Mia A. Smith-Bynum

Objective: To identify and conceptualize parent–child interactions about cisgender sexual minority youths' (SMY) minoritized sexual identity, with an explicit focus on parenting communication and behaviors. Background: SMY experience stigma and consequently compromised development and health. Adjacent literature on racial/ethnic minoritized youth demonstrates the protective function of identity‐based parenting practices that facilitate adaptive strategies to combat the deleterious effects of stigma. Method: Using data from cisgender SMY in the LGBTQ+ Youth in Family Study, we conducted a constructivist grounded theory analysis of 90‐min semi‐structured interviews with cisgender SMY ( n = 18) aged 15–19 and, separately, their cisgender, heterosexual parent(s) ( n = 17). During analysis, the coders developed process, dyadic, and coding memos to increase rigor and interpret findings within and across individuals and family systems. Results: We identified seven overarching categories that illuminate parents' processes, interactions, and dynamics with their SMY child: Forecasting LGBTQ+ attitudes pre‐disclosure, communicating around sexuality, intervening in sexual identity development, addressing heterosexism, engaging with the LGBTQ+ community, communicating values, and demonstrating personal growth/change. In most categories, parents and youth identified processes that appeared to both support and undermine SMY's positive development, sending a wide range of implicit and explicit messages regarding youths' sexual identity in the context of adolescence and US culture. Conclusion: We introduce a novel framework for sexual orientation socialization processes between heterosexual, cisgender parents and SMY children to accelerate research and practice innovation for SMY development and health.

Robert M. Sellers, PhD, most known for his influential and highly cited Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity (MMRI), is one of the most prolific and foundational Black scholars in psychology. From racial identity theory development and measurement to conceptual and methodological innovations in studying the lived experiences of Black people, Sellers' scholarship centers on the lives of Black communities. Sellers' mentorship and contributions to the professional development of scholars and professionals of color have supported and catalyzed new intergenerational knowledge building by these scholars, ensuring a perpetuating and far-reaching legacy in psychology. In this article, we: (a) celebrate Sellers' enduring contribution to the racial identity literature and its profound impact on psychology as a discipline as well as numerous subfields of psychology, (b) outline his contributions to the racial socialization literature, (c) describe methodological innovations in racial identity and racial socialization research advanced through his scholarship, and (d) summarize his contributions in professional development and mentorship and his leadership roles. Sellers' scholarly contributions and mentorship have transformed the discipline of psychology and the social sciences broadly speaking, making him one of the most influential psychologists in the modern era. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

We hypothesized that the goodness‐of‐fit between profiles of observed, caregiver‐provided ethnic–racial socialization (ERS), and child self‐regulation (i.e., inhibitory control) would differentially associate with child behavioral outcomes. Conversations between 80 caregivers (45% Latinx; 55% Black) and their children (M _age = 11.09; 46% female) were rated for ERS. Measures included an inhibitory control composite (ages 2.5–3.5) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; age 12). Three profiles were determined: Comprehensive (n = 34), Reactive (n = 8), and Pragmatic (n = 38). Only youth with low inhibitory control in preschool appeared to benefit from Pragmatic ERS, whereas youth with normative or high inhibitory control in early childhood displayed lower internalizing and externalizing behaviors when they had Comprehensive or Reactive rather than Pragmatic caregivers.

Guided by the Theory of Racial Socialization in Action (TRSA; Smith-Bynum in press), this study examined observed caregiver-provided ethnic-racial socialization in response to a school-based discriminatory dilemma. Forty-five Black and 36 Latinx caregivers (88% mothers) with low-income and their children (Mage = 11.09, SD = 0.29; 46.3% female) participated in Dallas, Texas from 2018 to 2019. Dyads responded to a hypothetical scenario in which a school counselor makes a discriminatory comment to the child. Results of a factor mixture analysis suggested that caregivers engaged in the dialogue using one of four approaches: Low-engaged, Legacy, Racial Literacy, or High-engaged. Profiles were found to differ significantly by the race/ethnicity and language of caregivers and were associated with youth’s concurrent behavioral engagement (R2 = .04).

