The current study aimed to explore the direct effect of insecure adult attachment on subjective wellbeing and its indirect effect via racial-ethnic identity. Additionally, the present study examined the extent to which racial-ethnic socialization practices may moderate adult attachment and racial-ethnic identity link. The final sample included 213 emerging adults (M = 20.94; SD = 2.96) with diverse racial-ethnic backgrounds. PROCESS Model 4 and 1 were used to examine the direct and indirect effect of insecure attachment on subjective wellbeing via racial-ethnic identity variables and the interaction effect between insecure attachment and racial-ethnic socialization on racial-ethnic identity variables. Results indicated the direct effect of insecure attachment on subjective wellbeing but did not support hypotheses for the indirect effect of insecure attachment on subjective wellbeing via the racial-ethnic identity variables. Additionally, results indicated that overt socialization buffered the negative impact of attachment avoidance on racial-ethnic identity exploration. Furthermore, racial-ethnic identity variables and subjective wellbeing significantly differed across racial-ethnic groups and socioeconomic statuses. Findings provide insight on the distinct concepts of attachment and racial-ethnic identity as they highlight inter- and intra-personal components, respectively. Mental health professionals may utilize overt socialization to help clients develop a sense of purpose and meaning related to their identity. Limitations, future research directions, and counseling implications are discussed.

The unfortunate disparity in achievement among minority and low income students is well-documented. Multiple social, structural, and psychological variables have been presented to try to explain the achievement gap. Researchers have also considered an individual’s racial-ethnic identity (REI) as an important variable that contributes to achievement outcomes. Oyserman and colleagues developed a model of REI that emphasizes three key factors of one’s racial-ethnic identity that have a direct impact on achievement. Further, her model posits that the interaction between two key REI variables, feelings of connectedness to one’s REI group (connectedness) and the perception that one’s racial-ethnic group values achievement (embedded achievement), contributes to positive achievement outcomes. Although research has suggested that REI significantly impacts achievement, the specific processes by which this occurs are less known. Considering the social-cognitive literature, it is plausible that different psychological and motivational beliefs mediate the relationship between REI and achievement-related outcomes. This dissertation study examines the mediating effect of sense of school belonging and perceived sense of school engagement on the relationship between REI (embedded achievement and connectedness) and academic achievement of minority middle school students longitudinally through the use of structural equation modeling. Results indicate that embedded achievement significantly predicts academic achievement. Furthermore, sense of belonging to school mediates this relationship for all racial and gender groups. Results also revealed that embedded achievement significantly predicted student perceived engagement for Hispanic students. Strategies to promote sense of belonging and embedded achievement at the personal, structural, community, peer, and family levels are discussed.

The increased racial and ethnic diversity in the U.S. has resulted in a greater number of minority children in the classroom. Misunderstanding of cultural differences of racial/ethnic minority groups can lead to a misdiagnosis of learning difficulties or a referral to be tested for special education services. The inappropriate placement of racial/ethnic minority students into special education programs has contributed to the trend of disproportionality -- the disproportionate representation of certain minority student populations in special education. The concerns of disproportionality, debated for more than forty years, are presented from two perspectives -- the view that disproportionality is no problem and the opposing view that the negative implications of disproportionality are dangerous. Although there is little disagreement on how to define disproportionality and outline the statistics, the research on determining the cause of disproportionality is more controversial. A range of issues, a few of which include race, culture, and disability definitions, can contribute to the problem of disproportionality. By taking into account social and environmental factors that influence school readiness of ethnic minority students as a likely source of disproportionality, the recommendation of access to early childhood opportunities such as Head Start or other preschool programs has been suggested as one solution to help decrease the disproportionality trend. A review of current research and identification of key issues for further study on the effect of pre-Kindergarten (pre-K) educational services on disproportionality is one way to confront the issue of disproportionality and thereby help our nation's commitment of educational equity for all children. / text

The current study examined the relationship between the three components of racial-ethnic identity (REI)- Connectedness, Embedded Achievement, and Awareness of Racism- and academic engagement in middle school African American (n=62) and Latino (n=30) youth. We hypothesized the three components of REI would be able to predict academic engagement in the youth, as well as an interaction between ethnicity and the REI components. A hierarchical regression revealed Connectedness and Embedded Achievement were both accurate predictors of student’s academic engagement. In addition, an interaction between Embedded Achievement and ethnicity was also present in the current study. The results indicate that African American youth who have higher levels of Embedded Achievement are more likely to have a higher academic engagement levels while the academic engagement of Latino youth remained fairly constant regardless of level of Embedded Achievement.

