1-129 - Factors that Influence the Experiences of Racial Discrimination: From Individual and Contextual Lenses

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Discriminatory experiences are prevalent in the lives of ethnic minorities and can have deleterious impacts on ethnic minority adolescents’ development. Thus, it is important to examine the promoting factors that can buffer these harmful effects of discrimination. Guided by Garcia Coll’s integrative model (1996) and bioecological system theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1979), the goal of this symposium is to understand the promoting factors from individual and contextual levels that can protect adolescents from the detrimental effects of discrimination. Using a sample of African American adolescents, the first paper examines the protective role of high-effort coping against the negative effects of discrimination on psychological functioning. Gender differences are also explored in the study. The second and third papers explore factors from contextual lenses. Specifically, the second paper investigates whether parental academic support protects Latina/o adolescents from the detrimental effects of discrimination on academic adjustment. The third paper looks at the moderating effects of school interracial climate on the link between discrimination and Latina/o adolescents’ socioemotional and academic well-being. Attention is placed on how congruent or incongruent perceptions of interracial climate across adolescents and friends moderate this association. Finally, the fourth paper explores the interactive effects of contextual and individual factors that influence Chinese American adolescents’ experiences of discrimination. Together, these papers present a comprehensive picture of how promoting factors at the individual and contextual levels can protect ethnic minority adolescents from the detrimental effects of discrimination. The findings of the studies are important for future interventions that aim to promote positive youth development.

Sub Unit

• Race, Ethnicity, Culture, Context

Chairs

• Shanting Chen, University of Texas at Austin

• Aprile D. Benner, University of Texas at Austin

Individual Presentations

• Racial Discrimination, Psychological Functioning, and the Moderating Role of High-Effort Coping among African American Youth - Presenting Author: Elizabeth Jelsma, University of Texas at Austin; Non-Presenting Author: Fatima varner, University of Texas at Austin

• Ethnic Discrimination and Latina/o Adolescents’ Academic Adjustment: The Moderating Role of Parental Academic Support - Presenting Author: Farin Bakhtiari, University of Texas at Austin; Non-Presenting Author: Aprile D. Benner, University of Texas at Austin; Non-Presenting Author: Shanting Chen, University of Texas at Austin

• Peer Discrimination and Adolescent Well-being: Congruence of Adolescents’ and Friends’ Perceptions of Interracial Climate - Presenting Author: Shanting Chen, University of Texas at Austin; Non-Presenting Author: Aprile D. Benner, University of Texas at Austin; Non-Presenting Author: Yijie Wang, Michigan State University

• Family, Neighborhood, Acculturation and Chinese American Adolescents’ Perceived Racial-Ethnic Discrimination - Presenting Author: Wei Wei, The Pennsylvania State University; Non-Presenting Author: Shanting Chen, University of Texas at Austin; Non-Presenting Author: Dawn Paula Witherspoon, The Pennsylvania State University; Non-Presenting Author: Su Yeong Kim, University of Texas at Austin