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DeJoseph ML, Ellwood-Lowe ME, Miller-Cotto D, Silverman D, Shannon KA, Reyes G, Rakesh D, Frankenhuis WE. The promise and pitfalls of a strength-based approach to child poverty and neurocognitive development: Implications for policy. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2024; 66:101375. [PMID: 38608359 PMCID: PMC11019102 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2024.101375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024] Open
Abstract
There has been significant progress in understanding the effects of childhood poverty on neurocognitive development. This progress has captured the attention of policymakers and promoted progressive policy reform. However, the prevailing emphasis on the harms associated with childhood poverty may have inadvertently perpetuated a deficit-based narrative, focused on the presumed shortcomings of children and families in poverty. This focus can have unintended consequences for policy (e.g., overlooking strengths) as well as public discourse (e.g., focusing on individual rather than systemic factors). Here, we join scientists across disciplines in arguing for a more well-rounded, "strength-based" approach, which incorporates the positive and/or adaptive developmental responses to experiences of social disadvantage. Specifically, we first show the value of this approach in understanding normative brain development across diverse human environments. We then highlight its application to educational and social policy, explore pitfalls and ethical considerations, and offer practical solutions to conducting strength-based research responsibly. Our paper re-ignites old and recent calls for a strength-based paradigm shift, with a focus on its application to developmental cognitive neuroscience. We also offer a unique perspective from a new generation of early-career researchers engaged in this work, several of whom themselves have grown up in conditions of poverty. Ultimately, we argue that a balanced strength-based scientific approach will be essential to building more effective policies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - David Silverman
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, United States
| | | | - Gabriel Reyes
- Graduate School of Education, Stanford University, United States
| | - Divyangana Rakesh
- Neuroimaging Department, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, UK
| | - Willem E Frankenhuis
- Evolutionary and Population Biology, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security, and Law, Germany
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Blakey AO, Lavarin C, Brochier A, Amaro CM, Eilenberg JS, Kavanagh PL, Garg A, Drainoni ML, Long KA. Effects of Experienced Discrimination in Pediatric Sickle Cell Disease: Caregiver and Provider Perspectives. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities 2023; 10:3095-3106. [PMID: 36536165 PMCID: PMC10645630 DOI: 10.1007/s40615-022-01483-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2022] [Revised: 11/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
For Black children with sickle cell disease (SCD) and their families, high disease stigmatization and pervasive racism increase susceptibility to discrimination in healthcare settings. Childhood experiences of discrimination can result in medical nonadherence, mistrust of healthcare providers, and poorer health outcomes across the lifespan. Caregivers and medical providers are essential to childhood SCD management and are therefore well-positioned to provide insight into discrimination in the context of pediatric SCD. This mixed-methods study sought caregivers' and providers' perspectives on processes underlying discrimination and potential solutions to mitigate the negative effects of perceived discrimination among children with SCD. Caregivers (N = 27) of children with SCD (≤ 12 years old) and providers from their hematology clinics (N = 11) participated in individual semi-structured interviews exploring experiences of discrimination and daily SCD management and completed a quantitative measure of discrimination. Qualitative data were collected until themes reached saturation and subsequently transcribed verbatim, coded, and analyzed using applied thematic analysis. Quantitative and qualitative data converged to suggest the pervasiveness of discrimination in healthcare settings. Three qualitative themes emerged: (1) healthcare system factors underlie discrimination, (2) families' challenging interactions with providers lead to perceptions of discrimination, and (3) experiences of discrimination impact caregiver-provider interactions. Both caregivers and providers highlighted building trusting patient-provider relationships and encouraging patients' self-advocacy as means to reduce experiences and impacts of discrimination. These findings offer potential approaches to tangibly mitigate occurrences of discrimination in pediatric healthcare settings by trust building, accountability keeping, and fostering rapport to improve quality of care and pediatric SCD health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ariel O Blakey
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Claudine Lavarin
- Department of Health Law, Policy and Management, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
| | | | - Christina M Amaro
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Behavioral Health and the Center for Healthcare Delivery Science, Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware, Wilmington, DE, USA
| | | | - Patricia L Kavanagh
- Department of Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Arvin Garg
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Massachusetts Memorial Health, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Mari-Lynn Drainoni
- Department of Health Law, Policy and Management, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kristin A Long
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
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Walton GM, Yeager DS. Wise interventions consider the person and the situation together. Behav Brain Sci 2023; 46:e179. [PMID: 37646310 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x23001176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Chater & Loewenstein (C&L) ignore the long history by which social scientists have developed more nuanced and ultimately more helpful ways to understand the relationship between persons and situations. This tradition is reflected and advanced in a large literature on "wise" social-psychological or mindset interventions, which C&L do not discuss yet mischaracterize.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory M Walton