Master of Arts / Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Mario V. Cano / Despite the substantial research conducted on racial and ethnic disparities in the criminal justice system, the majority of research focuses on final sentencing decisions. Less attention has been devoted to earlier stages in criminal processing, such as the presentence detention process. In fact, the analyses that did investigate presentence detention status mainly used state-level data, and there is only a handful of studies that have examined race/ethnicity and gender effects on detention and bail in the federal criminal justice system (e.g., Albonetti, 1989; Bak, 1998: Reitler, et. al., 2012; Spohn, 2009). Furthermore, recent analyses have uncovered that extralegal disparities in presentence detention outcomes, particularly racial and ethnic disparities, vary across court jurisdictions (e.g., Levin, 2008; Pinchevski & Steiner, 2013; Eisenstein & Jacob, 1977). Thus, the purpose of this study is to explore the effects of defendants’ race/ethnicity and gender, and social context, on defendants’ pretrial status. This study employs a multilevel modeling strategy and uses criminal sentencing data (N=130,120) from the U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC) for fiscal years 2008 to 2010, across 89 U.S. District Courts, including supplemental data drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Federal Judicial Center’s Federal Court Management Statistics. The initial findings indicate that Black and Hispanic defendants are less likely than Whites, and females are more likely than males, to be released on bail and rereleased on their own recognizance (ROR). Regarding the district level, ROR is less likely for defendants processed in districts with a higher crime rate and higher socioeconomic disadvantage. On the other hand, bail is more likely for defendants processed in districts with larger courts (more judges). In cross-level interactions increase in percent Black, increase in crime rate, and increase in socioeconomic disadvantage are positively associated with bail for Black defendants, while increase in percent Hispanic and court size are positively associated with bail for Hispanic defendants. Consistent with the courts as communities and focal concerns perspectives, this study found that the presentence process is influenced by local practices, norms, and concerns for organizational efficiency. These distinctive features of court jurisdictions interact with race/ethnicity and affect defendants' presentence status. Future research is needed to better assess the detention process with increased access to federal data. In addition, examination of intersectionality of race/ethnicity, gender and age at the presentence detention stage is required.

The United States has seen tremendous growth since it has achieved a population of 300 million. Interestingly, events like this mask the heterogeneity of fertility behavior particularly along racial/ethnic lines. Unfortunately, despite the voluminous literature examining the dynamics and differentials of fertility, extant studies suffer from several limitations including the treatment of racial/ethnic groups as homogenous, the cross-sectionality of their analyses, or their focus on either current or cumulative fertility ultimately underplaying the complexity of fertility behavior. Therefore, this dissertation investigates the fertility behavior of Mexican American and white women paying particular attention to race/ethnicity and social mobility by conducting a quantitative analysis of current and cumulative fertility behavior of women at three different points in their life course. The findings demonstrate the significant effect that socioeconomic characteristics and race have on explaining the higher fertility of Mexican American women in the United States thus, encouraging the adoption of a racial/ethnic stratification framework in studies of fertility.

