Exploring the associations between discrimination, coping, skin tone, and the psychosocial health of young adults of color.

Although valuable strides have been made in linking racial and ethnic discrimination to health outcomes, scholars have primarily used between-person methodological approaches, which assess the implications of reporting high or low mean levels of discrimination. Alternatively, within-person approaches assess the implications of intraindividual variation, or acute changes, in an individual's exposure to discrimination. These approaches pose two fundamentally different questions about the association between discrimination and health, and empirical work that disaggregates these effects remains scarce. Scholars have also called for research exploring whether sociocultural factors-such as race-related coping and skin tone-contour these associations. To address gaps in extant literature, the current study examined 1) how an individual's average level of exposure to discrimination (between-person) and weekly fluctuations in these encounters (within-person) relate to psychosocial health and 2) whether race-related coping (confrontational and passive coping) and skin tone moderate these associations. Analyses were conducted using weekly diary data from African American and Latinx young adults (n = 140). Findings indicated that reporting higher mean levels of exposure to discrimination and encountering more discrimination than usual on a given week were both associated with poorer psychosocial health. Results also suggest that the efficacy of young adults' coping mechanisms may depend on their skin tone and the nature of the discriminatory events encountered.

Coping with Ethnic-racial Discrimination: Short-term Longitudinal Relations Among Black and Latinx College Students.

Little is known about how Black and Latinx young adults cope with experiences of ethnic-racial discrimination, particularly over short periods of time. A multigroup path model examined the relations between discrimination and five strategies for coping with ethnic-racial discrimination (talking with others, being proud, working hard, being rude, and ignoring) among Black and Latinx young adults (N = 145) at two time points over a six-week period. Experiences of discrimination were positively associated with the coping strategies of being proud of oneself and working hard to prove discriminatory people wrong. There was moderate stability in coping strategy use over time. Models did not vary by race-ethnicity, suggesting discrimination related to coping in similar ways among Black and Latinx young adults.

Within-person associations between racial microaggressions and sleep among African American and Latinx young adults.

Emerging work suggests that experiences of racial discrimination may impact overall sleep health; however, there is limited work on the link between racial microaggressions and sleep. Using weekly diary data, the current study examined young adults' weekly reports of racial microaggressions across 4 weeks, and their relation to weekly reports of sleep-onset latency, reduced total sleep time and poorer sleep quality. This design allowed us to examine how within-person fluctuations in racial microaggressions corresponded with young adults' sleep. Data were collected among 140 African American (62.1%) and Latinx (37.9%) college students attending a Midwestern University. Students were randomly selected to participate; they were, on average, 20.70 years old (SD = 1.22) and the majority were female (69.3%). Participants self-reported their racial microaggressions and sleep behaviours (i.e. sleep-onset latency, total sleep time and sleep quality) each week (across 4 weeks). Multilevel modelling showed significant within-person effects of racial microaggressions for sleep onset and sleep quality, but not for total sleep duration. Specifically, on weeks that individuals reported increases in racial microaggressions, they reported greater sleep-onset duration and poorer sleep quality. The current findings provide preliminary evidence that racial microaggressions are associated with sleep-onset durations and sleep quality among African American and Latinx young adults. Although racial microaggressions are often considered subtle, they may impact the sleep health of young adults in marginalized groups.

Sexual Behaviors and Health Practices Among Student Service Members and Veterans.

The purpose of the study was to determine whether veteran students and non-veteran students differed in their sexual behaviors and health practices and, furthermore, whether or not those differences were gender specific. Demographic characteristics of the study sample were explored by calculating frequencies and percentages by military service status. Research questions were explored with maximum likelihood multiple logistic regression. Results showed that student veterans were more likely than non-veteran students to have sex with multiple partners, with males and transgender students more likely than females to report multiple sexual partners. Student veterans were more likely than non-veterans to perform a self-examination for either breast cancer or testicular cancer, with transgender students more likely than females to report having engaged in a self-examination. Student veterans were also more likely than non-veterans to have been vaccinated against HPV or Hepatitis B, with male students more likely than females to have been vaccinated. Furthermore, transgender student veterans were less likely than female veterans to have been vaccinated. Finally, male student veterans were more likely than female veterans to report an STI-related doctor visit, with transgender student veterans more likely than female veterans to report an STI-related doctor visit. College campuses are increasingly implementing student veteran-specific programs and services; however, little if any research specifically has explored ways in which safety and health can be promoted within university settings. We recommend that institutions of higher education make concerted efforts to promote safety and health among its student veteran population.

Correction to: Sexual Behaviors and Health Practices Among Student Service Members and Veterans.

