Academic Achievement Among Low-Income African American and Latino Children

This study examined the development of emerging self-regulation (SR) skills across the preschool years and relations to academic achievement in kindergarten and first grade. SR skills of 403 low-income African American and Latino children were measured at 2&1/2, 3&1/2, and 5 years (kindergarten). Reading and math skills were measured at 5 and 6 years (first grade) using the Woodcock–Johnson. Transactional relations between SR skills and achievement outcomes were estimated with latent difference score models. Increases in set shifting predicted prospective increases in reading, but not math scores. Increases in simple response inhibition predicted prospective increases in math, but not reading scores. Application of these findings to early intervention programming and needed supports for school readiness and achievement are discussed.     

A Review of Research on School Bullying Among African American Youth: An Ecological Systems Analysis

School bullying and peer victimization are social problems that affect African American youth across various environmental contexts. Regrettably, many of the empirical research on bullying and peer victimization among African American youth has examined individual and direct level influences in silos rather than a constellation of factors occurring in multiple settings, such as home, school, and neighborhood. As a holistic model, the social–ecological framework provides a context with which to situate and interpret findings and draw implications from a broader psychosocial framework, which can be applicable across various systems. We utilize Bronfenbrenner’s (American Psychologist 32:513–531, 1977) social–ecological framework as a springboard for investigating the accumulation of risk contributors and the presences of protective factors in relation to school bullying and peer victimization of African American youth. More specifically, we examine the risk and protective factors occurring in the micro- (i.e., parents, peers, school, and community), exo- (i.e., parental stress), and macrosystem levels (i.e., hypermasculinity, and gender role beliefs and stereotypes). We then discuss implications for research and school-based practice.     

美国学术协会的功能及其对研究型大学的作用

本文在回顾美国学术协会与研究型大学演进历程的基础上,分析了学术协会对研究型大学的作用和影响,包括确立研究导向、建立学科基础、设立学术期刊、推动学术交流等。研究认为,美国各种学术协会为推动美国学院和大学的转型,建立以研究为导向的大学提供了学科基础、学术规则和交流平台,是美国研究型大学兴起和发展的原发性推动力量之一。     

Social Justice and Resilience for African American Male Counselor Educators: A Phenomenological Study

In this phenomenological study, the authors interviewed 4 African American male counselor educators about their social justice efforts. Resulting themes were lifelong commitment to social justice, reaction to resistance, professional and personal support, and the meaning of social justice work. Findings suggest that social justice work can increase professional resilience for African American male counselor educators.     

Seeking and Finding Positive Youth Development Among Zulu Youth in South African Townships

A cross‐sectional study explored the presence and power of developmental assets in a sample of youth from rural South African townships. Learners (female = 58%; M_age = 17.1; N = 505) attending three township high schools completed self‐report measures of developmental assets and thriving outcomes. Participants reported contextual assets (e.g., family, school, community) in the vulnerable ranges, with gender, family structure, and school type accounting for some differences. Correlation and regression analyses revealed that five asset contexts (family, school, community, personal, social) were uniquely predictive of thriving outcomes. Discussion focuses on contextual expressions of positive youth development among Zulu township youth in challenging environments.     

Pedagogies of Survival: Cultural Resources to Foster Resilience Among Mexican-American Community College Students

This in-depth case shows how five Mexican-American community college students use their pedagogies of survival to build resistance and navigate through the barriers of community colleges. Pedagogies of survival emanate from social, cultural, economic, and historical struggles of the students, their families, and their communities which engender orgullo (pride) and sabiduría (wisdom) and fosters their resilience. This resilience evolves from a long history of inequitable treatment and is maintained from birth to the present.     

Satisfaction and Retention Among African American Men at Two-Year Community Colleges

A large majority of African American males begin their postsecondary education careers at two-year community colleges. Prior research has focused largely on Black students at four-year institutions, and even theoretical work has assumed that influences on retention are the same at two-year and four-year institutions. Drawing on Tinto's (1993 Tinto , V. ( 1993 ). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition () , 2nd ed. . Chicago , IL : University of Chicago Press . [Google Scholar]) retention theory and Astin's (1993 Astin , A. W. ( 1993 ). What matters in college: Four critical years revisited . San Francisco , CA : Jossey-Bass . [Google Scholar]) input-environment-outcome (IEO) model, this study estimated the impact of academic and social integration on retention—controlling for an array of intervening variables—based on a sample of African American males who responded to the Community College Student Experiences Questionnaire. Findings suggest a statistical link between social integration and satisfaction in college; factors explained approximately 27% of the variance in the dependent variable. Implications for future policy and practice are highlighted.     

Accelerated Online Learning: Perceptions of Interaction and Learning Outcomes Among African American Students

This study investigated student interaction, satisfaction, and performance in accelerated online learning environments with the use of an online learning course-management system. The interactions assessed in this study included learner–learner interaction, learner–instructor interaction, and learner–content interaction. The participants were African American students from a university in the southeastern United States. Quantitative approaches including correlation and regression analyses were performed to examine the contribution of interaction predictors to student satisfaction as well as the relationship between student satisfaction and student performance. In addition, Internet self-efficacy and its impact on interaction was investigated. The results showed that learner–content interaction was the only significant predictor of student satisfaction whereas interaction among students or with the instructor did not significantly predict student satisfaction. Internet self-efficacy was positively correlated with three types of interaction. Student satisfaction was found to be related to student performance.     

