Applying Psychological Science, Benefiting Society
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for Black males between ages 20 and 24 is more than double the national average for this age group (14.3% vs. 7.1%). The APA report on “Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic and Sexual Minority Boys & Men” prompted a deeper focus on how these employment disparities lead to adverse health impacts, specifically amongst Black millennial men. An APA fact sheet examines this narrowed topic.
From 2001 to 2015, the suicide risk for Black boys between the ages of 5 and 11 was two to three times higher than that of White boys, according to a new research letter in JAMA Pediatrics (Bridge, 2018). This concerning trend continues through adolescence as reported by the Nationwide Youth Risk Behavior Survey (Kann et al., 2017). The rates of attempted suicide, including attempts that resulted in an injury, poisoning, or overdose, are 1.2x higher among Black males compared to White males.
The White supremacist rally which led to the death of one counter-protestor may seem worlds away from the lives we lead in schools, non-profits, government agencies and corporations. Charlottesville represents the most extreme, virulent and lethal form of racism—a form that is repudiated by most everyone. But racism occurs along a continuum. And the far other end is anchored by everyday acts of bias and prejudice.
By Dawn X. Henderson, PhD (Assistant Professor of Psychology, Winston-Salem State University) Some of the lines in the classic 1982 song, Mad World, capture the lived experience of many black and brown children in the public school system in the United States. When people run in circles, it’s a very very mad world… Children waiting for […]
This is part of our ongoing series of blog posts about race, racism and law enforcement in communities of color. By Lorie Fridell, PhD (Associate Professor of Criminology, University of South Florida) Do you claim to be color-blind? Do you believe that you do not notice when a person is Caucasian, Black, Hispanic, or Asian? Well then, you […]
This is part of our ongoing series of blog posts about race, racism and law enforcement in communities of color. By Suzanne Lea, PhD (Fellow, Interactivity Foundation, and Adjunct Professor, University of Maryland, Baltimore County) News of a citizen being killed or assaulted by police, or a citizen who dies in police custody, seems to be nearly a […]
Welcome to In Case You Missed It, a weekly roundup of news articles related to issues of psychology, health and mental health, social justice and the public interest that you may be interested in. This week, we have stories including the widening opportunity gap for low and middle-income earners, the criminalization of children by the school-to-prison […]
Welcome to In Case You Missed It, a weekly roundup of news articles related to issues of psychology, health and mental health, social justice and the public interest that you may be interested in. This week, we have stories including what the Oklahoma University SAE fraternity scandal tells us about Americans’ understanding of racism, new research on teen […]
Welcome to our new feature – In Case You Missed It, a weekly roundup of recent news articles related to issues of psychology, health and mental health, social justice and the public interest that you may be interested in. Why Are Homeless LGBTQ Youth Trading Sex for Shelter? Many of our nation’s homeless youth include […]
By Akhenaten B.S. Tankwanchi, PhD Although the word Ebola percolated into the American public consciousness over two decades ago owing to an Ebola outbreak in a Washington, DC suburb, it was not until Liberian citizen Thomas Eric Duncan, died from the disease, on October 8, 2014 in Dallas, Texas, that concerns about the spread of […]
Psychology Benefits Society 