This meta-analytic study systematically investigates the relations between perceived racial/ethnic discrimination and socioemotional distress, academics, and risky health behaviors during adolescence, and potential variation in these relations. The study included 214 peer-reviewed articles, theses, and dissertations, with 489 unique effect sizes on 91,338 unique adolescents. Random-effects meta-analyses across 11 separate indicators of well-being identified significant detrimental effects. Greater perceptions of racial/ethnic discrimination were linked to more depressive and internalizing symptoms; greater psychological distress; poorer self-esteem; lower academic achievement and engagement; less academic motivation; greater engagement in externalizing behaviors, risky sexual behaviors, and substance use; and more associations with deviant peers. Metaregression and subgroup analyses indicated differences by race/ethnicity, Gender × Race/Ethnicity interactions, developmental stage, timing of retrospective measurement of discrimination, and country. Overall, this study highlights the pernicious effects of racial/ethnic discrimination for adolescents across developmental domains and suggests who is potentially at greater risk. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Parental educational involvement in primary and secondary school is strongly linked to students' academic success; however; less is known about the long-term effects of parental involvement. In this study, we investigated the associations between four aspects of parents' educational involvement (i.e., home- and school-based involvement, educational expectations, academic advice) and young people's proximal (i.e., grades) and distal academic outcomes (i.e., educational attainment). Attention was also placed on whether these relations varied as a function of family socioeconomic status or adolescents' prior achievement. The data were drawn from 15,240 10th grade students (50 % females; 57 % White, 13 % African American, 15 % Latino, 9 % Asian American, and 6 % other race/ethnicity) participating in the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002. We observed significant links between both school-based involvement and parental educational expectations and adolescents' cumulative high school grades and educational attainment. Moderation analyses revealed that school-based involvement seemed to be particularly beneficial for more disadvantaged youth (i.e., those from low-SES families, those with poorer prior achievement), whereas parents' academic socialization seemed to better promote the academic success of more advantaged youth (i.e., those from high-SES families, those with higher prior achievement). These findings suggest that academic interventions and supports could be carefully targeted to better support the educational success of all young people.

The transition to high school is disruptive for many adolescents, yet little is known about the supportive relational processes that might attenuate the challenges students face as they move from middle to high school, particularly for students from more diverse backgrounds. Identifying potential buffers that protect youth across this critical educational transition is important for informing more effective support services for youth. In this study, we investigated how personal characteristics (gender, nativity, parent education level) and changes in support from family, friends, and school influenced changes in socioemotional adjustment and academic outcomes across the transition from middle to high school. The data were drawn from 252 students (50% females, 85% Latina/o). The results revealed declines in students’ grades and increases in depressive symptoms and feelings of loneliness across the high school transition, with key variation by student nativity and gender. Additionally, stable/increasing friend support and school belonging were both linked to less socioemotional disruptions as students moved from middle to high school as compared to experiencing decreases in these sources of support. Increasing/stable school belonging was also linked to increases in school engagement across the high school transition. These findings suggest that when high school transitions disrupt supportive relationships with important others in adolescents’ lives, adolescents’ socioemotional well-being and, to a lesser extent, their academic engagement are also compromised. Thus, in designing transition support activities, particularly for schools serving more low-income and race/ethnic minority youth, such efforts should strive to acclimate new high school students by providing inclusive, caring environments and positive connections with educators and peers.

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This article reviews 12 meta-analyses of universal, school-based social and emotional learning (SEL) programs for children from early childhood education through high school. The aims were to assess the breath and consistency of outcomes across meta-analyses and the potential influence of different moderators (i.e., individual, programmatic, ecological, and methodological) on program impacts. Collectively, the meta-analyses were rated to be high quality and included 523 unique reports conducted in many countries and involving an estimated 1 million students. Mean effects were consistently statistically significant across reviews on a range of outcomes including increased SEL skills, attitudes, prosocial behaviors, and academic achievement, and decreased conduct problems and emotional distress (post ds ranged from 0.09 to 0.70 and follow-up ds ranged from 0.07 to 0.33 depending on the outcome and the specific review). However, there was little consistency regarding the moderators examined, or findings when the same moderators were assessed across reviews. Moreover, there is little information on possible interactions between moderators. Research has yet to clarify which individual, contextual, methodological, and programmatic variables promote or hinder the development of different SEL skills for diverse school-aged children and youth. Recommendations to guide future research in identifying the conditions and mechanisms by which SEL programs are most effective are provided. Public Significance StatementThis review of 12 meta-analyses, involving an estimated 1 million students from early childhood education through high school, shows that social and emotional learning (SEL) programs have consistent, positive impacts on a broad range of student outcomes including increased SEL skills, attitudes, prosocial behaviors, and academic achievement and decreased conduct problems and emotional distress. However, there is little consistency regarding conditions and mechanisms by which these programs are most effective. By summarizing the substantial evidence base for SEL programs, and offering recommendations for future work, this article will stimulate more research and practice related to such initiatives.