The COVID-19 pandemic and adolescents' and young adults' experiences at school: A systematic narrative review.

The COVID-19 pandemic upended the lives of adolescents and young adults across the globe. In response to the pandemic onset, educational institutions were forced to pivot to online learning, a new teaching and learning format for most secondary and university students. This systematic narrative review summarizes findings from 168 publications spanning 56 countries on students' educational outcomes and school climate as well as the internal assets and contextual supports that promoted academic well-being during the pandemic. Our findings suggest that young people commonly reported declines in their academic-related outcomes and school-based relationships due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Internal assets (e.g., intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy) and contextual supports (i.e., relationships with teachers, peers, and parents) promoted academic well-being during the pandemic. Next steps for research on young people's academic well-being during the pandemic are suggested.

"Some people will tell jokes to you; some people be racist:" A mixed-method examination of racist jokes and adolescents' well-being.

This study examined how adolescents make meaning of racist jokes and their impact on daily well-being using a sequential mixed-methods research design with interview (N = 20; 60% girls, 5% gender-nonconforming; 45% Asian American, 40% Latina/o/x, 10% Black, 5% biracial/multiethnic) and daily diary data (N = 168; 54% girls; 57% Latina/o/x, 21% biracial/multiethnic, 10% Asian American, 9% White, 4% Black). Qualitative results revealed that racist jokes were common, distinct from other overt forms of discrimination, and perceived as harmless when perpetrated by friends. Quantitatively, approximately half of adolescents reported hearing at least one racist joke during the study period, and racist jokes by friends were associated with higher daily angry, anxious, and depressed moods and stress. Racist jokes by known others and strangers were also significantly associated with poorer well-being, although less consistently. Findings highlight the hidden harmful effects of racist jokes on adolescents' daily mood and stress.

Structural racism in primary schools and changes in epigenetic age acceleration among Black and White youth.

Structural racism generates racial inequities in U.S. primary education, including segregated schools, inequitable funding and resources, racial disparities in discipline and achievement, and hostile racial climates, which are risk factors for adverse youth health and development. Black youth are disproportionately exposed to adverse school contexts that may become biologically embedded via stress-mediated epigenetic pathways. This study examined whether childhood exposure to adverse school contexts is associated with changes in epigenetic aging during adolescent development. DNA methylation-based epigenetic clocks were calculated from saliva samples at ages 9 and 15 among Black (n = 774) and White (n = 287) youth in the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (2009-2015). We performed latent class analyses to identify race-specific primary school contexts using administrative data on segregation, discipline, achievement, resources, economic disadvantage, and racial harassment. We then estimated change in epigenetic age acceleration from childhood to adolescence across school typologies using GrimAge, PhenoAge, and DunedinPACE epigenetic clocks. Three distinct school contexts were identified for Black youth: segregated and highly-disadvantaged (17.0%), segregated and moderately-disadvantaged (52.1%), and integrated and moderately-disadvantaged (30.8%). Two school contexts emerged for White youth: integrated and unequal (46.5%) and predominantly White & advantaged (53.5%). At age 15, Black youth who attended segregated and highly-disadvantaged primary schools experienced increases in their speed of epigenetic aging with GrimAge and DunedinPACE. Slowed epigenetic aging with GrimAge was observed for Black youth who attended integrated and moderately-disadvantaged schools. School contexts were not associated with changes in epigenetic age acceleration for White youth. Our findings suggest that manifestations of structural racism in primary school contexts are associated with early-life epigenetic age acceleration and may forecast future health inequities.

Shifting and Persisting in the Face of Life Stressors: Consequences for Adolescent Health.