The events of the past decade underscore with withering banality the depth of American racism and the disturbing normalcy of racial trauma Black adolescents endure every day. I comment on the significance of the timing and scope of the Special Issue. I also highlight the contributions that push new boundaries on established topics such as ethnic-racial identity, racial socialization, emotional development, gender, and via application intersectionality theory. These articles illuminate the multilayered, textured lives of Black adolescents in the early 21st century. The commentary concludes with a call for researchers to leverage the findings from empirical studies on Black adolescents to foster anti-racist institutional change.

Understanding the underlying mechanisms by which racism degrades mental health and the factors that disrupt these mechanisms is paramount. Black adolescents (M_age = 15.5) and their mothers (M_age = 44) were observed discussing a hypothetical discriminatory situation and surveyed about their discriminatory experiences (N = 110). Results indicated that adolescents’ submissive emotional reactivity (e.g., sadness, embarrassment) in direct response to discrimination, rather than dominant reactivity (e.g., anger, frustration), was the primary mechanism explaining the link between discrimination and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Maternal advocacy combined with high levels of dyadic warmth and emotion expression reduced girls’ submissive reactivity, whereas a more directive “no-nonsense” advocacy approach reduced boys’ submissive reactivity. Findings demonstrate how racial socialization can disrupt the pain of discrimination.

The frequent police killings during the COVID‐19 pandemic forced a reckoning among Americans from all backgrounds and propelled the Black Lives Matter movement into a global force. This manuscript addresses major issues to aid practitioners in the effective treatment of African Americans via the lens of Critical Race Theory and the Bioecological Model. We place the impacts of racism on Black families in historical context and outline the sources of Black family resilience. We critique structural racism embedded in all aspects of psychology and allied fields. We provide an overview of racial socialization and related issues affecting the parenting decisions in Black families, as well as a detailed overview of impacts of structural racism on couple dynamics. Recommendations are made for engaging racial issues in therapy, providing emotional support and validation to couples and families experiencing discrimination and racial trauma, and using Black cultural strengths as therapeutic resources.

Objective. This study examined the relations between parenting styles and perceived mother-adolescent relationship quality in a socioeconomically diverse sample of African American mothers and adolescents. Design. African American female caregivers (N = 109) completed measures of maternal warmth, maternal monitoring, and information on family demographics. Adolescents completed measures assessing their perceptions of specific aspects of mother-adolescent relationship quality and demographic information. Results. Authoritative mothers reported greater monitoring than mothers classified as having authoritarian, indulgent, and neglectful styles. Authoritative mothers also reported higher levels of warmth than mothers classified as authoritarian or neglectful styles. Authoritarian mothers reported significantly higher levels of monitoring when compared to indulgent mothers and neglectful mothers. Consistent with predictions, adolescents with authoritative mothers reported more positive mother-adolescent relationship quality in the form of greater communication, trust, and alienation when compared to adolescents with authoritarian and neglectful mothers. Against predictions, neither household income nor adolescent gender moderated the associations between parenting style and mother-adolescent relationship quality. Results from several exploratory analyses are also reported. Conclusions. The mother-adolescent relationship benefits from authoritative parenting in socioeconomically diverse African American families.

Using the theoretical lenses of intersectionality and racial-ethnic socialization, we conducted a focus group study with 29 Black women. We analyzed transcripts via a grounded theory approach for the sources of messages about skin color and hair and for participants’ responses to these messages. Family members were the primary source of messages about skin color and hair. Peers and the media also communicated such messages. Messages ranged from endorsement of Western standards of beauty to an embrace of darker skin colors and natural hair texture. Rather than serving as passive recipients of messages, participants sifted through and reconciled messages with varying degrees of resolution. Their accounts reflected their intersectional experiences as Black women representing a variety of physical attributes. We discuss the influence of these physical attributes on their individual racial-gender identity development in light of a second burgeoning Black hair movement in the United States, that embraces Black natural hair. Findings may help families and others build understanding of, and increase sensitivity toward, the intra- and interpersonal implications of colorism for Black women. Findings may also inform institutional policies (e.g., school, work) and practices to reduce barriers and improve consequences for the Black women navigating these settings.