The United States has seen tremendous growth since it has achieved a population of 300 million. Interestingly, events like this mask the heterogeneity of fertility behavior particularly along racial/ethnic lines. Unfortunately, despite the voluminous literature examining the dynamics and differentials of fertility, extant studies suffer from several limitations including the treatment of racial/ethnic groups as homogenous, the cross-sectionality of their analyses, or their focus on either current or cumulative fertility ultimately underplaying the complexity of fertility behavior. Therefore, this dissertation investigates the fertility behavior of Mexican American and white women paying particular attention to race/ethnicity and social mobility by conducting a quantitative analysis of current and cumulative fertility behavior of women at three different points in their life course. The findings demonstrate the significant effect that socioeconomic characteristics and race have on explaining the higher fertility of Mexican American women in the United States thus, encouraging the adoption of a racial/ethnic stratification framework in studies of fertility.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of Medicare Part D on prescription utilization, health services utilization, and health care expenditures in the general Medicare population – as well as Medicare sub-populations, including non-Hispanic blacks (NHBs), Hispanics, near poor individuals, and persons with higher disease burden. A retrospective analysis of Medicare beneficiaries (N=32,228) was conducted using the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 2002 to 2009 data. Multivariable quantile regression was used to estimate the following outcomes, adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics: 1) number of prescription fills; 2) out-of-pocket (OOP) drug expenditures; 3) total drug expenditures; 4) OOP health care expenditures; 5) total health care expenditures; 6) number of hospitalizations; and 7) number of emergency department (ED) visits between the pre-Part D (2002-2005) and post-Part D (2006-2009) periods. All expenditures were inflation-adjusted to 2009 dollars. The average age of the study sample was 71.0 (SD=14.5). In the general Medicare population, Part D was associated with decreases in OOP drug expenditures (-25.7% to -33.6%; p<0.0001) and OOP health care expenditures (-22.1% to -24.3%; p<0.0001) as well as increases in the number of prescription fills (5.8% to 8.4%; p<0.0001) and total drug expenditures (75th percentile: 5.5%; 90th percentile: 10.2%; p<0.0001). Part D was not associated with changes in total health care expenditures in the general Medicare population. Changes in hospitalizations and ED visits were tested at the 90th percentile, and the results were not statistically significant. In sub-group analyses based on race/ethnicity, non-Hispanic whites (NHWs) experienced more significant reductions in OOP drug and/or health care expenditures when compared with NHBs and Hispanics. Near poor beneficiaries experienced larger reductions in OOP drug expenditures than beneficiaries with middle- to high-income, while Medicare beneficiaries with three or more conditions experienced more substantial reductions in OOP drug and OOP health expenditures after Part D was introduced, compared with those with fewer than three conditions. Part D resulted in increases in medication utilization and reductions in OOP drug and OOP health care expenditures among Medicare beneficiaries. Part D was not associated with differences in total health care spending. The effects of Part D were more pronounced in Medicare subgroups, including NHWs, near poor individuals, and patients with higher chronic disease burden. / text

abstract: Pew Research Center reported in 2015 that already one-in-seven infants born in the United States are Multiracial (Livingston, 2017). Therefore, the number of Multiracial families is growing, and there is a need to understand how parents are engaging in racial-ethnic socialization, or the transmission of messages to Multiracial children about race, ethnicity, and culture (Atkin & Yoo, 2019; Hughes et al., 2006). I conducted a qualitative interview study with 20 Multiracial emerging adults to understand the types of racial-ethnic socialization messages Multiracial youth receive from their parents, and used these themes to inform the development and validation of the first measure of racial-ethnic socialization for Multiracial youth, the Multiracial Youth Socialization (MY-Soc) Scale. Study 1 identified nine themes of racial-ethnic socialization content: cultural socialization, racial identity socialization, preparation for bias socialization, colorblind socialization, race conscious socialization, cultural diversity appreciation socialization, negative socialization, exposure to diversity socialization, and silent socialization. Study 2 utilized a sample of 902 Multiracial emerging adults to develop and validate the MY-Soc scale. Items were written to assess all of the themes identified in Study 1, with the exception of exposure to diversity socialization, and the survey was designed to collect responses regarding the socialization practices of two of the youths’ primary caregivers. The sample was split to run exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, finding support for a 62-item scale measuring all eight themes. The MY-Soc Scale was also supported by validity and reliability tests. The two studies advance the literature by increasing understanding of the racial-ethnic socialization experiences of Multiracial youth of diverse racial backgrounds. The MY-Soc Scale contributes an important tool for scholars and practitioners to learn which racial-ethnic socialization messages are promotive for Multiracial youth development in different contexts. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Family and Human Development 2020

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