The current study assessed whether greater use of shift-and persist strategies, which entail the reappraisal of stressors (shifting) and endurance through optimism and meaning-making, buffered the associations between life stressors and adolescents' psychological health (i.e., depressive symptoms, anxiety) and physical health and health behaviors (i.e., self-rated health, sleep quality). Survey data were drawn from a racially/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse sample of 750 9th grade adolescents (53% female). Path analysis revealed racial discrimination, neighborhood risk, and deportation exposure were linked to poorer psychological and physical health, while socioeconomic disadvantage was related to greater anxiety and poorer physical health. Some evidence suggested that shift-and-persist may be protective-reactive, wherein shift-and-persist typically promoted well-being across health domains but more so when the life stressors were at low versus high levels. Shift-and-persist strategies promote both mental and physical health, but the promotive effects appear to be maximized when adolescents' exposure to life stressors is minimal.

Relationships between sleep duration and health among U.S. adults with a history of household incarceration during childhood.

The rate of incarceration in the United States has increased at an alarming rate in the past 30 years and thus so has the number of children having a household member incarcerated (referred to as household incarceration). Associations between experiencing household incarceration in childhood and later negative health and developmental outcomes are well-documented; however, the underlying mechanisms linking this childhood stressor and adult outcomes have been less well studied. Using state Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey data (N = 145,102), this study examines how experiencing household incarceration during childhood is associated with mental and physical health in adulthood and mediational pathways through suboptimal sleep (short or long sleep). Results indicate there were significant indirect effects of household incarceration to physical and mental distress through short sleep (≤ 6 hr per 24 hr) and long sleep (≥ 10 hr per 24 hr), and a significant indirect effect of household incarceration to body mass index through short sleep. Findings from the present study highlight indirect pathways through which household incarceration in childhood is linked with sleep health in adulthood and, in turn, to negative mental and physical health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Peer-based discrimination and adolescent emotional and sleep health: A daily examination of direct and buffering associations.

Using 10-day daily diary data collected in 2019 from 10th grade students in southern U.S. (N = 161, 57% Latina/x/o, 21% Biracial, 10% Asian, 9% White, 4% Black; 55% female, Mage = 15.51), this study examined various forms of peer-based discrimination in adolescents' everyday lives. Results showed that personally experienced discrimination, peer racial teasing, and vicarious discrimination were frequent and impactful events. Results also provided strong evidence for the protective role of psychological resilience and some evidence for the protective-reactive roles of peer support and school climate in moderating the link between peer-based discrimination and daily well-being. The findings highlight the necessity to eliminate peer-based discrimination and shed light on interventions to reduce the harmful effects of peer-based discrimination on adolescents' daily well-being.

Short-term cortisol adaption to discrimination and Mexican-origin adolescents' mental and sleep health.

Discrimination experiences are a salient contributor to the health disparities facing Latina/x/o youth. The biopsychosocial model of minority health posits that discrimination influences health through wear and tear on the biological stress responses, including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which is a primary stress response system in the body. Emerging evidence suggests that discrimination alters the secretion of cortisol, the end product of the HPA axis, yet, whether the daily processes between discrimination and diurnal cortisol response influence mental and sleep health remains unanswered. This study integrated daily diary and post-diary survey data to examine whether daily diurnal cortisol responses to discrimination influence adolescents' mental (depressive symptoms, anxiety) and sleep (sleep quality, duration) health in a sample of Mexican-origin youth (N = 282; M age = 17.10; 55% female). Results showed that adolescents who experienced more discrimination across the four-day diary period exhibited steeper diurnal cortisol slopes and lower evening cortisol; however, such physiological responses tended to be associated with poorer adolescents' mental and sleep health. The current study underscores the potential adaptation cost associated with short-term cortisol adaptation in the face of discrimination.

Impact of Fatigue and Its Influencing Factors on Diabetes Self-Management in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis.

PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were to (1) examine the relationships between fatigue, its influencing factors, and diabetes self-management and (2) test the mediation effects of fatigue on the link between the influencing factors and diabetes self-management in adults with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: This cross-sectional, correlational study was guided by the theory of unpleasant symptoms. Data were collected using structured questionnaires. Fatigue was measured by the Fatigue Symptom Inventory and the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory. Diabetes self-management was measured by the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities. From March to July 2021, a convenience sample of 150 participants was recruited from 2 diabetes outpatient clinics of a regional hospital in Taiwan. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: A more recent diagnosis of diabetes, more depressive symptoms, and lower sleep quality were related to higher fatigue. Higher fatigue correlated with less performance in diabetes self-management. Fatigue mediated the relationship between depressive symptoms, sleep quality, and diabetes self-management. CONCLUSIONS: Fatigue had a mediating effect on the link between psychological influencing factors and diabetes self-management. Future development of fatigue interventions integrating depressive symptoms and sleep management will likely increase the performance of diabetes self-management and improve the health outcomes in adults with type 2 diabetes. The study tested the theory of unpleasant symptoms using empirical data and will assist in building theory-guided fatigue interventions to improve diabetes self-management in people with type 2 diabetes.

Ethnic Discrimination and Self-rated Health among Hispanic Emerging Adults: Examining the Moderating Effects of Self-esteem and Resilience.

Exposure to ethnic discrimination has been conceptualized as a sociocultural stressor that is associated with lower self-rated health. However, this association remains understudied among Hispanics and less is known about constructs that may mitigate the effects of ethnic discrimination on self-rated health. Accordingly, this study aimed to (a) examine the association between ethnic discrimination and self-rated health among Hispanic emerging adults (ages 18-25), and (b) examine the extent to which self-esteem and resilience may moderate this association. A convenience sample of 200 Hispanic emerging adults from Arizona (n=99) and Florida (n=101) was recruited to complete a cross-sectional survey. Data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression and moderation analyses. Results indicate that higher ethnic discrimination was associated with lower self-rated health. Moderation analyses indicated that self-esteem functioned as a moderator that weakened the association between ethnic discrimination and self-rated health; however, resilience did not function similarly as a moderator. This study adds to the limited literature on ethnic discrimination and self-rated health among Hispanics and highlights that psychological factors, such as enhancing self-esteem, may help buffer the adverse effects of ethnic discrimination on health outcomes.

The racialized landscape of COVID-19:Reverberations for minority adolescents and families in the U.S.

COVID-19 has caused unprecedented disruptions to American society, yet the ramifications have exhibited a pronounced impact for racial/ethnic minority adolescents and their families. Alongside upheavals to social and learning environments, minoritized youth have navigated disproportionate health and socioeconomic challenges within their families in addition to amplified racial tensions. As a result, the pandemic has disparately impacted racial/ethnic minorities. In this review, we synthesize studies of the pandemic to describe the hardships faced by racial/ethnic minority families and adolescents, their reverberation on dimensions of well-being, and the assets which buttress their welfare in the midst of COVID-19. It is imperative that future pandemic response efforts aid the most vulnerable, particularly communities of color, to ensure equitable welfare and post-pandemic recovery.

COVID-19 Anti-Chinese Discrimination, Current Pandemic Stress, And Adolescents' Mental Health.

The current study investigated adolescents' experiences of COVID-19 anti-Chinese discrimination (i.e., vicariously witnessed, directly experienced), the consequences for mental health, and the moderating role of general pandemic stress. During Summer 2020, 106 adolescents (43% Latino/a/x, 19% Asian American, 13% Black/African American, 26% biracial/multiracial/other; 58% female) participated in a 14-day daily diary study. Path analyses revealed that more experiences of vicarious COVID-19 anti-Chinese discrimination were associated with greater anxious mood, depressed mood, and mental health stress, while direct COVID-19 anti-Chinese discrimination was unrelated to mental health outcomes. The interaction between vicarious COVID-19 anti-Chinese discrimination and general COVID-19 stress was significant for depressed mood; simple slope analyses showed that for adolescents reporting high levels of COVID-19 stress, more frequent experiences of vicarious COVID-19 anti-Chinese discrimination were associated with greater severity in depressed mood, but this link was nonsignificant for those reporting low levels of general pandemic stress. Findings from the current study underscore the pernicious effects of vicarious COVID-19 anti-Chinese discrimination on the mental health of minoritized youth beyond solely Asian Americans. Additionally, the results evince the need for future pandemic-response efforts to craft public health messaging that avoids the racialization of disease and subsequent stigmatization of ethnic-minority communities.

