Targeting the Proximal Mechanisms of Stress Adaptation in Early Adolescence to Prevent Mental Health Problems in Youth in Poverty.

Objective: This study used a randomized clinical trial design to evaluate the success with which The Building a Strong Identity and Coping Skills intervention (BaSICS) engaged the proximal mechanisms of poverty-related stress's impact on the psychosocial functioning and mental health of young adolescents living in high poverty contexts.

Method: 129 youth from very low-income families were randomized to receive the 32-hour group-based intervention or no-treatment control - 16 of these families withdrew before the intervention groups began. The remaining 113 youth aged 11-12 (53% assigned to intervention; 54% female; 40% Hispanic, 63% Black, 20% White) participated in the study, which included four assessment waves: pretest, posttest, 6-month follow-up and 12-month follow-up assessments.

Reducing the Biological and Psychological Toxicity of Poverty-related Stress: Initial Efficacy of the BaSICS Intervention for Early Adolescents.

This proof-of-concept study tests the initial efficacy of the Building a Strong Identity and Coping Skills (BaSICS) intervention, a selective prevention of internalizing problems program for early adolescents exposed to high levels of poverty-related stress. Eighty-four early adolescents (M  = 11.36 years) residing in very low-income neighborhoods were randomized to receive the 16-session intervention (n = 44) or to an assessment-only control condition (n = 40).

Co-activation of SAM and HPA responses to acute stress: A review of the literature and test of differential associations with preadolescents' internalizing and externalizing.

Understanding co-activation patterns of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) and sympathetic adrenal medullary (SAM) during early adolescence may illuminate risk for development of internalizing and externalizing problems. The present study advances empirical work on the topic by examining SAM-HPA co-activation during both the reactivity and recovery phases of the stress response following acute stress exposure. Fourth and fifth grade boys and girls (N = 149) provided cortisol and alpha-amylase via saliva at seven times throughout a 95-min assessment in which they were administered the modified Trier Social Stress Test.

Future Directions in Research and Intervention with Youths in Poverty.

This article aims to integrate theory and empirical findings about understanding and fostering the process of resilience and adaptation in children and families who live in poverty. In this article, we draw from multiple, somewhat distinct, scholarly streams to identify sources of protection, integrating across the literatures on stress and coping, psychophysiology, cultural identity development, and empowerment theory. Because living in poverty cuts across other dimensions of social differentiation and structural inequality, intersectionality theory frames our discussion of how to leverage poverty-affected youths' diverse experiences.

Unlocking the Black Box: A Multilevel Analysis of Preadolescent Children's Coping.

This random assignment experimental study examined the intersection of children's coping and physiologic stress reactivity and recovery patterns in a sample of preadolescent boys and girls. A sample of 82 fourth-grade and fifth-grade (M = 10.59 years old) child-parent dyads participated in the present study.

Forgiving the September 11th terrorists: associations with coping, psychological distress, and religiosity.

Two studies examined how non-interpersonal forgiveness (when there is no social relationship between the transgressor and forgiver) related to coping and involuntary responses to stress, psychological distress, and religiosity. Three to six weeks after September 11th, 2001, forgiveness had non-linear associations with other responses to the terrorist attacks. Among college students (N=488), those who were trying or had forgiven (pro-forgiveness) the terrorists reported less involuntary engagement, more primary and secondary control coping, and more meaning finding than those who were unsure about forgiveness (ambivalent) and those who did not believe the perpetrators should be forgiven (anti-forgiveness).