Associations between economic stressors, community and cultural connections, and well-being among AIAN children and their families in Region XI AIAN Head Start

• In Event: Exploring Protective Factors for Indigenous Children in the Midst of Economic, Environmental, and Social Stressors

Abstract

Introduction
Community and cultural connections can promote resilience and well-being in American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) communities (Wexler 2014). As more than half of all AIAN children in the U.S. live in or near poverty (Barofsky 2018), these connections may buffer against the consequences of economic stressors. Yet, evidence on associations between economic stressors, community and cultural connections, and the well-being of AIAN children and their families is limited.
The federally-funded Head Start program is designed to promote the social-emotional, physical, and cognitive skills of children who live in or near poverty. Region XI Head Start programs are operated by federally recognized AIAN tribes and serve approximately 20,000 children ages 0 to 5 nationwide. Understanding how economic stressors and community and cultural connections shape well-being will inform how these programs can support children and families.
Research Aims
We will examine the role of community and cultural connections as a buffer for the consequences of economic stressors on the well-being of AIAN children and their families in Region XI Head Start:
1. What types of economic stressors do families of AIAN children in Region XI experience?
2. What types of community and cultural connections do families of AIAN children in Region XI have?
3. Are community and cultural connections associated with the well-being of AIAN children and their families in in Region XI Head Start, accounting for economic stressors?
4. Do economic stressors moderate the association between community and cultural connections with the well-being of AIAN children and their families in Region XI Head Start?
Methods
Analyses will use data from the American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey 2019 (AIAN FACES 2019), a national descriptive study of children participating in Region XI programs. We will use information from 457 AIAN children who were enrolled in Region XI programs in fall 2019; analyses will be weighted to represent all AIAN children enrolled in Region XI programs in fall 2019.
First, we will describe families’ economic stressors (such as experiencing material hardship) and community and cultural connections (such as participation in community cultural activities). Next, we will estimate regression models to examine the association between families’ community and cultural connections and child and family well-being (such as parent depressive symptoms and child health), controlling for economic stressors. Finally, to see if associations vary, we will add interaction terms between families’ community and cultural connections and economic stressors.
Results
Findings in this presentation will focus on AIAN children and their families in Region XI (building on a previous analysis for all of Region XI; Bernstein et al. 2021). We will describe the economic stressors families experience and the community and cultural connections they have. We will examine the associations between these connections and well-being, and how associations vary based on whether families experience economic stress. Findings will add to the research base on connections between cultural identity and well-being that could inform how programs like Head Start can support AIAN children and families.

Group Authors

The AIAN FACES Workgroup

Authors

• Kathryn Gonzalez, Mathematica
  Presenting Author

• Sara Bernstein, Mathematica Policy Research - District of Columbia

• Lizabeth Malone, Mathematica Policy Research - District of Columbia