Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0344-1736
Defense Date
2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Terri Sullivan
Second Advisor
Fantasy Lozada
Abstract
Mental health challenges are on the rise among youth and becoming a public health problem. African American youth specifically feel the burden of mental health symptoms, which are often exacerbated by chronic exposure to systemic and interpersonal adversities. The Phenomenological Variant of Ecological System Theory (PVEST) aims to understand how minoritized youth interpret and respond to their lived experiences. However, the literature is limited in its examination of how each component of PVEST works together to influence youth outcomes. There is a need to understand how patterns may emerge for African American youth based on their endorsement of risk and promotive factors and their associations of emergent patterns with mental health outcomes. The current study focused on 244 African American youth living in low-income urban areas in the southeastern United States. The sample was split mostly evenly between males (48%) and females (52%), with a mean age of 14.45 years (Range = 12 – 17 years, SD = 1.70). Using latent profile analysis, a four-profile solution was supported that included the following profiles: (a) high adversity and low barrier messages (8%), (b) moderate adversity and high racial pride messages (41%), (c) high adversity and high racial messages (33%), and (d) low racial messages (18%). There were no age or sex differences in profile membership. Examination of differences in depressive and traumatic stress symptoms based on profile membership showed that youth in the low racial messages and moderate adversity and high racial pride messages profile reported lower levels of both types of internalizing symptoms than those in the high adversity and low barrier message profile. Youth in low racial messages and moderate adversity and high racial pride messages profiles reported lower levels of depressive and traumatic stress symptoms than those in the high adversity and high racial messages profile. Lastly, the moderating role of profile membership on relations between drug use, emotion regulation, and racial identity and internalizing symptoms was examined. One significant finding emerged for the role of profile membership on relations between youths’ emotion regulation and traumatic stress symptoms for youth in the high adversity and low barrier messages profile compared to those in the low racial messages profile. There was no significant association between emotion expression suppression and traumatic stress symptoms for youth in the high adversity and low barrier messages profile. For youth in the low racial messages profile, higher levels of emotion expression suppression strategies were associated with higher frequencies of traumatic stress symptoms. Overall, the findings provide meaningful results that can inform interventions and policy.
Rights
© The Author, Kiara Brown
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
4-29-2026