Preventing Suicide, HIV& Drug Abuse Among Black Youth

申请人正在通过导师科学家发展奖（K01）机制申请五年的资助，以提高他的理论、方法和统计分析技能，从而使他能够努力预防或减少高危青少年的自我毁灭行为。 申请人在社会政策研究方面的强大学术训练和与青年合作的实践经验以及他对进行项目评估的熟悉程度，为本申请中概述的职业发展活动奠定了基础，以促进他实现成为进行预防干预研究的独立研究员的职业目标。将实现以下目标： 1）增强我对行为科学和青少年理论的理解，这些理论与设计个人、团体和家庭干预措施相关，以减少高危种族和少数民族青少年的自我毁灭行为并促进积极的健康行为； 2）提高我在设计、测量和统计分析方面的研究技能，以开展干预预防研究，以减少城市少数族裔青年中多种形式的自我毁灭行为； 3）提高我的方法论技能，以更好地设计、实施和评估科学严谨且文化上适当的预防干预措施，旨在减少高危非裔美国青年的自我毁灭行为； 4) 通过试点和测试一项研究来提高我进行干预的技能和能力，以确定使用以非裔美国父亲为重点的家庭干预措施的可行性，以防止高危城市非裔美国青少年男性中三种形式的自我毁灭行为（自杀性艾滋病毒/艾滋病性行为和药物滥用行为）； 5) 实施我的研究议程，通过准备一项竞争性 R01 提案进行随机试验研究，该提案采用随机对照研究来测试针对非裔美国父亲的基于家庭的干预措施的有效性，以帮助减少高危青少年男性高危儿童的自我毁灭行为。

The applicant is requesting funding for five years through the Mentored Scientist Development Award (K01) mechanism to enhance his theoretical, methodological, and statistical analysis skills to enable his efforts to prevent or reduce self-destructive behaviors among at-risk youth. The applicant's strong academic training in social policy research and practice experience in working with youth along with his familiarity in conducting program evaluations serve as the foundation on which the career development activities outlined in this application builds to facilitate the achievement of his career goal to become an independent researcher in conducting prevention intervention studies. The following objectives will be achieved: 1) Enhance my understanding of behavioral science and adolescent theories relevant for designing individual, group, and family-based interventions to reduce self-destructive behaviors and promoting positive health behaviors among at-risk racial and ethnic minority youth; 2) Advance my research skills in the design, measurement, and statistical analyses relevant for conducting intervention prevention research on reducing multiple forms of self-destructive behaviors among racial and ethnic urban minority youth; 3) Increase my methodological skills to better design, implement, and evaluate scientifically rigorous and culturally appropriate prevention interventions designed to reduce self-destructive behavior among at-risk African American youth; 4) Enhance my skills and ability to conduct intervention by piloting and testing a study to determine the feasibility of using a family based intervention focusing on African American fathers to prevent three forms of self-destructive behavior (suicidal HIV/AIDS sexual, and substance abusing behavior) among at- risk urban African American adolescent males; and 5) Carry forth my research agenda to conduct a randomized trial study by preparing a competitive R01 proposal employing a randomized control study to test the effectiveness of a family-based intervention targeting African American fathers to help reduce self-destructive behavior among their at-risk adolescent male at-risk children.