Inaugural editorial for Journal of Counseling Psychology

The Journal of Counseling Psychology serves as the premier journal for critical and rigorous research within the field and beyond. In their inaugural editorial for Journa, Liu is joined by their associated editors and inaugural JCP fellows who have agreed to share authorship and their positionalities. In considering the Journal of Counseling Psychology for research, the editors encourage authors to reflect on these positionalities and how they might integrate their own into their publications. The editorial provides direction and some suggestions on submitted articles and research directions for JCP in the following areas: positionality and critical reflexivity; theoretical and conceptual advancement and clarity; body ideas, frameworks, and conceptualization; data clarity; and cultural validity of research instruments. The editors look forward to working with their communities as they transform their scholarship. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Family asthma management and physical activity among urban children

INTRODUCTION

Urban, low-income, and Black and Latino children with asthma experience higher morbidity and poorer outcomes compared to their suburban, higher-income, and non-Latino White counterparts. This risk is further compounded by higher rates of co-occurring overweight or obesity. Physical activity contributes to both asthma and overweight/obesity status, however, little is known about factors that may promote/limit physical activity among youth from low-income, urban, and racial/ethnic backgrounds. This study evaluates associations between asthma management behaviors and physical activity among a sample of racially/ethnically diverse youth with asthma of both healthy weight and overweight/obesity status.

METHOD

147 children with asthma (Mage = 8.3; 50% overweight/obese status, 58% Hispanic/Latino, and 26% Black) and their families completed the Family Asthma Management System Scale (FAMSS; McQuaid et al., 2005) between 2013 and 2015. Physical activity was measured with waist-worn accelerometers. Differences in FAMSS scores by physical activity levels and associations between FAMSS scores and physical activity for the total sample and by race/ethnicity and weight status were evaluated.

RESULTS

Children who met recommended physical activity guidelines had higher FAMSS "medication adherence", t(89) = -2.04, p < .05, and "collaboration with health care provider", t(89) = -2.09, p < .05. More optimal "environmental control" related to lower levels of physical activity (β = -.21, p < .05) while more optimal "medication adherence" was associated with higher levels of physical activity (β = .21, p < .05). Differences in these associations were identified by race/ethnicity, though not weight status.

CONCLUSIONS

Asthma management behaviors were associated with physical activity, with notable differences by race/ethnicity. Tailored interventions simultaneously addressing multiple health behaviors may be warranted. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Community Health Workers' Role in Supporting Pediatric Asthma Management: A Review

Objective

Community Health Workers (CHWs) have been effective in improving health outcomes in vulnerable communities by providing health education and management services. We review CHW-led asthma education and management interventions for children and their families. Next, we describe the selection and training of CHWs in pediatric asthma management in the Rhode Island Integrated Response Asthma Care Implementation Program (RI-AIR).

Methods

We queried the MEDLine, Cochrane, PubMed, and EMBASE databases with keywords ("community health worker", "asthma", "health worker", "lay worker", "pediatric", "child", and "childhood") from inception until September 2019. Criteria for study inclusion included: published in English, conducted in the United States, approved with an ethics notification, published in peer-reviewed journal, and involved CHWs as the interventionists. The initial search identified 216 manuscripts. Fifteen studies met criteria for inclusion.

Results

CHWs provide asthma management and education services, including home environmental trigger assessments, strategies to reduce environmental trigger exposure, resource linkage, and community referrals. We describe RI-AIR, and its CHW-led asthma education and management interventions.

Conclusions

CHWs are effective and vital supports for positive asthma outcomes. More research is needed to guide models of intervention using CHWs, specifically addressing integration in interdisciplinary teams, training, and reimbursement for CHW services.

Implications for Impact Statement

CHWs are effective in helping children with asthma and their families learn to manage asthma. It is important to develop programs that prepare CHWs to work with other medical professionals and health care models to pay for their services.

Urban caregiver empowerment: Caregiver nativity, child-asthma symptoms, and emergency-department use

INTRODUCTION

In this study, we examined the associations between caregiver empowerment, child-asthma symptoms, and emergency-department (ED) use in a sample of school-age urban children with asthma. We examined differences in caregiver empowerment, and in the associations among caregiver empowerment, proportion of days with child-asthma symptoms, and ED use as a function of caregiver nativity.

METHOD

Participants for this study were part of a larger longitudinal study and included Latino, African American and non-Latino White urban caregivers and their children with asthma (ages 7-9; N = 130). Caregiver empowerment was assessed within family, asthma services, and community domains.