Real and assumed sexual minority status: Longitudinal associations with depressive symptoms.

Sexual minority status persists in being linked to poorer adolescent mental health. Using a longitudinal sample (N = 845), we examined how youth's own same-gender attraction and their perceptions of peers' beliefs about their same-gender attraction (i.e., assumed attraction) were associated with trajectories of depressive symptoms from grade eight (when students are typically 13-14 years old) to grade 10. Reporting either same-gender attraction, assumed same-gender attraction or both were associated with higher initial levels of depressive symptoms that persisted over time compared to youth with real and assumed other-gender attraction only. These links were partially mediated by experiences of discrimination. Findings suggest the importance of understanding adolescent perceptions of peer beliefs in the association between same-gender attraction and depressive symptoms.

Psychological Resources as a Buffer Between Racial/Ethnic and SES-based Discrimination and Adolescents' Academic Well-being.

While the detrimental consequences of racial/ethnic discrimination for adolescent well-being are well-established, less is known about the impact of SES-based discrimination and the potential protective benefits of adolescents' intraindividual assets. The current study addressed these gaps by investigating the longitudinal associations between racial/ethnic and SES-based educator-perpetrated discrimination and adolescents' academic well-being and assessed whether psychological resources moderated these pathways. To do so, the study used longitudinal data from a diverse sample of 750 9th grade students (54% female; 41% White, 34% Latina/o/x, 8% Asian American, 6% African American, 11% biracial/other race/ethnicity; 43% had parents with an associate's degree or less) in the Southwestern U.S. who were subsequently surveyed one year later. Educator-perpetrated racial/ethnic discrimination was negatively associated with students' school engagement, and both psychological resilience and self-efficacy emerged as protective for students' educational expectations in the face of racial/ethnic and SES-based discrimination, respectively. The results of the current study highlight the role of discriminatory treatment in educational disparities and provide insights on effective coping strategies to combat the negative impacts of discrimination in academics.

Family cultural socialization in childhood: Navigating ethnic/racial diversity and numeric marginalization in school and neighborhood settings.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the role of ethnic/racial composition in schools and neighborhoods in (a) predicting family cultural socialization and (b) moderating the relation between family cultural socialization and young children's social competence over time. METHOD: Two nationally representative, longitudinal samples were used from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 and 2010-11 cohorts. The analytic sample included 11,870 ethnic/racial minority children (mean age was 5.66 years old at Wave 1; 50% female; 31% Black, 49% Latinx, 18% Asian American, 2% Native American). RESULTS: Path analyses showed that families practiced more cultural socialization in more diverse schools and neighborhoods. Moreover, family cultural socialization was most beneficial for children's social competence when they were in diverse settings with few coethnics. CONCLUSIONS: The results highlighted cultural socialization as a tool that ethnic/racial minority families use to help their children navigate ethnic/racial diversity and numeric marginalization in social settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Party, Academic, or Prepped for College? School Norm Profiles and Adolescent Well-being using National Data.

The current study examined how schoolwide norms came together into distinct profiles and how norm profile membership was linked to adolescent well-being. Using school-level (N = 786) and student-level data (N = 174,587 12th grade students; 52% female; 64% White, 13% Latino, 12% Black, 12% other) from Monitoring the Future (MTF), we identified four distinct school profiles-average, academic, prepped-for-college, party-that had unique patterns of shared norms. Compared with average schools, academic schools (high academics and low substance use and social integration norms) were most advantageous for students, prepped-for-college schools (high academics, substance use, and social integration norms) had both benefits and drawbacks, and party schools (low academics and high substance use and social integration norms) were most detrimental.

