An exploratory investigation of individual and family correlates within racial/ethnic groups.
THE GIST: We used surveys to compare hope among racial/ethnic groups based on personal and family factors like age, sex, family income, family structure, hope levels of parents, and quality of parental relationships. Overall, hope levels across ages differed between groups, and the hope didn't differ between genders, except for Black and Latinx girls (who showed less hope than boys). The factor of financial stability impacted hope levels differently between racial/ethnic groups. Considering family, youth hope seems less about the structure (whether parents were together or divorced), and more about the quality of family relationships. When parents with high hope have good relationships with their children, children may have higher hope.
THE TAKEAWAY: Hope is worth having. The higher a person’s hope levels, the higher a person’s association with good outcomes like achievement, higher education, social skills, and overall well-being. High hope builds resilience to barriers like stress, anxiety, internalizing behaviors, and depression. Through increasing contextual understanding, we learned that timely intervention may benefit groups like Black and Latina girls and that parents and families can create safe spaces for hope. Hope research must consider context– even contextual influences like race/ethnicity, gender, and family.
Fraser, A. M., Bryce, C. I., Calley, A. S., Button, J. A., & Rogers, A. A. (2024). Adolescent Hope: An Exploratory Investigation of Individual and Family Correlates by Racial/Ethnic Groups. Child Indicators Research, 17(6), 2555-2576.
Adolescent Hope:
THE GIST: Researchers in this study had parents read children’s books to their children, showing scenes of a character being socially excluded. They studied a number of factors relating to the language used and different contexts such as racial background, economic background, racial makeup of the parent’s neighborhood, etc. What we found was that despite some variation in the kind of language used, all parents seemed to consciously identify and explain racialized situations. Specifically, parents spoke differently about a White character that was excluded in the story than a Black character. The racial element was important; parents were more likely to use victimizing or emotional language, specifically explaining the situation as the child being intentionally excluded and that the character possesses a negative when the character was Black. When the character was White, parents seemed to use more personality state variables to explain the situation, such as she’s shy, or she’s sad. The specific likelihoods of language used possessed correlations with economic background and racial background of the parent, though some form of racial conscientiousness appeared universally.
THE TAKEAWAY: The ways in which we discuss race with our kids varies, but it is important to educate them -and ourselves! Experiencing different cultures and communities can help make this a natural conversation. Children are sponges, so it is truly imperative that we are cautious of our attitudes toward topics like race and genuinely take steps to further our understandings. What we say now matters -these kids are our future and hope for racial equity lies with them!
Parents’ differential trait, mental state, and coping talk about white and black storybook characters.
Fraser, A. M., Reschke, P. J., Busby, A. K., Takamasa, E. J., Jasperson, J., & Sycamore, B. (2024). Parents’ differential trait, mental state, and coping talk about White and Black child storybook characters. Social Development, 33(4), e12758.
THE GIST: Teenagers of Color (Black, Brown, Indigenous, etc.) are often the most at risk for mental illness and simultaneously receive the least amount of community support/resources. In this study we investigated whether having an “affirmed” ethnic racial identity - a.k.a. if having positive feelings about your race - could buffer the negative effects of racial discrimination on markers of mental health problems including depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, decreased happiness and chronic pain. Surprisingly, we found that there was no buffer effect and actually having an affirmed racial identity could make chronic pain and happiness levels worse, even though our models generally showed that discrimination was bad for mental health and the positive feelings were good for it. We think this means that the teens who are the most “in-the-know” and positive about their racial identity are taking the biggest hit to their mental health when people are mean and racist.
THE TAKEAWAY: We should still be encouraging positive feelings about racial identity for youth of color, but it’s going to take more than that to overcome the negative effects of racism on their mental and physical health. Anti-racist involvement at the community level is going to be essential. So what can you do? In your personal spheres: mentor, encourage, uplift and educate yourself (do the work!) on the issues youth of color face and widen your circle to include more diverse people. In your civic sphere: vote, fund a community center, say something when you hear a racist joke or remark in public. Kids are our future, so if we want them healthy, happy and ready to contribute to society we have to create one where they can thrive. Onward and upward my friends!
Archibald, C., Takamasa, E. J., Fraser, A. M., Metcalf, M. W., Rogers, A. A., & Bean, R. A. (2024). Sticks and Stones May Break Bones, But Racism Breaks Spirits: Discrimination and BIPOC Adolescent Mental Health. Youth & Society, 0044118X241266887.
Sticks and stones may break bones, but racism breaks spirits: The impact of discrimination on BIPOC adolescent mental health outcomes.
THE GIST: It can take a long time to figure out who you are. We were curious about whether a child’s Ethnic-Racial Identity (ERI) was related to discrimination, internalizing symptomology, parent socialization, or some combination of the three. We surveyed American youth from diverse backgrounds to see how these factors impact BIPOC Identities specifically. Findings suggest that internalizing ideas like racial stereotypes discouraged Identity exploration and affirmation. Kids develop their sense of Identity based on multiple interactive influences. Parent involvement can be one of those influences that encourages the exploration and resolution of identities.
THE TAKEAWAY: In the best interest of youth mental health and the rising US BIPOC community, we need to understand how identities are formed and nurtured. We call for identity research, policies, programs, and practices that protect against discrimination. We want to create a safer space for youth to explore their identities- even how they see themselves racially and ethnically. We believe mental health care and parent involvement can help create that safe space. BIPOC individuals can feel more secure when they can find peace with who they are.
