Childhood socioeconomic status (SES), as measured by parental education and family income, is highly predictive of academic achievement, but little is known about how specific cognitive systems shape SES disparities in achievement outcomes. This study investigated the extent to which executive function (EF) mediated associations between parental…

The current study investigated the longitudinal transactional association among paternal and maternal depressive symptoms and child internalizing and externalizing difficulties. Data were collected on preschool- to adolescent-age youth via a total of six assessments. The sample (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development [NICHD]…

We evaluated maternal gatekeeping attitudes as a mediator of the relation between marital problems and father-child relationships in 3 waves when children were in Grades 7-10. We assessed each parent's contribution to the marital problems experienced by the couple. Findings from mediational and cross-lagged structural equation models revealed that…

The current study uses Garcia Coll et al.'s (1996) developmental competence model of ethnic minority children and Kim's (1999) racial triangulation theory as frameworks for investigating the mechanisms whereby early adolescent English proficiency relates to perceived discriminatory experiences and adolescent depressive symptoms. Data from 444…

Background: Multiculturalism has been purported to be supportive of positive youth development and outcomes. This study examined the relationship between perceived school multiculturalism--whether youth felt and thought that their school and teachers supported and provided activities for diverse intergroup interactions--and serious interpersonal…

Past research documents that both adolescent gender nonconformity and the experience of school victimization are associated with high rates of negative psychosocial adjustment. Using data from the Family Acceptance Project's young adult survey, we examined associations among retrospective reports of adolescent gender nonconformity and adolescent…

Background: Testing, refining, and tailoring theoretical approaches that are hypothesized to reduce sexual risk behaviors among adolescent subpopulations is an important task. Relatively little is known about the relationship between components of the information-motivation-behavior (IMB) model and sexual behaviors among underage minority youth.…

Introduction: Driven by an overarching conceptual framework adapted from Self-Determination Theory, this study tested the direct and indirect effects of perceived parental academia autonomy support vs. academic planning control on the interrelated variables of adolescents' self-esteem, academic motivation, and academic achievement, using…

The present study investigated how maternal HIV and mediating family processes are associated with adolescent distress, substance use, and risky sexual behavior. Mother-adolescent (ages 12-21) dyads (N = 264) were recruited from neighborhoods where the HIV-affected families resided (161 had mothers with HIV). Mediating family processes were youth…

We investigated the direct and indirect pathways through which parental constructive behavior may influence the adolescent's affiliation with achievement-oriented peers. Using a longitudinal survey data set from nine California and Wisconsin high schools (from 9th through 12th grades, with an approximate age range from 14 through 18) structural…

The current study findings refute the recent claim that marginality theory lacks construct validity. Cultural marginalization is significantly related to depressive symptoms in Korean American, Chinese American, and Japanese American parents and adolescents living in the United States. Correlational analyses indicate that adolescents' depressive…