Sleep and mental health among youth experiencing homelessness: A retrospective pilot diary study.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to describe the nightly sleep conditions of youth experiencing homelessness, and examine the association between sleep and mental health, both cross-sectionally and using diary data. METHODS: n = 147 youth (ages 16-24) experiencing homelessness completed a baseline survey assessing self-reported sleep and depressive and anxious symptoms. A subsample of n = 49 completed a follow-up 7-day diary study measuring nightly sleep conditions and daily depressive and somatic symptoms. RESULTS: According to baseline data, the majority of the sample (71%) reported sleeping less than 7 hours per night on average, and feeling like they did not get adequate sleep, especially among youth identifying as LGBTQ. In a qualitative follow-up question, the plurality attributed poor sleep to mental health woes. Cross-sectionally, youth with lower levels of self-reported sleep quality (more daytime fatigue and insomnia) reported higher levels of depressive and anxious symptoms. The diary data indicated that the most common nightly complaints among shelter utilizers are lack of privacy, noise, and uncomfortable temperatures. Multilevel models suggest that poor sleep conditions predicted higher levels of somatic symptoms the following day, after controlling for baseline levels of depressive and anxious symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the role environmental context plays in sleep health and its subsequent impacts. Individuals experiencing homelessness lack autonomy over their sleeping environments, and thus cannot make adjustments such as reducing disruptions such as noise, temperature, and light. Importantly, these less-than-ideal sleeping conditions contribute to pre-existing health disparities and may have long-term implications.

Daily association between racial discrimination and depressive symptoms among ethnically diverse adolescents: Ethnic identity as a predictor and a buffer.

OBJECTIVES: The present study assessed the association between daily racial discrimination and depressive symptoms over the course of 14 consecutive days, and the predictive and buffering effects of ethnic identity commitment and exploration. METHOD: Participants were 96 high school juniors and seniors (Mage = 17.45, SE = 1.12) from a low-income urban county, all identifying as non-White (28 Black/African American, 31 Latinx, and 37 non-White other). Over a 14-day period, participants reported daily experiences of racial discrimination and depressive symptoms. Baseline ethnic identity was measured approximately 1 month prior to the diary study. RESULTS: Daily discrimination was predicted by higher exploration and lower commitment at baseline. Multilevel models revealed that depressive symptoms were higher on days on which participants experienced more discrimination (within-person association), with no next-day lagged effects. Finally, baseline commitment and exploration weakened, but did not completely eliminate, the correlation between daily discrimination and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The study underscores the need to use momentary or daily assessments of discriminatory experiences to understand the full impact of minority-related stress. The current results demonstrate that daily discriminatory experiences are not only commonplace but that ethnic identity alone may not be enough to combat the negative impact of these experiences. Implications of these findings are discussed in the unique context of adolescent development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Racial dialogues and White trainee fears: Implications for education and training.

To assist educators in detecting the occurrence, understanding the dynamics, and effectively facilitating a difficult dialogue on race, we conducted a qualitative study to systematically examine the perceptions, interpretations, and reactions of 14 White trainees in counseling psychology graduate classes. In our focus groups, we identified 3 major domains: (a) global perspectives associated with race and racial dialogue, (b) specific reactions to racial disclosures, and (c) classroom strategies or conditions that proved helpful and unhelpful in facilitating dialogues. Participants appeared to have difficulty understanding how and why difficult dialogues on race occur. In addition, preexisting attitudes/beliefs/feelings seemed to serve as major barriers to discussing race honestly and openly. They reported powerful feelings of anxiety, helplessness, and fear of being misunderstood that evoked defensive maneuvers to avoid race topics. Implications for education and training are discussed.

Racial microaggressions and difficult dialogues on race in the classroom.

A qualitative study supports the observation that difficult dialogues on race and racism are often triggered by racial microaggressions that make their appearance in classroom encounters or educational activities and materials. Difficult dialogues are filled with strong powerful emotions that may prove problematic to both students and teachers. When poorly handled by teachers, difficult dialogues can assail the personal integrity of students of color while reinforcing biased worldviews of White students. The success or failure of facilitating difficult dialogues on race is intimately linked to the characteristics and actions of instructors and their ability to recognize racial microaggressions. Implications regarding specific education and training recommendations are presented.

Racial microaggressions in everyday life: implications for clinical practice.

Racial microaggressions are brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color. Perpetrators of microaggressions are often unaware that they engage in such communications when they interact with racial/ethnic minorities. A taxonomy of racial microaggressions in everyday life was created through a review of the social psychological literature on aversive racism, from formulations regarding the manifestation and impact of everyday racism, and from reading numerous personal narratives of counselors (both White and those of color) on their racial/cultural awakening. Microaggressions seem to appear in three forms: microassault, microinsult, and microinvalidation. Almost all interracial encounters are prone to microaggressions; this article uses the White counselor--client of color counseling dyad to illustrate how they impair the development of a therapeutic alliance. Suggestions regarding education and training and research in the helping professions are discussed.

Racial microaggressions and the Asian American experience.

Racial microaggressions were examined through a focus group analysis of 10 self-identified Asian American participants using a semistructured interview and brief demographic questionnaire. Results identified 8 major microaggressive themes directed toward this group: (a) alien in own land, (b) ascription of intelligence, (c) exoticization of Asian women, (d) invalidation of interethnic differences, (e) denial of racial reality, (f) pathologizing cultural values/communication styles, (g) second class citizenship, and (h) invisibility. A ninth category, "undeveloped incidents/responses" was used to categorize microaggressions that were mentioned by only a few members. There were strong indications that the types of subtle racism directed at Asian Americans may be qualitatively and quantitatively different from other marginalized groups. Implications are discussed.