Takamasa, E. J., Fraser, A. M., & Rogers, A. A. (2024). Main and interactive effects of discrimination, parent racial/ethnic socialization, and internalizing symptomology on BIPOC teens' ethnic‐racial identity. Journal of Research on Adolescence.
Main and interactive effects of discrimination, parent racial/ethnic socialization, and internalizing symptomology on BIPOC teens’ ethnic identity.
Critical Race Theory in Human Development and Family Science:
Where we were, are, and must go.
THE GIST: Human Development and Family Science (HDFS) has grown into a broad field that explores how children and families are shaped by their environment, biology, and social systems. Over the past century, HDFS research has led to important discoveries about family well-being, poverty, and child development, influencing policies and programs that improve lives. However, like other fields, HDFS has historically overlooked the role of race, limiting its ability to fully address the diverse experiences of all children and families. Scholars have long called for a more inclusive approach, and professional organizations now recognize the need to confront racial bias within research, teaching, and practice.
THE TAKEAWAY: This paper uses Critical Race Theory (CRT) as a framework to analyze how race impacts HDFS research and policies. CRT provides alternative perspectives to understand systemic inequalities and calls for scholars to actively address racism in their work. The authors highlight two core CRT principles to examine racial bias in HDFS research and propose twelve actionable steps to make the field more equitable. By incorporating these changes, HDFS can evolve to better address racial disparities and create a more comprehensive and inclusive understanding of human development.
Sheppard, J. A., Gabriel, R., Fraser, A. M., & LeBaron‐Black, A. B. (2024). Critical race theory in human development and family science. Journal of Social Issues, 80(1), 124-144.
THE GIST: This study examined how parents’ color-blind racial ideology and implicit racial bias affects children’s race-based sympathy. Color-blind racial ideology is the idea that race doesn’t matter, and all people are the same. This can be harmful because it doesn’t acknowledge the many race-based disparities in our society. Implicit racial bias refers to parents’ underlying attitudes about race. The specific color-blind racial attitudes we studied were “denial of blatant racial issue,” “denial of White privilege,” and “denial of institutional racism.” The children we studied watched four videos in which a White child bullied/teased either a Black or White child. They reported their feelings of sympathy towards the victims after each video.
THE TAKEAWAY: What children observe from their parents’ unspoken behavior can be more impactful to their understanding of race than verbal attitudes, especially when parents avoid discussions about race.
Wang, W., Spinrad, T. L., Laible, D. J., Janssen, J., Xiao, S. X., Xu, J., ... & Xu, X. (2023). Parents’ color-blind racial ideology and implicit racial attitudes predict children’s race-based sympathy. Journal of Family Psychology, 37(4), 475.
Parents' color-blind racial ideology and implicit racial attitudes predict children's race-based sympathy.
White children’s empathy-related responding and prosocial behavior toward White and Black children.
THE GIST: Racism and White supremacy continue to be major issues in the U.S., yet research rarely focuses on those who benefit from these systems - especially young White children. Understanding how racism or anti-racism develops early in life is crucial for promoting meaningful change. This study examined how young White children respond to Black and White peers in terms of empathy, kindness, and fairness. Research suggests that developing empathy and a sense of justice in childhood can lay the foundation for anti-racist attitudes later in life, especially when supported by anti-bias education and inclusive socialization.
THE TAKEAWAY: The findings from this study highlight the importance of exploring how biases form and change with age to foster anti-racist development early on. Teaching children empathy, fairness, and awareness of racial bias from a young age can help build a more just and equitable society.
Spinrad, T. L., Eisenberg, N., Xiao, S. X., Xu, J., Berger, R. H., Pierotti, S. L., ... & Lopez, J. (2023). White children's empathy‐related responding and prosocial behavior toward White and Black children. Child development, 94(1), 93-109.
THE GIST: We wanted to know, does social support predict hope, achievement, and future expectations among Latinx students? Latinx students face unique struggles growing up. One way to potentially help with these issues is to provide social support, especially from multiple sources, which can provide avenues for personal growth. Support from friends showed some benefit, but really, parents are an incredibly powerful resource to these kids. There were some differences in how these various factors influenced a person depending on their gender and special education. For example, girls showed significantly higher levels of support and achievement than boys, which may be explained by the fact that teachers give them more social support, probably because girls are seen as having unique needs. PFE (positive future expectation) also had significant associations. Notably, teacher support had a small association for GPA for girls but had a large association for GPA with boys. Ultimately, family support possessed strong associations in PFE among all categories.
THE TAKEAWAY: In the teaching world, educators can play a big role in helping Latinx boys by striving to support them in areas besides their academic grades. And support in our own family circles is critical as well. Family and teacher support is vital for continued growth in all dimensions of success, hope, and positive future expectations among Latinx individuals.
Social support and positive future expectations, hope, and achievement among Latinx students:
Implications by gender and special education.
Fraser, A. M., Bryce, C. I., Cahill, K. M., & Jenkins, D. L. (2024). Social support and positive future expectations, hope, and achievement among Latinx students: Implications by gender and special education. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 41(3), 543-568.