Perceived Discrimination and Antisocial Behaviors in Puerto Rican Children

This study examined whether perceived discrimination was related to antisocial behaviors (ASB) in a probability sample of Puerto Rican children living in the South Bronx, New York and the San Juan Metropolitan area of Puerto Rico (N = 1,271). After adjusting for a host of well-known factors associated with ASB, such as sociodemographic variables (i.e., age, gender, household composition), psychosocial stressors (i.e., stressful life events, exposure to violence), and various forms of violence and abuse (i.e., coercive parental discipline, verbal, psychological, physical and sexual abuse), perceived discrimination remained a robust correlate of ASB among both samples. Findings are discussed with reference to the detrimental associations of perceived discrimination.