Home Life and Well-Being among Cherokee Adolescents

• In Event: Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: PS 12 Topic - Family Context & Processes

Abstract

The social and physical affordances of the home environment have major implications for adolescent well-being. The social and physical conditions connected to home life may be especially consequential for Native American adolescents due to the fact that many live in poverty and many face discrimination as part of daily life. This study of Cherokee adolescents considered two aspects of the physical conditions present in the adolescent’s residence (the overall quality of the physical environment, and the availability of learning materials) and three aspects of the social conditions present (family companionship, modeling and encouragement of maturity, and family routines and regulatory activities). In a series of regression analyses, relations between these five conditions of home life were used to predict multiple aspects of adolescent well-being. Specifically, relations were examined pertaining to four aspects of competence (vocabulary attainment, self-control, physical strength, social skills), three positive attitudes (self-efficacy for academic achievement, self-efficacy for enlisting social support, perceived endurance), and two types of behavior problems (sleep problems, externalizing problems). All data were collected during a home visit with the adolescent and at least one parent that lasted about 2 hours. Due to limited sample size (N=54) and concerns about multicollinearity, each regression model included only two aspects of the social conditions present in the home and one aspect of the physical conditions, based on research and theory pertaining to the particular adolescent outcome being examined. As regards adolescent competence, results showed that having a rich array of learning was related to vocabulary attainment; and having high levels of self-control, physical strength, and social skills was associated with family companionship and parental investment in the adolescent. Family companionship was also related to perceived endurance Having parents that provided productive modeling and encouragement was related to self-efficacy for academic achievement and social self-efficacy. Relations were weaker with externalizing problems and sleep problems: but having good household routines and regulations predicted lower levels of both types of behavior problems. What can be concluded from this study of Cherokee families is limited given the relatively small sample and the fact that all lived in Oklahoma. However, the findings are generally consistent with prior research on how to bolster self-reliance in Native American children (Lowe et al., 2009); and findings generally align with propositions from social learning theory (Bandura, 1999) and self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2017). The findings seem meaningful given that having a broad repertoire of positive skills and proclivities can help foster resilience and productive activity for those who may face multiple forms of adversity, such as is often the case with Native Americans. Accordingly, it is important to identify conditions that can support such attributes. Likewise, the findings would seem to have relevance for those working in parenting programs designed to foster well-being for Native American adolescents (Henson et al., 2017).

Author

• Robert H Bradley, Arizona State University
  Presenting Author