The influence of coping strategies on quality of life in a community facing environmental and economic threats
Abstract
The study investigated the quality of life in a community facing a technological disaster causing environmental and economic damages. For years, the Italian city of Taranto has based its economy on a big steel plant. The industrial plant caused severe environmental pollution, negatively affecting the health of residents living in an area of the city. The steel mill is now under judicial investigation and may be closed in the future, causing the loss of jobs for many citizens. By means of a questionnaire, we investigated the influence of coping strategies on quality of life and place attachment and the effects of b...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - November 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Stefano Tartaglia, Enrica Conte, Chiara Rollero, Norma Piccoli Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Altruism as a buffer for antisocial behavior for African American adolescents exposed to community violence
Abstract
Altruistic prosocial behavior during adolescence is consistently associated with a myriad of positive outcomes including fewer risk‐taking behaviors and greater positive affect. Although limited, some literature suggests altruism may be an important protective factor in attenuating the effects of stressful life events such as exposure to community violence. Unfortunately, work examining altruism in African American adolescents is quite limited. The study examined the moderating role of altruism on relationships between exposure to violence and antisocial behavior in a sample of African American adolescents (136 ...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - November 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Jennifer Bryant Rious, Michael Cunningham Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Investigating motivation and engagement in an urban afterschool arts and leadership program
Abstract
Despite the potential benefits of afterschool arts‐based programs on development, urban youth in low‐income areas are unlikely to participate in these activities. The aim of the current study was to investigate motivation and engagement in an arts and leadership afterschool program among 10 urban, predominantly African American youth. We took a mixed‐methods approach, as limited research has examined motivational processes in arts‐based programs. Youth identified program content, staff, and peers as important sources of motivation. Specifically, the program leader played multiple roles in youths’ lives, ...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - November 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: He Len Chung, Bentrice Jusu, Kirsten Christensen, Pierre Venescar, Dan ‐anh Tran Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
‘You opened my mind’: Latinx immigrant and receiving community interactional dynamics in the United States
This study seeks to illuminate immigrant and receiving community member relations by exploring what factors play a role in each group's attitudes and actions toward, and experiences with, one another. Thirty first‐ and second‐generation immigrants from Latin America and 30 third‐generation or more U.S.‐born respondents participated in semistructured interviews, which were thematically analyzed. Results indicated that while both intergroup contact (Allport, 1954) and the formation of common in‐group identities (Gaertner, Dovidio, & Bachman, 1996) helped to create positive intergroup relations, numerous persona...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - November 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Sara L. Buckingham, Lindsay Emery, Surbhi Godsay, Anne E. Brodsky, Jill E. Scheibler Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Young sexual minority women's definition of community: Toward addressing health disparities in the LGBTQQ community
Abstract
In accord with Healthy People 2020 goals, the elimination of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQQ) health disparities will require community‐level strategies to address stigma, discrimination, and prejudice linked to poor health. We explored how young sexual minority women (YSMW) define LGBTQQ community, community connection, community engagement, and community tensions because these concepts have implications for development and evaluation of health disparities interventions. A total of 30 YSMW (aged 18–24 years) from Michigan participated in semistructured, in‐depth interview...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - November 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Patrina Sexton, Dalmacio Flores, Jos é Bauermeister Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Relationships between family structure, adolescent health status and substance use: Does ethnicity matter?
We examined the variations of adolescent health status and risk involvement– prevalence of mental health disabilities, chronic health conditions, substance use, and exposure to tobacco–between 6 family structures in a school‐based sample of Latino, Somali, Hmong, and White students and whether ethnicity moderated these associations. Data were collected from the 2013 Minnesota Student Survey, comprising a sample of 29,345 from 8th, 9th, and 11th grades. Logistic regression investigated relationships between family structure and health variables. Adolescents in nuclear families reported better health outcomes in most ...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - November 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Eunice M. Areba, Marla E. Eisenberg, Barbara J. McMorris Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Issue information
(Source: Journal of Community Psychology)
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - October 31, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Tags: ISSUE INFORMATION Source Type: research
Validating the formative nature of psychological empowerment construct: Testing cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and relational empowerment components
Abstract
The literature has recently raised the need to clarify the nature of psychological empowerment. There are theoretical and empirical evidences that this conceptualization may not be appropriate, and therefore other alternatives to the reflective measurement model should be considered. Consequently, serious problems may arise from the measurement model misspecification, undoubtedly compromising the development of empowerment theory and measurement. This empirical study constitutes an attempt to contribute to this debate, not only testing both reflective and formative models of psychological empowerment, to find the ...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - October 10, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Mariana Rodrigues, Isabel Menezes, Pedro D. Ferreira Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Interdependent self ‐construal matters in the community context: Relationships of self‐construal with community identity and participation