Please note that the middle initial of coauthor Antoinette M. Landor was given incorrectly (as "A.") in this article as originally published.

Prevalence of High-Risk Sexual Behaviors Among Monoracial and Multiracial Groups from a National Sample: Are Multiracial Young Adults at Greater Risk?

The present study compared the prevalence and variation in high-risk sexual behaviors among four monoracial (i.e., White, African American, Asian, Native American) and four multiracial (i.e., White/African American, White/Asian, White/Native American, African American/Native American) young adults using Wave IV data (2008-2009) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 9724). Findings indicated differences in the sexual behavior of monoracial and multiracial young adults, but directions of differences varied depending on the monoracial group used as the referent and gender. Among males, White/African Americans had higher risk than Whites; White/Native Americans had higher risk than Native Americans. Otherwise, multiracial groups had lower risk or did not differ from the single-race groups. Among females, White/Native Americans had higher risk than Whites; White/African Americans had higher risk than African Americans. Other comparisons showed no differences or had lower risk among multiracial groups. Variations in high-risk sexual behaviors underscore the need for health research to disaggregate multiracial groups to better understand health behaviors and outcomes in the context of experiences associated with a multiracial background, and to improve prevention strategies.

The Enduring Significance of Skin Tone: Linking Skin Tone, Attitudes Toward Marriage and Cohabitation, and Sexual Behavior.

Past evidence has documented that attitudes toward marriage and cohabitation are related to sexual behavior in adolescence and young adulthood. This study extends prior research by longitudinally testing these associations across racial/ethnic groups and investigating whether culturally relevant variations within racial/ethnic minority groups, such as skin tone (i.e., lightness/darkness of skin color), are linked to attitudes toward marriage and cohabitation and sex. Drawing on family and public health literatures and theories, as well as burgeoning skin tone literature, it was hypothesized that more positive attitudes toward marriage and negative attitudes toward cohabitation would be associated with less risky sex, and that links differed for lighter and darker skin individuals. The sample included 6872 respondents (49.6 % female; 70.0 % White; 15.8 % African American; 3.3 % Asian; 10.9 % Hispanic) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. The results revealed that marital attitudes had a significantly stronger dampening effect on risky sexual behavior of lighter skin African Americans and Asians compared with their darker skin counterparts. Skin tone also directly predicted number of partners and concurrent partners among African American males and Asian females. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of these findings for adolescence and young adulthood.

Latinx youth's and parents' covid-19 beliefs, vaccine hesitancy and vaccination rates: Longitudinal associations in a community sample.

INTRODUCTION: The Latinx population has the second highest COVID-19 death rate among racial/ethnic groups in the United States and less than half of Latinx youth aged 5-17 years old completed their COVID-19 primary vaccination series as of September 2022. COVID-19 vaccine misinformation detrimentally impacts vaccination rates. In this study, we examined factors that predicted Latinx youth COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccination status. METHODS: A community-based sample of 290 Latinx parent and adolescent dyads from a Southwestern metropolitan area of the United States who were recruited to complete an online survey at baseline at T1 (August 2020 -March 2021) and one year later. We tested a longitudinal mediation model in which we examined individual and family factors that would predict youth COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccination status over time. RESULTS: Youth's pandemic disbelief (i.e., the belief that the COVID-19 pandemic is a conspiracy or not real) predicted greater youth's COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, and in turn, a lower likelihood of youth's COVID-19 vaccination. Youth's pandemic disbelief also predicted greater parent's vaccination hesitancy which, in turn, predicted greater youth's vaccination hesitancy and a lower likelihood of COVID-19 vaccination. Parents' pandemic disbelief predicted their own COVID-19 hesitancy, but not youth hesitancy. DISCUSSION: Our study findings provide initial evidence that general pandemic disbelief was a significant driver of vaccine hesitancy and vaccination among Latinx families. The study contributes to the limited research investigating COVID-19 vaccination in the Latinx community and among Latinx youth, further aiding how COVID-19 vaccine disparities can be mitigated among racial/ethnic populations.

The Sociostructural-Intersectional Body Image (SIBI) framework: Understanding the impact of white supremacy in body image research and practice.

