This study explores marital processes that may underlie the apparent decline in satisfaction with marriage in partners becoming parents for the first time. We assessed 47 couples expecting a first child and 15 couples not yet decided about having children at pretest, post 1 (6 months postpartum or 9 months after pretest) and post 2 (18 months postpartum or 21 months after pretest). Questionnaires examined (1) psychological sense of self; (2) partners' role arrangements and communication; (3) parenting ideology; (4) perceptions of the family of origin; and (5) social support and life stress, including parents' work patterns. Support was found for three hypotheses: (1) In four of the five family domains men and women having a first child showed more negative changes over time than nonparent spouses; (2) New fathers and mothers grew increasingly different from one another in most of these domains; (3) A combination of gender differentiation and change (increasing conflict) apparently contributed to lowered satisfaction with marriage for men and women.

Limited attention to ethnicity in research on substance abuse and women has resulted in assumptions that may not fit the experience of women of color. This study employed a combined quantitative and qualitative design to investigate substance abuse in African American women ages 21 to 48. Life experiences of women with histories of chemical dependence were compared with women who were maintaining a nonabusing lifestyle. Variables examined were history of parental substance abuse and child abuse, exposure to racism and traumatic events, and social support and spirituality. The substance abusing and nonabusing women were distinguished from each other in the areas of spirituality and family connectedness. Although all participants reported high violence exposure and personal losses, significantly more substance abusing women reported being battered, experiencing homelessness, and more traumatic events. Participants described multiple experiences with racism, though their descriptions of their responses to these experiences suggested different styles of coping. Findings have significant implications for prevention of substance abuse, particularly in the areas of religious involvement, family support, and the development of active problem-solving strategies.

This qualitative study addresses the formation of masculine identity during adolescence among a diverse sample of African American men. Using a mixed research methods design, 15 African American men 18 to 22 years old were asked to recall their experiences of forming a masculine identity during their adolescence. Using the Weiss (Weiss, 1994, Learning from strangers: The art and method of qualitative interview studies. New York, NY: Free Press) model, nine themes related to the conceptualization of masculinity were revealed. Results suggested that positive male role models, in particular fathers and grandfathers, played the largest role in predicting healthy and adaptive masculine identities in contrast to one's peers or the media. Findings can help extend our understanding of sources of positive masculinity development for African American adolescent males.

Outcome studies of multicultural education have neglected the student of color experience. This study examined ethnic minority students' responses to a doctoral level diversity course. Results revealed that though all students reported new learning experiences, including increased cultural knowledge and personal insights, learning outcomes varied based upon previous exposure to racism, and opportunities to process this experience. The learning course appeared to proceed from reactive and emotion-focused, to reflective. Commonly reported in the reflective phase was the emergence of the question of what position students would take as persons of color on racial issues. Implications for training are discussed.

This interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) inquiry examined critical racialized incidents students of Color experienced in the graduate classroom at a predominantly White academic institution. Five African American, 4 Latinx, 4 Asian American, and 1 Biracial student participated in the study. Nine participants identified as women, and 5 as men. A total of 20 critical racialized incidents were reported and 6 dominant themes identified: (a) intersectionality and manifestation of power differentials; (b) personal devaluation, invalidation and/or shaming; (c) projection of racial stereotypes onto students of Color; (d) uncontested racist comments; (e) differences in communication styles and preferences; and (f) institutional devaluing of racial diversity. In contrast to previous research (Boysen, 2012;, an unexpected finding was that instructors, not students, were the most frequent perpetrators of racism in the classroom. Types of racism and magnitude of incidents were also considered. Implications for social justice education were discussed, with specific recommendations for instructors and academic institutions identified. Public Significance StatementUnderstanding how the common occurrence of racism affects students of Color in higher education classrooms is critical to creating learning environments that support and honor all students, allowing effective learning to occur. Implications and recommendations discussed should help educators and academic institutions support more inclusive learning environments.