Depressive symptoms, stress, and weight concerns among African American and European American low-income female smokers.

The relationships between perceived stress, depressive symptoms, concern about weight gain and smoking dependence were examined among 83 European American and 175 African American female smokers bringing children to pediatric clinics serving a low-income population. Among African American women, but not European American women, greater stress and more depressive symptoms predicted greater smoking dependence, and less concern about weight gain predicted greater smoking dependence. Multivariate analyses confirmed the bivariate relationships among stress, depressive symptoms, and smoking dependence among African American women but reduced the relationship between weight concern and smoking dependence. The stronger relationships among stress, depressive symptoms, and smoking dependence among African American women may be indicative of smoking patterns more associated with affect regulation than are the smoking patterns of European American women. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Minority stress, perceived bicultural competence, and depressive symptoms among ethnic minority college students.

Based on biculturalism theory (LaFromboise, Coleman, & Gerton, 1993), the present study examined the direct effect of perceived bicultural competence (PBC) on depressive symptoms, and PBC as a potential coping resource to moderate the association between minority stress and depressive symptoms. Participants were 167 Asian American, African American, and Latino/a American students at a predominantly White Midwest university. Results from a hierarchical regression analysis suggested that (a) minority stress was positively associated with depressive symptoms after controlling for perceived general stress, (b) PBC was negatively associated with depressive symptoms after controlling for perceived general stress and minority stress, and (c) the interaction between minority stress and PBC was significant in predicting depressive symptoms. Results from a simple effect analysis supported the hypothesis that a higher level of PBC buffers the association between minority stress and depressive symptoms. Furthermore, post hoc exploratory analyses of the components of PBC suggested that 2 components, Social Groundedness and Cultural Knowledge, may be especially important coping resources. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An intersectional approach for understanding perceived discrimination and psychological well-being among African American and Caribbean Black youth.

The present study examined whether combinations of ethnicity, gender, and age moderated the association between perceived discrimination and psychological well-being indicators (depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and life satisfaction) in a nationally representative sample of Black youth. The data were from the National Survey of American Life, which includes 810 African American and 360 Caribbean Black adolescents. The results indicated main effects such that perceived discrimination was linked to increased depressive symptoms and decreased self-esteem and life satisfaction. Additionally, there were significant interactions for ethnicity, gender, and race. Specifically, older Caribbean Black female adolescents exhibited higher depressive symptoms and lower life satisfaction in the context of high levels of perceived discrimination compared with older African American male adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Neuroticism and depressive symptoms among spouse caregivers: Do health behaviors mediate this relationship?

This study examined the mediating role of health behaviors in the relationship between neuroticism and depressive symptoms among spouse caregivers. Path analysis was used to test a model of the caregiver stress process among 233 caregivers of people with dementia. Results indicate that neuroticism has a significant direct effect on depressive symptoms and also indirectly influences depressive symptoms through health behaviors and perceived stress. When individual health behaviors were examined in the path model, only physical activity served a significant mediating role. These findings suggest that neuroticism may lead to depressive symptoms among caregivers partly through declines in physical activity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Change in caregiver depression as a function of the Strong African American Families Program.

A randomized prevention trial contrasted families who participated in the Strong African American Families Program (SAAF), a preventive intervention for rural African American parents and their 11-year-olds, with control families. This article focuses on the program's effect on primary caregivers' depressive symptoms. Among the 167 caregivers with elevated scores on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale, SAAF participation was associated with reduced depressive symptoms, enhanced parenting, and perceived improvements in youth behavior. Change in parenting (consistent discipline, youth monitoring, and open communication) but not change in youth intrapersonal competencies significantly mediated intervention effects on caregivers' depression. Results support the link between reduced depressive symptoms and stronger family relationships, particularly the importance of enhanced parenting efficacy in alleviating depressive symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived discrimination, sense of control, and depressive symptoms among Korean American older adults.