White supremacy and racial inequities have long pervaded psychological research, including body image scholarship and practice. The experiences of white, heterosexual, able-bodied, cisgender (predominantly college) women from wealthy, Westernized nations have been centered throughout body image research and practice, thereby perpetuating myths of invulnerability among racialized groups and casting white ideals and experiences as the standard by which marginalized bodies are compared. Body image is shaped by multiple axes of oppression that exist within systemic and structural systems, ultimately privileging certain bodies above others. In this position paper, we highlight how white supremacy has shaped body image research and practice. In doing so, we first review the history of body image research and explain how participant sampling, measurement, interpretive frameworks, and dissemination of research have upheld and reinforced white supremacy. Next, grounded in inclusivity and intersectionality, we advance the Sociostructural-Intersectional Body Image (SIBI) framework to more fully understand the body image experiences of those with racialized and minoritized bodies, while challenging and seeking to upend white supremacy in body image research and practice. We encourage other scholars to utilize the SIBI framework to better understand body inequities and the body image experiences of all people, in all bodies.

Does ethnic-racial socialization matter? A within-person analysis of racial discrimination and sleep health among Black and Latinx emerging adults.

OBJECTIVES: Emerging work suggests that racism-related stressors may contribute to adverse sleep health, yet little is known about how culturally relevant resources may influence the relationship between racism-related stressors and adverse sleep health. The aim of this study was to examine associations between weekly reports of racial hassles and young adults' sleep health (i.e., sleep onset latency, total sleep time, sleep quality) and to determine whether various forms of parental ethnic-racial socialization would moderate these associations. METHODS: Participants were 141 college students (Mage = 20.7 years, standard deviation (SD) = 1.22, 70% female) who identified as either Black (n = 88; 62.4%) or Latinx (n = 53; 37.6%). Participants completed an initial 1.5-hour assessment in the laboratory and 4 weekly sleep diary surveys (assessed sleep health and depressive symptoms). RESULTS: Weekly racial hassles are related to greater sleep onset latency, decreased total sleep time, and poorer sleep quality. The promotion of mistrust and cultural socialization significantly moderated associations between weekly racial hassles and sleep onset latency and total sleep time, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide supportive evidence that parental ethnic-racial socialization practices, a preemptive cultural resource, may be an understudied mechanism in sleep health research. Future research is needed to clarify the role of parental ethnic-racial socialization in promoting sleep health equity among youth and young adults.

Skin-Tone Trauma: Historical and Contemporary Influences on the Health and Interpersonal Outcomes of African Americans.

Empirical evidence demonstrates that racism is a source of traumatic stress for racial/ethnic minorities, particularly African Americans. Like race and racism, skin tone and experiences of colorism-an often overlooked form of discrimination that privileges lighter skinned over darker skinned individuals, although not uniformly, may also result in traumatic stress. This article proposes a new conceptual model of skin-tone trauma. The model depicts how historical and contemporary underpinnings of colorism lead to colorist incidents that may directly and indirectly, by eliciting traumatic stress reactions, lead to negative effects on the health and interpersonal relationships of African Americans. Key tenets of critical race and intersectionality theories are used to highlight the complexities of skin-tone trauma as a result of intersectional identities on the basis of existing social hierarchies. Last, we present suggestions for researchers, as well as recommendations and strategies for practitioners, to unmask "skin-tone wounds" and promote healing for individuals, families, and communities that suffer from skin-tone trauma. Skin-tone trauma should be acknowledged by researchers, scholars, and practitioners to better understand and assess the widespread scope of trauma in the African American community.

"On a Journey to Appreciate What My Body Does for Me": Qualitative Results from a Positive Body Image Pilot Intervention Study.

Research suggests body appreciation is related to mental, physical, and sexual health behaviors and outcomes that are relevant to social workers and public health clinicians. As such, it is imperative to develop and test interventions that aim to improve body appreciation. The current study is part of a larger pilot intervention study that utilized 3D scanning technology. During the intervention, 18-25-year-old women digitally "painted" their avatar on a computer based on a series of prompts from the researcher. The purpose of this study is to qualitatively explore how a small subsample of the participants (n = 18) experienced this innovative intervention and how they view themselves differently post-intervention. Using thematic analysis, we uncovered three themes: 1) ways of defining body image, 2) importance of body function over aesthetics, and 3) body acceptance and appreciation. This study provides support for the use of one-time individual-level interventions focused on body appreciation and functionality over appearance. Implications are discussed.

Microaggressions and Diurnal Cortisol: Examining Within-Person Associations Among African-American and Latino Young Adults.

