Victimization among Black Adolescent Girls: Examining School Engagement and Generational Changes from 1986 to 2019

• In Event: Generational Change in Youth Behaviors and Attitudes: New Insights from the MTF Data, 1976–2019

Abstract

Black girls in the United States face disproportionate rates of victimization, but few prior studies have explored how these victimization risks have shifted across cohorts. The current study addresses the research gap by examining victimization patterns among Black adolescent girls in the past 30 years, with a focus on the effects of school engagement. Educational institutions often reinforce racial and gender biases through disciplinary policies, which may undermine Black adolescent girls’ school engagement and increase their risk of victimization. Using Monitoring the Future data, I compare two cohorts (1986-1995 and 2010-2019), investigating: (1) victimization differences between Black and white girls; (2) generational changes in race-specific victimization prevalence; (3) relationships between school engagement and victimization and whether this relationship varies across cohorts. My findings show school engagement is significantly associated with decreased violent victimization for Black girls in the earlier cohort but has a null effect among the recent cohort while remaining significant for white girls throughout. For property victimization, school engagement remained protective for all groups. Despite the overall declining prevalence, Black girls consistently experienced higher victimization than white counterparts. I argue that racialized disciplinary policies, minimal institutional support, and adultification contribute to Black girls' unique victimization risks.

Author

• Makaela S. Brass, State University of New York at Buffalo