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This study examines the longitudinal effects of childhood community contexts on young adult outcomes. The study uses a sample of 14,000 adolescents (52% female) derived from the 1990 US Census and the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Addhealth). The study examines whether community and family environments exert separate and/or joint long-term influences on young adult achievement and depression. We found both direct and indirect long-term influences of childhood community adversity on young adult educational attainment. The indirect influences of childhood community adversity operated through family and individual-level factors. The long-term influence of childhood community adversity on young adult depression was only indirect. Overall, community influences on young adult achievement outcomes were mediated by family context and by the adolescents' adjustments and transitions, including adolescent depression, school adjustment, and disruptive transitional events. The moderating effect of childhood community adversity suggests that the protective effects of family resources on young adult outcomes dissipate significantly in extremely adverse neighborhoods. The findings demonstrate the importance of integrating multiple theoretical perspectives for longitudinal research to capture pathways of community influence on adolescent developmental and young adulthood outcomes.

Using a sample of 15,885 adolescents derived from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, this study examined (1) unique additive influences of race, family, and community and (2) various multiplicative influences among race, family, and community factors on adolescent distress. Community characteristics such as community poverty and ethnic composition were included in the analysis. Community poverty, family poverty, single parenthood, family size, and race/ethnicity all uniquely contributed to adolescent distress. There were significant black-white differences in additive and multiplicative influences of these predictors. The detrimental influence of family poverty was stronger for whites than for blacks. Among blacks, the detrimental influence of community poverty is greater for poor families than for nonpoor families. In contrast, among whites, the detrimental influence of community adversity is greater for nonpoor families than for poor families. Although ethnic composition had no significant impact on adolescent distress for the total sample, it showed a beneficial effect for black adolescents, after controlling for the poverty levels of the communities. Seemingly, community poverty and ethnic composition influence adolescent distress differently through different mechanisms. Understanding these complex processes raise some practical questions about programs aimed at minorities. For example, do black children fare better if their family overcomes persistent poverty and moves out of adverse communities? (Contains 3 tables and 3 figures.)