Daily Experiences of Discrimination and Ethnic/Racial Minority Adolescents' Sleep: The Moderating Role of Social Support.

Using data from a 14-day diary study of 95 ethnic/racial minority adolescents, this study examined the within-person effect of daily discrimination tied to multiple social identities on adolescents' daily sleep quality and duration and whether daily support from important others (i.e., friends, parents, and teachers) would moderate these links. We found that daily discrimination was a low-frequency, but high-impact event associated with shorter sleep duration. Results pointed to the nuanced roles of daily support. Support from friends was negatively related to sleep duration, whereas support from parents appeared to be promotive to sleep quality. Support from teachers protected adolescents from the negative effects of discrimination on sleep duration. Implications for future interventions targeting sleep disturbances associated with discrimination are discussed.

Antecedents and Consequences of Discrepant Perceptions of Racial Socialization between Parents and Adolescents within Mexican-Origin Families.

Parents and adolescents often have different views regarding parental racial socialization practices; however, studies documenting such discrepancies remain scarce. Using a person-centered approach, this study investigated patterns of parent-adolescent discrepant views on racial socialization (i.e., cultural socialization, bias coping, bias awareness) as well as antecedents and consequences of the discrepancy profiles. Participants were 604 adolescents (54% female, Mage = 12.41, Rangeage = 11-15) and their mothers and fathers. The results showed distinct discrepancy patterns and suggested that more maternal/paternal warmth was associated with profiles that have smaller discrepancies or profiles in which adolescents reported higher socialization than parents. Adolescents who reported higher or similar socialization as parents demonstrated better adjustment. Implications for interventions aimed at strengthening parent-child relationships and communication about race and culture are discussed.

Adolescence Amid a Pandemic: Short- and Long-Term Implications.

Members of the Society for Research on Adolescents COVID-19 Response Team offer this commentary to accompany this special issue of the Journal of Research on Adolescence regarding the impact of the pandemic on adolescents' social, emotional, and academic functioning. In addition to outlining the critical need for scholarly collaboration to address the global impact of this crisis on adolescent development, we argue that a broad investigative lens is needed to guide research and recovery efforts targeting youth development. We then use this broad lens to consider dimensions of the pandemic impact relative to developmental implications within community and policy contexts, educational contexts, social contexts, and family contexts. Finally, we describe guideposts for setting a global, shared research agenda that can hasten research to recovery efforts surrounding the pandemic and youth development.

Parent and teacher educational expectations and adolescents' academic performance: Mechanisms of influence.

The current study investigated how parents' and teachers' educational expectations both directly and indirectly shaped young people's academic outcomes in a nationally-representative sample of high school students (Education Longitudinal Study; N = 9654 adolescents). Higher parent and math teacher expectations in 10th grade were associated with better 12th grade math scores and higher grade point averages, math course-taking sequence, and educational attainment two years post-high school. High parent expectations generally magnified the particularly strong positive effects of high math teacher expectations, and there was some evidence of variation in links between adult expectations and outcomes by both student race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Parents' educational involvement at school, teacher-student relationships, and school-parent communication mediated the links between adult educational expectations and academic outcomes.

Life Course Transitions and Educational Trajectories: Examining Adolescents who Fall off Track Academically.

Educational interventions typically center on youth displaying early academic risk, potentially overlooking those falling off track academically later in their educational careers. The current study investigated the extent to which life course transitions experienced during adolescence were linked to falling off-track academically in high school. Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 4284; 53% female; Mage = 14.88) documented that 1516 students displayed no educational risk in early high school, yet 14% did not pursue 4-year college by age 24. Analyses revealed the unique life course transitions predictive of falling off-track academically (i.e., sexual intercourse, alcohol use, family transitions, residential mobility). The study's findings highlight important intervention avenues to promote adolescents' continued educational persistence.