Inside Iowa State

March 11, 2005

Study of African American families, discrimination enters 10th year

by Kevin Brown

A majority of African American children in Iowa and Georgia report experiencing some racial discrimination by age 11. However, strong community, family and extended family relationships tend to blunt the potential negative impact of those experiences, according to researchers at Iowa State and the University of Georgia, Athens.

Carolyn Cutrona, director of Iowa State's Institute for Social and Behavioral Research and professor of psychology; Rick Gibbons, ISU professor of psychology; and Ron Simons, professor of sociology at Georgia; are in the third stage of a study of black families, initiated in 1995.

The study follows 900 African American families in Iowa and Georgia. The families have diverse educational and socioeconomic backgrounds. The study focuses on factors that influence the mental and physical health of black families.

"This is the largest study ever conducted with African American families assessed repeatedly over time," Cutrona said. "As we begin our fourth round of interviews with the group, we have retained more than 90 percent of the original participants over eight years."

"Discrimination is the strongest predictor of drug and alcohol use in our sample, even when controlling for other factors usually associated with use, such as financial problems or availability of substances in the neighborhood," Gibbons said. "Those participants who reported a great deal of exposure to prejudice were four times more likely than the rest of the sample to abuse drugs or alcohol."

However, a positive home environment or a positive role model at home -- in the form of an older sibling who is not abusing substances -- buffers against even strong peer pressure to begin using, Gibbons said.

High involvement and nurturing by parents also counter social pressures to use drugs and alcohol.

In spite of the stress associated with racial discrimination, black children tend to use drugs and drink less than whites, Gibbons said. That's largely due to the support and strength of the African American family.

The research also indicates discrimination increases a child's risk for depression; the likelihood that a child will develop angry, hostile views of people; and the chances that he or she will engage in delinquent behaviors, especially acts of violence.

The researchers hope to extend the study another five years to follow the children as they enter adulthood.

A recent study shows a majority of African American children in Iowa and Georgia report experiencing some racial discrimination by age 11. However, strong community, family and extended family relationships tend to blunt the potential negative impact of those experiences, according to researchers at Iowa State University and the University of Georgia.