This study explored a potential pathway by which perceived discrimination may affect levels of depressive symptoms in a sample of 472 Korean American older adults (Mage = 69.9, SD = 7.04). Building upon previous studies demonstrating that perceived discrimination has negative impacts on mental health, we hypothesized that sense of control would mediate the associations between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. Our analyses showed that the effects of perceived discrimination on depressive symptoms were not only direct but also mediated through a lowered sense of control. Finding that sense of control serves as an intervening step between perceived discrimination and mental health may help explicate the psychological mechanisms involved in responses to discriminatory experience and has implications for intervention strategies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The prevalence of perceived discrimination among African American and Caribbean Black youth.

The present study examined ethnic, gender, and age differences in perceived discrimination and the association between perceived discrimination and psychological well-being in a nationally representative sample of Black adolescents. Data are from the National Survey of African Life (NSAL), which includes 810 African American and 360 Caribbean Black youth. Results indicate that the majority of Black youth perceived at least 1 discriminatory incident in the previous year. Adolescents at later stages of development perceived more discrimination than those at earlier stages, and African American and Caribbean Black males perceived more discrimination than their female counterparts. Perceptions of discrimination were positively linked to depressive symptoms and were negatively linked to self-esteem and life satisfaction, regardless of ethnicity. However, Caribbean Black youth appear to be more vulnerable when they perceive high levels of discrimination. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital transitions and changes in African American mothers’ depressive symptoms: The buffering role of financial resources.

The effects of changes in marital status on the changes in depressive symptoms of 443 African American mothers from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY) were examined. Results showed that those mothers who exited marriage increased in depressive symptoms relative to continuously married and newly married mothers. Moreover, mothers who entered marriage later experienced the same level of depressive symptoms as continuously married mothers. However, financial resources moderated the effects of marital transitions. Those mothers with more financial resources did not experience an increase in depressive symptoms after divorce, but those with fewer resources experienced a large increase. It was concluded that divorce is a risk factor for mental health concerns among African American mothers, but financial resources serve as a protective factor. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship between posttraumatic stress symptoms and sexual risk: Examining potential mechanisms.

Little is known about behavioral and psychological mechanisms that may explain relationships between posttraumatic stress and sexual risks. As rates of HIV infection among African American women remain significantly higher than for other female subgroups, research on sexual risk among African American women is needed. The present study examines the relationships of posttraumatic stress symptoms as measured by the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian Version with sexual risk behaviors, sexual sensation-seeking, and sexual compulsivity in 30 undergraduate African American women with any reported history of sexual intercourse. Higher posttraumatic stress symptoms were associated with more sexual partners, greater frequency of vaginal sex without a condom, and endorsement of sex while under the influence of a substance. Posttraumatic stress symptoms were negatively correlated with perceived sexual control, but were not significantly correlated with sexual compulsivity or sensation-seeking. Perceived sexual control was negatively associated with frequency of unprotected sex and sex under the influence. The preliminary evidence from this small sample suggests sexual control may mediate the relationship of the posttraumatic stress symptoms with unprotected sex. These results are generally consistent with previous findings suggesting posttraumatic stress is associated with sexual risk. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Longitudinal Study of the Relationship Between Depressive Symptoms and Cigarette Use Among African American Adolescents.

The relationship between depressive symptoms and cigarette use was examined in a sample of 623 African Americans during adolescence and transition to adulthood by using hierarchical linear modeling. Participants in the study were interviewed across 6 occasions over 8 years. Results indicate that depressive symptoms tend to decrease over time, whereas cigarette use tends to increase for both female and male adolescents. The results also suggest that depressive symptoms predict later cigarette use. Male adolescents who reported more depressive symptoms were more likely than female adolescents to use cigarettes as a way to cope with their mood. These results suggest that depressive symptoms may be important to consider when developing smoking cessation interventions for African American youth. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of Pain on Functioning and Well-Being in Older Adults With Osteoarthritis of the Knee.

