The Strong African American Families Program: Disrupting the Negative Consequences of Racial Discrimination Through Culturally Tailored, Family-Based Prevention

Abstract

Racism continues to be a major source of stress for African Americans and can impair psychological functioning. Adolescents experiencing discrimination may engage in self-soothing, but risky behaviors, which leave them at risk for negative life trajectories. Black pride has been identified as a key factor in explaining the heterogeneity in responses to discrimination. Racial socialization, strategies parents use to promote Black pride and protect youth from discrimination, is an important focus of family-based prevention programs serving African American families. This study tests the efficacy of a culturally tailored preventive intervention for rural African American families to disrupt the negative consequences of discrimination on adolescent psychological functioning. Four waves of data from the Strong African American Families (SAAF) efficacy trial (Murry & Brody in Journal of Marital & Family Therapy 30(3):271-283, 2004 ) with 667 African American families in rural Georgia were used for this study. Structural equation modeling was used to test study hypotheses. Adolescent experiences with discrimination at age 15 predicted concurrent psychological functioning and multiple risk behaviors at age 16, including sexual risk behavior, substance use problems, academic failure, and juvenile justice involvement. Mediation analyses demonstrated that psychological functioning was a significant mediator of these relations. The SAAF program was associated with increases in racial socialization, which in turn fostered gains in adolescent Black pride. Black pride was indirectly associated with reduced risk behavior through adolescent psychological functioning, but Black pride did not moderate the effect of discrimination on psychological functioning. This study confirms that family-based prevention can support African American adolescent mental health in the context of discrimination. However, more emphasis on reducing exposure to discrimination is needed.

Critical examination of resilience and resistance in African American families: Adaptive capacities to navigate toxic oppressive upstream waters

“…For instance, resilience was oftentimes framed as a protective factor influenced by other processes. This observation was noted by Berkel and colleagues (2022) in this manner: “African American parents’ use of racial socialization is a determining factor in nurturing these key elements of resilience (p. 2). Another common framing of resilience consisted of explicitly naming behaviors and practices used as a strategy for coping, however, these coping mechanisms were largely discussed “in spite of” oppressive forces (i.e., systematic racism).…”

Kids are all in the same storm but not in the same boat.

“…Despite renewed protections for mental health parity in the Affordable Care Act, a survey in 2017 revealed that a behavioral health care office visit for a child/teen was 10 times more likely to be out-of-network than a primary care visit-twice the disparity seen for adults (Melek et al, 2019). Migrant children/families are at higher risk for a range of mental health concerns and have even more limited access to care (Beier & Fredricks, 2023;Bunn & Betancourt, 2022;Burbage & Walker, 2018).…”

“…E. Hoagwood et al, 2018). Murry and her colleagues have developed and tested a targeted two-generation, community-centered program ( Strong African American Families [SAAF]) that has shown consistently strong results in promoting the well-being and health behaviors of Black youth living in rural areas (Berkel et al, 2024). More recently, they have adapted elements of this program for delivery in an online platform ( Pathways for African Americans Success [PASS]) that retains efficacy and increases reach to more families (Murry et al, 2019).…”

Family-Centered Prevention to Reduce Discrimination-Related Depressive Symptoms Among Black Adolescents

“…PROSAAF was found to increase effective parenting; in a second model, effective parenting moderated the association of racial discrimination with depressive symptoms. Berkel et al 24 examined data from a trial of the SAAF program for early adolescents. They found that SAAF promoted racial pride which, in turn interacted with discrimination and was associated with downstream psychological adjustment.…”

“…They found that SAAF promoted racial pride which, in turn interacted with discrimination and was associated with downstream psychological adjustment. Although these 2 studies 23 , 24 with early adolescents suggest the potential for family-centered prevention to moderate the association of discrimination with adverse outcomes, their designs prevent strong causal inferences.…”