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Family cultural values that emphasize support, loyalty, and obligation to the family are associated with lower psychopathology in Hispanic/Latino/a youth, but there is a need to understand the implications of family cultural values for youth development in racially/ethnically heterogeneous samples. This study examined phenotypic associations between parent- and youth-reported family cultural values in late childhood on youth internalizing and externalizing symptoms in early adolescence, and whether family cultural values moderated genetic and environmental influences on psychopathology symptoms. The sample comprised 10,335 children (Mage=12.89 years; 47.9% female; 20.3% Hispanic/Latino/a, 15.0% Black, 2.1% Asian, 10.5% other) and their parents from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, and biometric models were conducted in the twin subsample (n = 1,042 twin pairs; 43.3% monozygotic). Parents and youth reported on their family cultural values using the Mexican American Cultural Values Scale at youth age 11–12, and parents reported on youth internalizing and externalizing symptoms using the Child Behavior Checklist at youth ages 11–12 and 12–13. Greater parent- and youth-reported family cultural values predicted fewer youth internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Biometric models indicated that higher parent-reported family cultural values increased the nonshared environmental influences on externalizing symptoms whereas youth-reported family cultural values decreased the nonshared environmental influences on internalizing symptoms. This study highlights the need for behavior genetic research to consider a diverse range of cultural contexts to better understand the etiology of youth psychopathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Racial disparities in school discipline may have collateral consequences on the larger non‐suspended student population. The present study leveraged two longitudinal datasets with 1201 non‐suspended adolescents (48% Black, 52% White; 55% females, 45% males; Mage: 12–13) enrolled in 84 classrooms in an urban mid‐Atlantic city of the United States during the 2016–2017 and 2017–2018 academic years. Classmates' minor infraction suspensions predicted greater next year's defiant infractions among non‐suspended Black adolescents, and this longitudinal relation was worse for Black youth enrolled in predominantly Black classrooms. For White youth, classmates' minor infraction suspensions predicted greater defiant infractions specifically when they were enrolled in predominantly non‐White classrooms. Racial inequities in school discipline may have repercussions that disadvantage all adolescents regardless of race. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peers' negative police encounters may have collateral consequences and shape adolescents' relationship with authority figures, including those in the school context. Due to the expansion of law enforcement in schools (e.g., school resource officers) and nearby neighborhoods, schools include spaces where adolescents witness or learn about their peers' intrusive encounters (e.g., stop-and-frisks) with the police. When peers experience intrusive police encounters, adolescents may feel like their freedoms are infringed upon by law enforcement and subsequently view institutions, including schools, with distrust and cynicism. In turn, adolescents will likely engage in more defiant behaviors to reassert their freedoms and express their cynicism toward institutions. To test these hypotheses, the present study leveraged a large sample of adolescents (N = 2,061) enrolled in classrooms (N = 157) and examined whether classmates' police intrusion predicted adolescents' engagement in schoolbased defiant behaviors over time. Results suggest that classmates' intrusive police experiences in the fall term predicted higher levels of adolescents' engagement in defiant behaviors at the end of the school year, regardless of adolescents' own history of direct police intrusive encounters. Adolescents' institutional trust partially mediated the longitudinal association between classmates' intrusive police encounters and adolescents' defiant behaviors. Whereas past studies have largely focused on individual experiences of police encounters, the present study uses a developmental lens to understand how the effects of law enforcement-perpetuated intrusion on adolescent development may operate through peer interactions. Implications for legal system policies and practices are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Initiatives promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in predominantly White contexts, including STEM fields, have primarily relied on approaches to increase the representation of minoritized individuals. However, an increase in the representation of minoritized individuals is only one step of the process, as the present study suggests that explicit beliefs about particular racial groups' abilities also matter. The present article examined whether classroom racial stereotype endorsement about science and math disadvantaged Black American adolescents relative to their White American peers. Across two longitudinal studies with 533 and 1,189 adolescents (N‐adolescents = 1722; N‐classrooms = 86; 45% Black American, 55% White American; 51% females; M‐age = 13–14), classroom pro‐White/anti‐Black stereotype endorsement in the fall term predicted better science and math achievement scores for White American adolescents and lower science and math achievement scores for Black American adolescents at the end of the academic year. Student‐ and teacher‐reported student engagement in science and math classrooms mediated the longitudinal relations between classroom pro‐White/anti‐Black stereotype endorsement and students' achievement scores. Results suggest that classrooms may be important conduits for communicating racial stereotypes that create racially hostile STEM learning environments. Research Highlights: Using a longitudinal sample of 1722 adolescents enrolled in 86 classrooms, the present study examined the consequences of classroom racial stereotype endorsement during adolescence.White American adolescents demonstrated favorable achievement scores in science and math when their classmates endorsed traditional, or pro‐White/anti‐Black, stereotypes.Black American adolescents showed worse achievement scores in science and math when their classmates endorsed pro‐White/anti‐Black stereotypes.Classroom engagement mediated the longitudinal relations between classroom pro‐White/anti‐Black stereotype endorsement and achievement scores for both Black and White American adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study sought to unravel the psychological processes through which mass incarceration, specifically paternal incarceration, is negatively affecting the next generation of children. Data came from 4,327 families from 20 cities who participated in a 10-year longitudinal study. Parents and children reported on children's rule-breaking behaviors and depressive symptoms when they were on average ages 5 (2003–2006), 9 (2007–2010), and 15 (2014–2017). Parental surveys and disposition information were combined to assess paternal incarceration at each age. Results showed that children who experienced paternal incarceration at age 5 also demonstrated more