PURPOSE: We examined the relations between African-American and Latino young adults' microaggressions and subsequent changes in weekly diurnal cortisol parameters (i.e., cortisol awakening responses, overall cortisol output (AUC), and diurnal slopes). METHODS: Young adults (N = 53, Mage = 20years, SD = .90; 72% female) participated in a 4-week diary study in which they reported their weekly experiences of microaggressions and completed 2 days ofsaliva samples each week. Saliva samples were obtained at waking, 30-minutes after waking, and bedtime on each sampling day (six samples each week; 24 samples total). In line with an idiographic approach to stress, young adults' increases and decreases in microaggressions (relative to their own average) were linked to changes in cortisol parameters the following week. RESULTS: Increases in microaggressions predicted greater AUC the subsequent week, controlling for gender, race, parental education, prior week's AUC, and weekly behavioral controls. Follow-up analyses of specific types of microaggressions indicated that experiences centered around criminality and second-class citizenship also related to increases in young adults' cortisol awakening responses the subsequent week. Microaggressions were unrelated to changes in diurnal slopes. CONCLUSIONS: Microaggressions were linked to subsequent changes in diurnal cortisol among African-American and Latino young adults. Given the rigorous within-person design, findings point to the importance and impact of subtle forms of discrimination on young adults' hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, which is theorized to underlie health and well-being.

Why Virginity Pledges Succeed or Fail: The Moderating Effect of Religious Commitment Versus Religious Participation.

Over the past two decades, virginity pledges have proliferated in the US, despite mixed results regarding their effectiveness. Few studies have examined possible mechanisms that may shed light on why pledges work for some individuals but not others. Using a sample of emerging-adults aged 18-24 years old (n = 1,380),we examine the influence of religiosity on pledge signing and adherence, specifically whether the effectiveness of pledges is moderated by religiosity. Findings show that while religious participation is positively associated with signing a pledge, there is amoderating effect of religious commitment. That is, when religious commitment is high, adherence to the pledge is greater. However, for pledge signers with low religious commitment, there are unintended negative consequences with regard to increased participation in risky sexual behaviors, whether compared to other people who signed the pledge who are equally committed to their religion or to individuals who have never taken such a pledge. Implications for research and policy are discussed.

Factors linking childhood experiences to adult romantic relationships among African Americans.

It is well known that a high-quality relationship with a romantic partner is related to a variety of positive outcomes associated with health and well-being. Establishing such relationships is an important developmental task for young adults, and past research indicates that there is a link between experiences in the family of origin and the success of later intimate relationships. It has been suggested that this association can be explained by the acquisition of social competencies (e.g., emotions, schemas, traits) that are acquired during childhood in the family of origin and, in turn, influence interaction with adult romantic partners. The current study builds on this foundation by identifying particular competencies expected to explain the association between childhood exposure to supportive and harsh parenting and later patterns of interaction with romantic partners. Specifically, we examine anger management, attachment style, hostile attribution bias, and self-control as potential mediators using prospective, longitudinal data from a sample of 345 African American young adults. Results from structural equation modeling indicate that each of the mediators in our study accounts for a significant portion of the effect of parenting on the quality of adult romantic relationships, although the constructs linking parenting to warm interactions with romantic partners are somewhat different from those that link parenting to hostile interactions with romantic partners. Even after accounting for the effect of the mediators, there is still a direct effect of parenting on both warm/loving and hostile/aggressive interactions with romantic partner. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Married Black Men's Opinions as to Why Black Women Are Disproportionately Single: A Qualitative Study.

This study's purpose was to explore the reasons Black women are disproportionately single according to the unique viewpoint of married Black men. The sample comprised 52 married Black men who resided in northeast Georgia (mean age = 43). Qualitative interviews were conducted in 2010 as part of the Pathways to Marriage study. The authors analyzed the data in a collaborative fashion and utilized content analyses to explore the relationships in the data which were derived from qualitative interviews with the men. Findings on the reasons for the disproportionality of singlehood among Black women reflected these four themes: gender relations, marriage education and socialization, individual development, and a preference for gay/lesbian relationships. Recommendations for future research are discussed.

Exploring the impact of skin tone on family dynamics and race-related outcomes.

Racism has historically been a primary source of discrimination against African Americans, but there has been little research on the role that skin tone plays in explaining experiences with racism. Similarly, colorism within African American families and the ways in which skin tone influences family processes is an understudied area of research. Using data from a longitudinal sample of African American families (n = 767), we assessed whether skin tone impacted experiences with discrimination or was related to differences in quality of parenting and racial socialization within families. Findings indicated no link between skin tone and racial discrimination, which suggests that lightness or darkness of skin does not either protect African Americans from or exacerbate the experiences of discrimination. On the other hand, families displayed preferential treatment toward offspring based on skin tone, and these differences varied by gender of child. Specifically, darker skin sons received higher quality parenting and more racial socialization promoting mistrust compared to their counterparts with lighter skin. Lighter skin daughters received higher quality parenting compared with those with darker skin. In addition, gender of child moderated the association between primary caregiver skin tone and racial socialization promoting mistrust. These results suggest that colorism remains a salient issue within African American families. Implications for future research, prevention, and intervention are discussed.