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA ; http://gregorywalton-stanford.weebly.com/
| | - David S Yeager
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA ; https://txbspi.prc.utexas.edu/
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An Organizing Framework for Teaching Practices that Can “Expand” the Self and Address Social Identity Concerns. EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY REVIEW 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s10648-022-09715-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Okonofua JA, Harris LT, Walton GM. Sidelining Bias: A Situationist Approach to Reduce the Consequences of Bias in Real-World Contexts. CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.1177/09637214221102422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
It has become common practice to conceptualize bias as an automatic response, cultivated through exposure to bias in society. From this perspective, combating bias requires reducing a proclivity for bias within individuals, as in many implicit-bias training efforts common in schools and corporations. We introduce an alternative approach that begins with the presumption that people are inherently complex, with multiple, often contradictory, selves and goals. When the person is conceptualized this way, it is possible to ask when biased selves are likely to emerge and whether this bias can be sidelined—that is, whether situations can be altered in potent ways that elevate alternative selves and goals that people will endorse and for which bias would be nonfunctional. Using both classic and contemporary examples, we show how sidelining bias has led to meaningful improvements in real-world outcomes, including higher academic achievement and reduced school suspensions, less recidivism to jail, and less stereotyping in mass advertisements.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lasana T. Harris
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London
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Quinn CR, Duprey EB, Boyd DT, Lynch R, Mitchell M, Ross A, Handley ED, Cerulli C. Individual and Contextual Risk and Protective Factors for Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors among Black Adolescents with Arrest Histories. CHILDREN (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 9:522. [PMID: 35455566 PMCID: PMC9028566 DOI: 10.3390/children9040522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Revised: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Black adolescents in the United States have experienced an increase in suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs). Since Black adolescents are overrepresented in the youth punishment system, more research is needed to investigate correlates of STBs for this population. The purpose of this paper is to explore and establish correlates of individual, family, and community risk and protective factors and their relationship to lifetime STBs in a national sample of Black youth with arrest histories. Guided by an intersectional eco-behavioral lens, we investigated individual, family and contextual risk and protective factors for STBs among a national sample of justice-involved Black youth aged 12-17 with a history of arrest (n = 513). We used logistic regression models to test risk and protective factors for STBs. Among the sample, 9.78% endorsed suicidal ideation, and 7.17% endorsed a previous suicide attempt. Further, gender (female) and depression severity were risk factors for STBs, while positive parenting and religiosity were protective factors for STBs. School engagement was associated with lower levels of suicidal ideation. The findings suggest suicide prevention and intervention efforts should identify developmentally salient risk and protective factors to reduce mental health burden associated with STBs and concurrent alleged law-breaking activity of Black youth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille R. Quinn
- College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (D.T.B.); (R.L.); (M.M.)
| | - Erinn B. Duprey
- Mt. Hope Family Center, Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, USA; (E.B.D.); (A.R.); (E.D.H.)
| | - Donte T. Boyd
- College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (D.T.B.); (R.L.); (M.M.)
| | - Raven Lynch
- College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (D.T.B.); (R.L.); (M.M.)
| | - Micah Mitchell
- College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; (D.T.B.); (R.L.); (M.M.)
| | - Andrew Ross
- Mt. Hope Family Center, Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, USA; (E.B.D.); (A.R.); (E.D.H.)
| | - Elizabeth D. Handley
- Mt. Hope Family Center, Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, USA; (E.B.D.); (A.R.); (E.D.H.)
| | - Catherine Cerulli
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center & Susan B. Anthony Center, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14642, USA;
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Okonofua JA, Goyer JP, Lindsay CA, Haugabrook J, Walton GM. A scalable empathic-mindset intervention reduces group disparities in school suspensions. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabj0691. [PMID: 35319976 PMCID: PMC8942350 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abj0691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2021] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Suspensions remove students from the learning environment at high rates throughout the United States. Policy and theory highlight social groups that face disproportionately high suspension rates-racial-minoritized students, students with a prior suspension, and students with disabilities. We used an active placebo-controlled, longitudinal field experiment (Nteachers = 66, Nstudents = 5822) to test a scalable "empathic-mindset" intervention, a 45- to 70-min online exercise to refocus middle school teachers on understanding and valuing the perspectives of students and on sustaining positive relationships even when students misbehave. In preregistered analyses, this exercise reduced suspension rates especially for Black and Hispanic students, cutting the racial disparity over the school year from 10.6 to 5.9 percentage points, a 45% reduction. Significant reductions were also observed for other groups of concern. Moreover, reductions persisted through the next year when students interacted with different teachers, suggesting that empathic treatment with even one teacher in a critical period can improve students' trajectories through school.
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