(PS6-22) Racial Differences in Social and Contextual Determinants of Adolescent Behavioral Problems

Dissecting social and contextual factors that influence the development of behavioral problems in adolescence presents the opportunity for targeted proactive intervention. Research has long noted the influence of social (e.g., peer relationships, family dynamics) and contextual (e.g., physical environment) factors on well-being throughout the lifespan. However, as the factors are largely affected by structural inequities in the United States, it is crucial to disassemble group differences. Inequities thereby create health disparities for Black youth and families, warranting the need for psychological research to identify and incorporate such context into clinical practice. Thus, the present study decomposed focal causes of Black-White differences in externalizing problems amongst adolescents residing in the United States, with a key focus on parental incarceration, parent stress, and parent-child relationships quality. As prior research has noted the disproportionate concentration of early life stress amongst Black youth, it was hypothesized that early childhood (aged 0-5) exposure to incarceration, parental stress, and parent-child relationship quality would largely account for group differences in externalizing problems in adolescence. Participants included (N = 1,881) Black and White 15 year-old adolescents (50.29% female, 49.71% male; 72.57% Black, 27.43% White). Externalizing behaviors at age 15 were measured by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) externalizing subscales (i.e., rule-breaking, aggressive behavior). Parent stress at age 9 was measured by the Aggravation in Parenting Scale. Parent-Child relationship quality at age 9 was a latent concept measuring closeness, reciprocal parent-child communication (e.g., healthy conversation, exchanging ideas), and parental knowledge of child’s social life. Parental incarceration exposure was included up until age 5, as reported by primary caregivers. Unadjusted logistic regression revealed that Black adolescents had significantly greater odds of externalizing problems at age 15 compared to White adolescents (OR = 1.83; 95% CI: 1.32-2.53), 16.4% (Black) vs 9.69% (White). In stratified logistic models, Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition models showed that approximately 30% of the Black-White difference in externalizing problems could be explained by exposure to parental incarceration before age 5, 3% by parental stress and 13% by parent-child relationship quality. Results indicate that approximately 1/3 of racial differences in behavioral problems amongst Black and White adolescents can be attributed to the disproportionate concentration of parental incarceration amongst Black families. This result calls in the importance of systems-level change as it relates to the large public health concern that mass incarceration poses. Incorporating systems-level understandings of health disparities for Black youth and families in the U.S. may further the reach of clinical practice to mitigate risk, proactively address structural barriers to quality care, and expand the horizon of trauma assessment within the broader societal context for the ultimate goal of health promotion.