FACTORS OF PROBLEM BEHAVIORS AMONG ETHNIC MINORITY YOUTH

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A significant proportion of youth in the United States experience problem behaviors such as interpersonal violence, delinquency, and substance use. These problem behaviors are highly and positively associated with negative mental health outcomes. While many studies of youth outcomes have focused on ethnic majority youth, studies that have included ethnic minority youth frequently have neglected ethnic groups other than African- and Matin-Americans. There is a dearth of theoretically guided research upon which to base the development of age- and culturally- appropriate interventions to prevent or reduce problem behaviors among minority youth. This proposed dissertation research seeks to: (1) Describe and compare patterns of problem behaviors for different racial/ethnic groups of youth, including African Americans, mixed racial Americans and White Americans; (2) Describe and compare patterns of problem behaviors of immigrant vs. non-immigrant youth; (3) Determine whether the Social Development Model predicts problem behaviors among youth equally well across different racial/ethnic groups, including African Americans, Asian Americans, mixed racial Americans and White Americans; (4) Determine whether the Social Development Model predicts problem behaviors in youth equally well for immigrant vs. non- immigrant youth; and (5) Investigate whether ethnic identify and/or the subjective experience of racial discrimination moderates the relationship between factors specified by the model and youth problem behaviors. There is a need to better understand the factors and mechanisms that are contributing to maladaptive developmental processes, as well as to understand those factors and mechanisms that buffer risk. Knowledge from this study can lead to the development of culturally appropriate interventive strategies that reduce problem behaviors and enhance resiliency among ethnic minority youth.