Racial/Ethnic Differences in Emotional Health: A Longitudinal Study of Immigrants' Adolescent Children.

First, discrimination was conceptualized as a major source of stress for immigrants' adolescent children. Next, such children's emotional health (indicated by measures of self-esteem and depression) was examined for possible associations with discrimination, psychosocial supports, and social structure; additionally, race/ethnicity's possible moderating role in such associations was evaluated. Data from the first 2 waves of the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (1991-2006) were employed, focusing on 3 groups: Asians, Hispanics, and Whites. Linear regression analyses were used to weigh how discrimination, psychosocial supports, and social structure measured at Wave 1 and Wave 2 related to self-esteem and depression measured at Wave 2. Asians exhibited the highest level of depression and were most likely to perceive discrimination; Asians' self-esteem was also low, compared to other groups'. Discrimination and psychosocial supports appeared to operate differentially in explaining the 3 groups' emotional health.

Evidence for Site-Specific, Systematic Adaptation of Substance Prevention Curriculum With High Risk Youth in Community and Alternative School Settings.

The problem of substance use among older youth is of great concern, but has received little attention in prevention research. This may be due to the perception that prevention programming is developmentally inappropriate for older youth who are actively experimenting with substances. This project examined the differential effectiveness of youth-driven adaptations of the evidence-based prevention program, keepin' it REAL (KiR). The participating sites included a juvenile justice day program, a homeless shelter, four alternative high schools, low-income housing programs, an LGBTQ youth center, and a youth group on the Texas-Mexico border. In the project's first phase, high risk youth in community settings tailored KiR workbooks and videos to increase the relevance for their peers, older adolescents who are likely to have already initiated drug use. The second phase of the study, discussed here in detail, evaluates the effectiveness of the adapted versions of KiR compared with the original version and a comparison condition. The study employed a quasi-experimental pretest posttest design with a 6-week follow-up. Youth also participated in focus groups. Both qualitative and quantitative data suggest that participants receiving the adapted version of the curriculum experienced greater improvement in acceptance and use of substances than youth in the other two groups.

The Effectiveness of Adapted Versions of an Evidence-based Prevention Program in Reducing Alcohol Use among Alternative School Students.

Although there is a strong evidence base for effective substance abuse prevention programs for youth, there is a need to facilitate the implementation and evaluation of these programs in real world settings. This study evaluates the effectiveness of adapted versions of an evidence-based prevention program, keepin' it REAL (kiR), with alternative school students. Programs are often adapted when used in schools and other community settings for a variety of reasons. The kiR adaptations, developed during an earlier phase of this study, were created to make the curriculum more appropriate for alternative high school youth. The adaptations were evaluated using a quasi-experimental design in which questionnaires were administered at pretest, posttest, and follow-up, and focus groups were conducted at posttest. MANOVA analyses indicate significantly reduced intentions to accept alcohol and, for younger participants, reduced alcohol use. Focus group data support the need for age appropriate prevention content. The authors discuss implications for practitioners implementing prevention programs in schools.

Methodology for Evaluating an Adaptation of Evidence-Based Drug Abuse Prevention in Alternative Schools.

The purpose of this article is to set forth an innovative methodological protocol for culturally grounding interventions with high risk youth in alternative schools. This study utilized mixed methods to evaluate original and adapted versions of a culturally grounded substance abuse prevention program. The qualitative and quantitative methods concurrently explore behaviors around drugs and alcohol, contextual variables for youth substance abuse and related factors, cultural perspectives regarding drug-related attitudes and behaviors, and the complex reasons behind students' substance use choices. While questionnaires are utilized to note demographics, cultural and acculturative variables, drug use, drug and alcohol attitudes and expectancies, and school culture variables, focus groups capture the voices of the students and staff and trends that cannot be fully understood via questionnaires. In this study, focus groups aid in the understanding of student drug and alcohol choices, attitudes and behaviors and help the researchers hone in on questions and necessary changes to future research procedures.