RESULTS

Children whose caregivers reported greater empowerment within the family (i.e., possessing sufficient knowledge and ability to care for their families) presented with fewer asthma symptoms. Children whose caregivers reported greater empowerment within asthma services (i.e., the ability to collaborate with asthma providers and the health-care system), presented with more asthma symptoms. Foreign-born caregivers endorsed greater empowerment within the family, whereas U.S.-born caregivers reported greater empowerment within asthma services. For foreign-born caregivers, higher levels of empowerment in the family were associated with fewer child-asthma symptoms. For U.S.-born caregivers, higher levels of empowerment in asthma services were associated with more child-asthma symptoms.

DISCUSSION

Results suggest that caregivers who feel more confident and better able to manage problems within their families may better manage their children's asthma symptoms. Foreign-born caregivers may benefit from increased support to more effectively navigate the asthma health-care system and manage their children's asthma. (PsycINFO Database Record

Factors associated with recruitment and retention of diverse children with asthma

This study examines factors associated with recruitment and retention of Latino, Dominican (DR) and mainland Puerto Rican (PR), and non-Latino white (NLW) families into a pediatric asthma study. Over eleven hundred (n=1185) families were screened, and 489 (n= 174 NLW, n= 160 DR, n= 155 PR) were enrolled. Rates of recruitment by source of recruitment and rates of retention differed by ethnic group. Families whose caregiver had never married had lower odds of completing the study. The findings highlight the need for further study to examine the effectiveness of specific recruitment and retention strategies with Latino and non-Latino white families.

Black Immigrants and School Engagement

School engagement is an important contributor to students’ academic success; however, the available literature on the school engagement of Black immigrants is limited. This study examined the associations between school engagement, perceived ethnic discrimination, ethnic identity, and American identity in a sample of first- and second-generation immigrants of African descent. A total of 125 Cape Verdean high school students (aged 13-19 years) participated in the study. Results indicate that American identity moderated the association between perceived ethnic discrimination and school engagement. American identity buffered the effect of perceived ethnic discrimination on engagement in school. The findings highlight the need to consider Black immigrant students’ identification with American culture in developing interventions aimed at enhancing school engagement.

Cape Verdean Immigrants’ Career Development and School Engagement

This study examined the contribution of perceptions of discrimination, career planning, and vocational identity to the school engagement experiences of first- and second-generation immigrants among a sample of 125 Cape Verdean high school students. Perceived ethnic discrimination was found to moderate the association between both vocational factors and school engagement. Students who perceived high levels of discrimination and endorsed a strong vocational identity also endorsed high levels of school engagement. When endorsing high levels of career planning, individuals reporting different levels of perceived discrimination did not differ in school engagement. However, large differences in school engagement were noted at low levels of career planning, with individuals reporting low levels of perceived discrimination endorsing higher engagement in school than those who perceived higher levels of discrimination. The findings highlight the importance of considering perceptions of ethnic discrimination as one explores the academic and vocational functioning of immigrant students of color.

The home environment and family asthma management among ethnically diverse urban youth with asthma

Although the pediatric psychology literature underscores the importance of illness-related aspects of the home environment for optimal family asthma management, little is known about the contribution of more global aspects of the home environment (e.g., family routines/schedule, quality of stimulation provided to child) to asthma management in ethnic minority and urban families. The goals of this study were to (a) explore ethnic/racial group differences in global and specific dimensions of home environment quality among Latino, non-Latino White (NLW), and African American urban children with asthma; and (b) examine associations between the quality and quantity of support and stimulation within the home environment, as measured by the HOME Inventory, and family asthma management. Urban, low-income children (N = 131) between the ages of 6 and 13 with asthma and a primary caregiver participated in a multimodal assessment, including an in-home observation and semistructured interviews to assess aspects of home environment quality and family asthma management practices. While controlling for poverty, no ethnic group differences were found in the global home environment; however, there were significant differences in specific dimensions (e.g., Family Participation in Developmentally Stimulating Experiences, and Aspects of the Physical Environment) of home environment quality. Across the whole sample, home environment quality predicted family asthma management. When examining this association for specific ethnic groups, this finding did not hold for the Latino subsample. The results highlight the need to consider ethnic group differences in non-illness-specific aspects of the home environment when addressing families' asthma management strategies.

Contextual and cultural risks and their association with family asthma management in urban children

This study examines the association between caregivers' perceptions of home and neighborhood safety on family asthma management in the context of cultural risk factors (e.g., discrimination and acculturative stress) in a sample of urban and ethnic minority families. Participants included 147 children (ages 6-13) and their primary caregiver from Latino, African American and Non-Latino White (NLW) backgrounds. When controlling for poverty, caregivers' perceptions of home and neighborhood safety predicted family asthma management for the overall sample and for the NLW families. Additionally, for caregivers who endorsed higher levels of perceived discrimination, home and neighborhood safety predicted family asthma management. This study demonstrates the utility of considering caregivers' perceptions of home and neighborhood safety when examining urban families' day-to-day engagement with asthma management tasks.