The effects of pain on functioning and well-being were examined in 367 older adults with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. The relationship of OA-related pain to depressive symptoms and perceived health was hypothesized to be direct as well as mediated by physical and social functioning. Results showed that OA-related pain was related to poorer physical and social functioning, had a direct effect on depressive symptoms, and direct and indirect effects on perceived health. Lower social functioning was related to more depressive symptoms, and both lower social and physical functioning predicted worse perceived health. Thus, distinguishing between physical and social functioning when examining the costs of OA-related pain is useful. Moreover, existing pain-psychological well-being models can be generalized to perceived health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Loneliness as a specific risk factor for depressive symptoms: Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses.

The extent to which loneliness is a unique risk factor for depressive symptoms was determined in 2 population-based studies of middle-aged to older adults, and the possible causal influences between loneliness and depressive symptoms were examined longitudinally in the 2nd study. In Study 1, a nationally representative sample of persons aged 54 and older completed a telephone interview as part of a study of health and aging. Higher levels of loneliness were associated with more depressive symptoms, net of the effects of age, gender, ethnicity, education, income, marital status, social support, and perceived stress. In Study 2, detailed measures of loneliness, social support, perceived stress, hostility, and demographic characteristics were collected over a 3-year period from a population-based sample of adults ages 50-67 years from Cook County, Illinois. Loneliness was again associated with more depressive symptoms, net of demographic covariates, marital status, social support, hostility, and perceived stress. Latent variable growth models revealed reciprocal influences over time between loneliness and depressive symptomatology. These data suggest that loneliness and depressive symptomatology can act in a synergistic effect to diminish well-being in middle-aged and older adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Disease status in African American single mothers with HIV: The role of depressive symptoms.

The association between depressive symptoms and 2 measures of HIV disease status in 73 African American single mothers was examined. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that clinician-rated depressive symptoms predicted subjective, but not objective, parameters of disease status 12 to 14 months later. More symptoms of depression at the first assessment predicted an increase in physical complaints over the course of the study. Results suggest that researchers and clinicians interested in enhancing quality of life among African American single mothers with HIV infection, an understudied population within the HIV–AIDS literature, should consider both subjective and objective measures of the disease. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individualistic and collectivistic worldviews: Implications for understanding perceptions of racial discrimination in African Americans and British Caribbean Americans.

Cultural worldviews and perceived racial discrimination were examined among Americans (n = 106) and British Caribbean Americans (n = 95), both of African descent, who were recruited through university student organizations, community organizations, and snowball sampling. Consistent with public perceptions of differences in the experience of race among these 2 groups, multiple regression analyses revealed African Americans were more likely than British Caribbean Americans to perceive racial discrimination in the United States. In addition, a cultural worldview focus on individuality and equality (i.e., horizontal individualism) moderated the relationship between ethnic group and perceived racial discrimination. British Caribbean Americans who endorsed greater agreement with horizontal individualism were less likely to perceive racial discrimination. The same worldview was unrelated to African Americans' perceptions of racial discrimination. The results are discussed with respect to within-group heterogeneity among persons of African descent. Implications for counseling persons of African descent and future research directions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moderating effects of three coping strategies and self-esteem on perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms: A minority stress model for Asian international students.

This study examined 3 coping strategies (reflective, suppressive, and reactive), along with self-esteem, as moderators of the relation between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. International students (N = 354) from China, India, Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong provided data via an online survey. The role of perceived general stress was statistically controlled. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated a significant direct effect of perceived discrimination, a significant 2-way interaction of perceived discrimination and suppressive coping, and a significant 3-way interaction of perceived discrimination, reactive coping, and self-esteem in predicting depressive symptoms. An increased tendency to use suppressive coping appeared to strengthen the association between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. In contrast, the association between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms was not significant when reactive coping was infrequently used, but only for students with relatively high self-esteem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Racial discrimination stress, coping, and depressive symptoms among Asian Americans: A moderation analysis.