rule-breaking behaviors at age 15. Children's age-9 depressive symptoms partially mediated our finding, such that children who experienced paternal incarceration at age 5 also showed greater depressive symptoms at age 9, which in turn predicted greater rule-breaking behaviors at age 15. Paternal incarceration predicted future rule-breaking behaviors more strongly than did other forms of father loss. Because we found paternal incarceration during childhood is associated with worsened adjustment into adolescence, we discussed the need for developmentally appropriate practices in the criminal justice system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Negative interactions with the legal system can inform adolescents' relationships with schools. The present daily-diary study examined 13,545 daily survey assessments from 387 adolescents (Mage = 13-14; 40% male; 32% Black, 50% White, and 18% Other ethnic-racial minority) across 35 days to assess whether police stops predicted adolescents' school disengagement through their psychological distress as a mediator. Results showed that 9% of youth experienced at least one police stop, and 66 stops occurred in total over the 35-day study course. Youth stopped by the police reported greater next-day school disengagement, and youth's psychological distress mediated the link between police stops and school disengagement. Disengagement did not predict youth's next-day police stops. In addition, ethnic-racial minority youth reported more negative police encounters than did White youth, and the effect of a police stop on next-day psychological distress was more negative for Other ethnic-racial minority youth. Implications for reducing police intervention in adolescents' lives are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Ethnic/racial minority children in the United States are more likely to experience father loss to incarceration than White children, and limited research has examined the health implications of these ethnic/racial disparities. Telomere length is a biomarker of chronic stress that is predictive of adverse health outcomes. This study examined whether paternal incarceration predicted telomere length shortening among offspring from childhood to adolescence, whether maternal depression mediated the link, and whether ethnicity/race moderated results.Method: Research participants included 2,395 families in the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study, a national and longitudinal cohort study of primarily low-income families from 20 large cities in the United States. Key constructs were measured when children were on average ages 9 (2007-2010) and 15 (2014-2017).Results: Children who experienced paternal incarceration exhibited shorter telomere lengths between ages 9 and 15, and changes in maternal depression mediated this finding. Specifically, mothers who experienced a partner's incarceration were more likely to have depression between children's ages 9 and 15. In turn, increases in maternal depression between children's ages 9 and 15 predicted more accelerated telomere length shortening among children during this period. Paternal incarceration was more prevalent and frequent for ethnic/racial minority youth than for White youth.Conclusion: Paternal incarceration is associated with a biomarker of chronic stress among children in low-income families. Rates of paternal incarceration were more prevalent and frequent among Black American and multiethnic/multiracial families than among White Americans. As a result, the mass incarceration crisis of the criminal justice system is likely shaping intergenerational ethnic/racial health disparities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African American adolescents are grossly overrepresented in rates of school suspensions for minor disciplinary infractions; however, the consequences associated with this disciplinary practice are unknown. African American adolescents who were suspended for minor infractions may perceive school rules and adults as unfair and illegitimate, and these poor perceptions toward school may compromise their social and interpersonal resources necessary for academic success. The present study investigates: (a) whether suspensions for minor infractions predict lower school grades longitudinally, and (b) whether poor school climate perceptions mediate the longitudinal link between suspensions for minor infractions and school grades. Based on 3 years of school records and social survey data from 2,381 adolescents (35% African American, 65% White), results illustrated that more African American adolescents were suspended for minor infractions than their White peers who committed similar infractions. In addition, African American adolescents suspended for minor infractions also had lower grades 1 and 2 years later. The longitudinal relation between suspensions for minor infractions and subsequent grades was partially mediated by African American adolescents’ school climate perceptions. Implications are discussed in relation to racial biases and developmentally appropriate, equitable disciplinary practices. Public Significance Statement: The present study shows that more African American youth are suspended for minor infractions than White youth. In addition, these suspensions predicted poor school grades and school climate perceptions for African American youth. These findings raise concerns about school adults’ discretion in using punitive school discipline policies and practices, as they may be contributing to academic disparities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescents are at risk for violating COVID-19 social distancing measures owing to salient developmental needs for autonomy and relatedness. This intensive longitudinal study investigated the initiation and sustainment of adolescents' daily social distancing behaviors. Focus group and daily-diary approaches were used to collect 6,216 assessments from a nationwide American adolescent sample (n = 444; M age = 15.1; 40% male; 42% black/African American, 40% white/European American, 10% Latinx, 6% Asian American, 2% Native American) over the course of 14 days at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. When adolescents were motivated by preventing others from getting sick, they were more likely to engage in social distancing (same day: B =.50, SE =.09, 95% confidence interval [CI] [.32,.68] p <.001; next day: B =.49, SE =.09, 95% CI [.31,.67] p <.001). Daily social support from friends (same day: B =.04, SE =.02, 95% CI [.01,.08] p <.05; next day: B =.08, SE =.02, 95% CI [.05,.12] p <.001), connectedness with friends via technology (same day: B =.23, SE =.04, 95% CI [.14,.32] p <.001; next day: B =.12, SE =.05, 95% CI [.03,.21] p <.001), and practical knowledge about ways to prevent contracting and transmitting COVID-19 (same day: B =.12, SE =.02, 95% CI [.08,.17] p <.001; next day: B =.05, SE =.02, 95% CI [.01,.10] p <.05) positively predicted adolescents' same- and next-day engagement in social distancing. Adolescents who were motivated by the desire to protect others were more likely to engage in social distancing. In addition, adolescents who learned about preventative health behaviors for mitigating COVID-19, received peer support, and remained virtually connected with friends were more likely to engage in daily social distancing at the onset of the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]