Abstract
Two studies investigate the relationship between self‐construal (SC), community identity, and community participation among Chinese urban residents. Study 1 (n = 261) measured SC, community identity, and community participation behavior. Using cluster analysis, 4 distinct subgroups emerged: those with (a) independent SC, (b) interdependent SC, (c) dual SC, and (d) marginal SC. Results indicated that individuals in the interdependent SC subgroup reported higher community identity, particularly emotional identity, and more participation behavior than those in the independent and dual SC subgroups. Study 2 (n =...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - October 10, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Ziqiang Xin, Zhixu Yang, Xihuan Ling Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Understanding the influence of resilience for people with a lived experience of mental illness: A self ‐determination theory perspective
This study aimed to determine whether key basic psychological needs influence resilience among people with a lived experience of mental illness. A total of 159 consumers with a lived experience of mental illness completed self‐report surveys measuring resilience and the basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) espoused in self‐determination theory. A 2‐step analysis was conducted, including Pearson product correlations and stepwise multiple regression. Higher levels of relatedness significantly predicted resilience. Competence and autonomy did not have a significant influence on resilience. R...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - September 9, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Dana Perlman, Christopher Patterson, Lorna Moxham, Ellie K. Taylor, Renee Brighton, Susan Sumskis, Tim Heffernan Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Cultural stressors, identity development, and substance use attitudes among Hispanic immigrant adolescents
Abstract
The goal of this investigation was to determine whether various cultural stressors (bicultural stress, perceived discrimination, and perceived negative context of reception [PNCR]) predict positive and negative substance use attitudes, directly and indirectly through personal identity, in a sample of immigrant Hispanic adolescents. Data on cultural stressors, substance use attitudes, and covariates were collected from 302 Hispanic immigrant adolescents (152 from Miami [61% Cuban] and 150 from Los Angeles [70% Mexican]) at 3 time points. PNCR was associated with identity confusion (β = .175, p = .033). Identit...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - September 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Timothy J. Grigsby, Myriam Forster, Alan Meca, Byron Zamboanga, Seth J. Schwartz, Jennifer B. Unger Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
A longitudinal investigation of the psychological health of United States Air Force base communities
Abstract
The longitudinal course of the psychological health (PH) of United States Air Force (USAF) base communities in relation to risk and demographic factors was studied over a 5‐year period. PH (clinically significant hazardous drinking, prescription drug misuse, depressive symptoms, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, intimate partner violence [IPV] and child abuse) and risk (personal and family adjustment, workplace adjustment, broader community adjustment) and demographic factors (age and gender distribution) were operationalized at the aggregate level for bases (N = 77) as measured in three large scale surveys of ...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - September 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Michael F. Lorber, Richard E. Heyman, Amy M. Smith Slep Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
In it together: Exploring how belonging to a youth activist group enhances well ‐being
This study aimed to address this gap by exploring how being an activist as a teenager can positively affect personal development and well‐being. Seven focus groups comprising adolescent human rights activists were conducted in classrooms throughout the United Kingdom. Inductive thematic analysis was used to identify four dominant themes–A place to go, Power in numbers, Skilling‐up, and In it together—which are discussed in relation to existing literature. Because findings from this study suggest that there are a number of positive psychological benefits to being a youth activist, implications for psychology and you...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - September 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Anne C. Montague, Francisco Jose Eiroa ‐Orosa Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Measuring citizenship among U.S. veterans with chronic mental illness: A psychometric evaluation
Abstract
Many U.S. military veterans experience difficulties reintegrating into civilian society after their military service, especially veterans with chronic mental illness. Few studies have examined the sense of citizenship among veterans and citizenship has rarely been examined in psychological studies. As part of a larger experimental trial, this study piloted the Yale Citizenship Scale on a sample of 199 U.S. veterans with chronic mental illness in Connecticut and Houston. A factor analysis found that the scale comprised 7 factors labeled as Personal Responsibilities, Government and Infrastructure, Caring by Others, ...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - September 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Jack Tsai, Laurie Harkness, Katelyn Kang, Mary Sperrazza Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
Neighborhood sexual violence moderates women's perceived safety in urban neighborhoods
Abstract
Perceptions of neighborhood safety are positively associated with perceptions of neighborhood violence. However, research has yet to examine whether specific types of violence such as sexual violence moderate this relationship that are more salient for women. Using street‐intercept interviews with 343 adults in 9 neighborhoods of a U.S. city with high rates of poverty, unemployment, and crime, we examine the relationship of perceived neighborhood violence to perceived safety in the context of gender while controlling for neighborhood assets that moderate perceptions of neighborhood safety and violence. We hypoth...
Source: Journal of Community Psychology - September 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Erin E. Hoffman, Tanisha T. M. Mair, Bronwyn A. Hunter, Dana M. Prince, Jacob Kraemer Tebes Tags: ARTICLE Source Type: research