The purpose of our study was to explore: (a) the association between racial discrimination stress and depressive symptoms, and (b) how coping (e.g., individualistic/collectivistic and dispositional/situation-specific coping) attenuated or strengthened this association specifically among Asian Americans. Data were collected from 201 Asian Americans in a large Midwestern state university through an online survey. Results from a hierarchical regression indicated that racial discrimination stress significantly predicted depressive symptoms over and beyond perceived general stress and perceived racial discrimination. For the moderation effect, the simple effect analyses indicated that low utilization of reactive coping strategies and a high helpfulness rating of family support reduced the strength of association between racial discrimination stress and depressive symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does endorsement of physical discipline matter? Assessing moderating influences on the maternal and child psychological correlates of physical discipline in African American families.

Using longitudinal data from a subsample of 890 African American families in the Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, this study examined whether maternal endorsement of physical discipline moderates the link between (a) maternal psychological distress and spanking frequency and (b) spanking frequency and child depressive symptoms. As predicted, physical discipline administered by nonendorsing mothers was more strongly linked to maternal psychological distress than physical discipline administered by endorsing mothers. Also in keeping with the authors' hypothesis, the relation between spanking frequency and child-reported depressive symptoms was stronger for children of nonendorsing mothers than for children of endorsing mothers. In particular, the positive relation between physical discipline and children's depressive symptoms was significant only for children of nonendorsing mothers. These findings suggest that within-group variation in African American mothers' attitudes about physical discipline partially regulates the conditions under which these mothers use physical discipline and the probability that physical discipline contributes to depressive symptoms in children. Conclusions and implications for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of familism in stress and coping processes among African American and White dementia caregivers: Effects on mental and physical health.

Objective: To explore how familism, burden, and coping styles mediate the relationships between ethnicity and the mental and physical health of caregivers. Design: A probability sample of 65 White and 95 African Americans respondents caring for an older family member with dementia was used to test hypotheses from a sociocultural stress and coping model using path analysis. Main outcome measures: Measures of caregivers' health included subjective health, self-reported diseases, blood pressure, and heart rate. Mental health measures included self-reported depression and psychological symptoms. Results: Contrary to the hypothesis, familism had an adverse effect on outcomes and was related to low education levels rather than to African American ethnicity. A buffering effect of active coping between being African American and diastolic blood pressure was found even after controlling for levels of education. Conclusions: Findings supported a core stress and coping model in which more behavior problems of care recipients were associated with poorer mental health of caregivers via greater burden and more use of avoidant coping. Results also demonstrate that this core model can be extended to physical health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived racial/ethnic discrimination, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and health risk behaviors among Mexican American adolescents.

Utilizing the concept of race-based traumatic stress, this study tested whether posttraumatic stress symptoms explain the process by which perceived discrimination is related to health risk behaviors among Mexican American adolescents. One hundred ten participants were recruited from a large health maintenance organization in Northern California. Mediational analyses indicated that adolescents who perceived more discrimination reported worse posttraumatic stress symptoms, controlling for covariates. In turn, adolescents who experienced heightened posttraumatic stress symptoms reported more alcohol use, more other drug use, involvement in more fights, and more sexual partners. Perceived discrimination was also directly related to involvement in more fights. Results provide support for the notion of race-based traumatic stress, specifically, that perceived discrimination may be traumatizing for Mexican American adolescents. Counseling psychologists and counselors in schools and community settings should assess Mexican American adolescents for the effects of discrimination and provide appropriate interventions to reduce its negative emotional impact. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personal, family, and health-related correlates of depressive symptoms in mothers with HIV.

This study examined longitudinally depressive symptoms in 54 HIV-infected mothers with infants. The contribution of selected personal and family characteristics and health-related factors to depressive symptoms also was explored. Most of the women were single and African American, and most were on public assistance. Data were collected when the infants were approximately 3, 6, and 12 months of age. About a third of the mothers were at risk for depression, as indicated by Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale scores above the cutoff. The best predictors of depressive symptoms were feelings of stigma, self-perceptions of health, and physical symptoms, all factors associated with HIV. The findings have implications for helping HIV-infected mothers with depressive symptoms and stigma related to HIV. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)