Risk and Resilience Among African American Youth

描述（由申请人提供）：虽然贫困和不利因素增加， 孩子的情绪或行为问题的风险，大多数非洲裔美国青年 成长为一个有能力，适应能力强的人。过去的研究致力于 很少关注社区，家庭或个人特征， 创造这种韧性。拟议的纵向研究涉及 解决这些问题。我们将测试基于生命历程的模型 这种观点认为，儿童的发展轨迹是一个序列， 因变量变为自变量的因果因素 时间这些模型将涉及解释不连续性，以及 生命历程中的行为的连续性。我们将努力具体说明 生活事件、社会转型和社区背景的方式 各种因素联合收割机要么加重要么改变行为倾向。的 拟议研究的数据将从现有的897个样本中收集。 生活在爱荷华州和格鲁吉亚的非洲裔美国儿童和他们的家庭。数据 从这些家庭中收集的目标儿童在五年级时。 目前正在收集关于这些儿童的第二波信息， 现在是七年级。我们寻求资金来收集另外两波数据 当目标儿童进入青春期时，的信息 作为先前项目的一部分收集的数据将提供重要的基线 调查累积的成功和缺点的信息， 以及转折点，当目标儿童通过 青春期将先前收集的数据与两个额外的 信息波将使我们能够检查因果关系的优先顺序， 家庭、同伴、学校和社区的条件影响 这些因素联合收割机影响非洲人的心理社会发展 美国儿童

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): While poverty and disadvantage increase a child's risk for emotional or behavioral problems, most African American youth grow up to be competent, well-adjusted individuals. Past research has devoted little attention to the community, family, or personal characteristics that create this resilience. The proposed longitudinal study is concerned with addressing these issues. We will test models based upon a life-course perspective that views children's developmental trajectories as a sequence of causal factors in which dependent variables become independent variables over time. The models will be concerned with explaining discontinuity, as well as continuity, in behavior across the life course. We will strive to specify the manner in which life events, social transitions, and community contextual factors combine to either accentuate or redirect behavioral tendencies. The data for the proposed research will be collected from an existing sample of 897 African American children and their families living in Iowa and Georgia. Data were collected from these families when the target children were in 5th grade. A second wave of information is currently being collected on these children who are now in 7th grade. We seek funding to collect two additional waves of data as the target children move through the adolescent years. The information collected as part of the prior project will provide important baseline information for investigating the cumulative successes and disadvantages, as well as turning points, of the target children as they move through the adolescent years. Combining the previously collected data with two additional waves of information will enable us to examine causal priorities and conditional influences at work among family, peer, school, and community factors as they combine to influence the psychosocial development of African American children.