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The consequences of the early onset of substance use on later outcomes are a public health concern. In the present study, we examined neighborhood risk factors as a possible predictor of the onset of substance use in adolescents. In addition, we assessed the potential buffering effects of parental supervision on the relationship between neighborhood risk and the onset of substance use. The participants included 95, abstinent, African American 6th graders (mean age = 11.5 years) who enrolled in one site of a national, multi-site study of high-risk youth participating in a federally sponsored program. In the 6th and 8th grades, the participants completed self-report measures regarding substance use, perceived negative neighborhood activities and parental supervision. Logistic regression analyses demonstrated that both exposure to negative neighborhood activities and low parental supervision increase the onset of substance use by the 8th grade among African American adolescents. However, the results suggested that parents can protect their adolescents from the impact of exposure to adverse neighborhood factors by providing appropriate supervision.

Investigated differences in career experiences of African-American women in traditional (n=85) and nontraditional (n=48) professions. Results indicated marriage was more of a barrier for nontraditionals than traditionals. Nontraditionals were more likely to report barriers to career success such as racial and gender discrimination, limited opportunities to develop political clout, and colleagues' doubts about their competence. (Author/ABL)

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2008.04.003 Byline: Ann Kathleen Burlew (a), Daniel Feaster (b), Mary-Lynn Brecht (c), Robert Hubbard (d) Keywords: Ethnic minorities; Health disparities research; Measurement equivalence; Valid analysis; Data analysis Abstract: This article describes concrete strategies for conducting substance abuse research with ethnic minorities. Two issues associated with valid analysis, measurement and data analysis, are included. Both empirical (e.g., confirmatory factor analysis, item response theory, and regression) and nonempirical (e.g., focus groups, expert panels, pilot studies, and translation equivalence) approaches to improve measures are described. A discussion of the use of norms and cutoff scores derived from a different ethnic group along with the effects of the ethnicity of the interviewer or coder on measurement is included. The section on data analysis describes why the use of race-comparison designs may lead to misleading conclusions. Alternatives to race-comparison analysis including within-group and between-group analyses are described. The shortcomings of combining ethnic groups for analyses are discussed. The article ends with a list of recommendations for research with ethnic minorities. Author Affiliation: (a) Department of Psychology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA (b) Center for Family Studies, University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, FL 33136, USA (c) Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90025, USA (d) Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27705, USA Article History: Received 14 December 2007; Accepted 11 April 2008

The conclusions from previous research on childhood adjustment to sickle cell disease (SCD) have been inconsistent. One possible explanation for this inconsistency is that such children sometimes have been compared to children with different demographic characteristics. This study examined whether 42 African-American children with sickle cell disease differ in academic performance from a comparison group of 26 with similar demographic characteristics. The two groups were similar by sex, age, race, and socioeconomic status. School data were collected for both groups. The differences between the two groups on academic performance were not significant. One implication of the findings is the importance of setting minimum standards for comparison groups in studies of children with sickle cell disease.

The most significant challenge confronting the African-American community is in helping the young become well-adjusted, responsible, functional and productive members of society. Psychologic processes and academic achievement have been found to be related to racial identity, and therefore more studies are needed regarding racial identity among African American children. Affirmative action and other methods to ensure diversity are needed.