Dropping Out Among Mexican American Youth: Reviewing the Literature Through an Ecological Perspective

The noncompletion of school among minority youth remains an area of intense study, especially given the growing numbers of school dropouts among Mexican American youth. Much of the research to date has focused on the demographic variables of ethnicity and socioeconomic status rather than on the interactions between individuals and environments. The interplay between the personal attributes of the student, family, peers, school, and society are considered to be the most important factors contributing to high school completion. However, a systematic framework has not often been used to facilitate the organization and integration of these variables. This article uses an ecological model to examine the different factors that impact school completion for Mexican American students. Suggestions for prevention and intervention within each of the concentric levels of this model are offered to effect positive educational outcomes for all children.     

Resilience Model Among Individuals with Learning Disabilities: Proximal and Distal Influences

Development may be conceptualized as a process of repeated resilient reintegration, and resilience research is expected to identify the complex transactions and processes among internal and external (risk and protective) factors involved in that process. Through presenting a critical review of related research, Wong's article demonstrates the ability of youngsters with learning disabilities (LD) to challenge their difficulties. Wong's perspective helps clarify current conceptual inconsistencies and provides constructive directions for future inquiries in LD resilience research. The present commentary emphasizes two mediating factors within the third wave of resilience research: the critical role of emotions as inner sources of energy and the importance of reciprocity in relations with both adults and peers.     

The Influence of Additional Educational Support on Poverty-Stricken Adolescents’ Resilience and Academic Performance

Abstract

Resilience can be viewed as successful adaptation despite challenging or threatening circumstances (e.g. poverty). This article reports on an investigation of which the primary aim was to establish how additional educational support enhances adolescents’ resilience and academic performance. A quantitative approach was followed using two schools. One was a poverty-stricken school where additional educational support was officially offered, while the other school offered normal required tuition and was located in a middle class suburb. In total, 117 Grade 9 and 10 learners participated in the research. The results indicated that resilience related positively to academic performance and to other factors which are associated with academic performance such as teacher-learner relationships, parental involvement and study methods. Additional educational support to poverty-stricken learners resulted in higher resilience and academic achievement. Amongst the variables used in the investigation, additional educational support explained the largest proportion of the variance in academic achievement, followed by resilience and cognitive development.     

Perceptions of Pubertal Timing and Discrimination Among African American and Caribbean Black Girls

This study used a nationally representative sample of African American and Caribbean Black adolescent females to examine the relation between perceived pubertal timing relative to peers and discriminatory experiences. Participants included the 607 girls who participated in the National Survey of American Life-Adolescent (NSAL-A), and ranged in age from 13 to 17. Most African American girls perceived their development as on-time relative to their same-aged peers; whereas the majority of Caribbean Black girls perceived their development as earlier than their same-aged peers. The results indicated that girls who perceived that their pubertal development was earlier than their same-aged peers reported more general and racial discrimination experiences.     

Parenting and Children's Behavior at 36 Months: Equivalence Between African American and European American Mother - Child Dyads

Objective. This study examines the similarity of parenting and the associations between maternal behavior and child problem and prosocial behavior across two racial groups. Design. Using data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care (SECC), analyses included an examination of the comparability of maternal and child behavior between African American (n = 123) and European American (n = 953) families using multiple-group mean and covariance structures analysis (MACS). Observational data from two mother - child activities and maternal report of child behavior were used to construct three parenting and four child latent constructs. Results. Comparable measures of parenting (Responsive, Harsh, and Intrusive), child problem behavior (Externalizing and Internalizing), and child prosocial behavior (Compliance and Expressiveness) were found using partial invariance methods across racial groups. The associations between harsh, intrusive and responsive parenting and child behaviors were found to be similar across racial groups. Conclusions. Generality in the organization of parenting and similarity in their association to child behavior obtain across racial groups.     

Discrimination and Ethnic-Racial Socialization Among Youth Adopted From South Korea Into White American Families

The current study examined how discrimination relates to adjustment outcomes in a sample of internationally, transracially adopted Korean Americans from the Minnesota Sibling Interaction and Behavior Study (N = 456 adoptees; M_age at T1 = 14.9, M_age at T2 = 18.3, M_age at T3 = 22.3). The moderating roles of ethnic socialization and preparation for bias by parents (i.e., ethnic-racial socialization) were also examined. Results indicated that discrimination predicted higher levels of depressive and externalizing symptoms in youth who reported less preparation for bias. In those experiencing more preparation for bias, associations were not significantly different from zero. Ethnic socialization did not moderate these associations. Such findings provide important information for adoptive parents regarding how to prepare their children to cope with discrimination.     

Perceived Discrimination Among African American Adolescents and Allostatic Load: A Longitudinal Analysis With Buffering Effects

This study was designed to examine the prospective relations of perceived racial discrimination with allostatic load (AL), along with a possible buffer of the association. A sample of 331 African Americans in the rural South provided assessments of perceived discrimination from ages 16 to 18 years. When youth were 18 years, caregivers reported parental emotional support and youth assessed peer emotional support. AL and potential confounder variables were assessed when youth were 20. Latent growth mixture modeling identified two perceived discrimination classes: high and stable, and low and increasing. Adolescents in the high and stable class evinced heightened AL even with confounder variables controlled. The racial discrimination to AL link was not significant for young adults who received high emotional support.