Social Support in Black Individuals: The Moderating Effects on the Relationship Between Resilience and Well-Being

Black individuals possess numerous strengths and positive contributions that build strong communities and cultivate psychological well-being (Biglan et al., 2012). However, much of the current literature focuses on hardships Black individuals face, skewing the larger discourse of their lived experience. This exclusive focus on adversity often neglects pathways by which Black people thrive and flourish. It is important to consider how Black experiences relate to a sense of well-being. Resilience, or the ability to “bounce back” from adverse experiences is linked well-being outcomes (APA, 2012). However, it is unknown whether the promotive effects of resilience directly contribute to well-being outcomes or are funneled through the effects social support dimensions (e.g., friends, family, significant other) in Black individuals. The study answered the following questions: (a) do reports of resilience, social support, and well-being vary by rural vs. urban Black groups? (b) is there a positive relationship between resilience and well-being in a sample of Black adults? (c) are dimensions of social support positively related to resilience and well-being scores in a sample of Black adults? (d) does the relationship between resilience and well-being vary as a function of social support dimensions? The study utilized a cross-sectional, correlational design and participants completed an online survey related to their experiences with resilience, social support, and well-being. Data were collected from a sample of 428 Black individuals. Main and interaction effects for gender and rurality were examined on the study’s main variables. Results indicate Black men report higher levels of friend and significant other social support compared to Black women, whereas Black women report higher levels of well-being compared to Black men. Additionally, Black individuals in rural areas report higher levels of resilience and well-being when compared to Black individuals in non-rural areas. Moderated models revealed friend social support moderated the relationship between resilience and well-being. Specifically, the relationship between resilience and well-being strengthens when friend social support is high. However, it is important that future research identifies the specific types of support (e.g., physical, cognitive, emotional) friends provide to determine the most effective methods of strengthening resilience efforts and higher levels of well-being

Understanding Health Risks for Adolescents in Protective Custody

Children in child welfare protective custody (e.g., foster care) are known to have increased health concerns compared to children not in protective custody. The poor health documented for children in protective custody persists well into adulthood; young adults who emancipate from protective custody report poorer health, lower quality of life, and increased health risk behaviors compared to young adults in the general population. This includes increased mental health concerns, substance use, sexually transmitted infections, unintended pregnancy, and HIV diagnosis. Identifying youth in protective custody with mental health concerns, chronic medical conditions, and increased health risk behaviors while they remain in custody would provide the opportunity to target prevention and intervention efforts to curtail poor health outcomes while youth are still connected to health and social services. This study leveraged linked electronic health records and child welfare administrative records for 351 youth ages 15 and older to identify young people in custody who were experiencing mental health conditions, chronic medical conditions, and health risk behaviors (e.g., substance use, sexual risk). Results indicate that 41.6% of youth have a mental health diagnosis, with depression and behavior disorders most common. Additionally, 41.3% of youth experience chronic medical conditions, primarily allergies, obesity, and vision and hearing concerns. Finally, 39.6% of youth use substances and 37.0% engage in risky sexual behaviors. Predictors of health risks were examined. Those findings indicate that women, those with longer lengths of stay and more times in custody, and those in independent living and conjugate care settings are at greatest risk for mental health conditions, chronic medical conditions, and health risk behaviors. Results suggest a need to ensure that youth remain connected to health and mental health safety nets, with particular attention needed for adolescents in care for longer and/or those placed in non-family style settings. Understanding who is at risk is critical for developing interventions and policies to target youth who are most vulnerable for increased health concerns that can be implemented while they are in custody and are available to receive services

Reimagining Hair Science: A New Approach to Classify Curly Hair Phenotypes via New Quantitative Geometrical & Structural Mechanical Parameters

Hair is one of the key characteristics that classify us as mammals. It is a natural polymeric composite that is primarily composed of tight macro-bundles of keratin proteins, which are highly responsive to external stimuli, including pH, temperature, and ionic solvent content. The external responsive behavior displayed by hair is similar to the behavior displayed by hydrogels and other natural fibrous gel systems like collagen and fibrin. Hair and its appearance play a significant role in human society. It is a highly complex biocomposite system, which has been traditionally challenging to characterize and thus develop functional personal care products for consumers. Over the last few decades, a significant societal paradigm shift occurred among those with curly hair. They began to accept the natural morphological shape of their curls and style their hair according to its innate, distinct, and unique material properties. These societal and cultural shifts have given rise the development of new hair classification systems, beyond the traditional and highly limited ethnicity-based distinction between Caucasian, Mongolian, and African. L’Oréal developed a hair typing taxonomy based on quantitative geometric parameters displayed among the four key curl patterns – straight, wavy, curly, and coily (kinky). However, the system fails to capture the complex diversity of curly and kinky/coily hair. Acclaimed celebrity hair stylist, Andre Walker, developed a classification system that is the existing gold standard for classifying curly and kinky/coily hair, however the system relies upon qualitative classification measures, making the system vague and ambiguous to the full diversity of phenotypic differences. The goal of this research is to use quantitative methods to identify new geometric parameters, which will be more representative of curly and kinky/coily hair curl patterns. These new parameters will therefore provide more information on the kinds of personal care product ingredients that will resonate best with these curl patterns, and thus maximize desired appearance and overall hair health. The goal is also to correlate these new parameters with its mechanical properties. This was accomplished by identifying new geometric and mechanical parameters from several types of human hair samples. Geometric properties were measured using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photogrammetry, and optical microscopy. Mechanical properties were measured under tensile extension using a texture analyzer (TA) and a dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA), which bears similarity to the common act of brushing or combing. Both instruments measure force as a function of applied displacement, thus allowing the relationship between stress and applied stretch ratio to be measured as a hair strand uncurls and stretches to the point of fracture. From the resulting data, correlations were made between fiber geometry and mechanical performance. This data will be used to draw more conclusions on the contribution that fiber morphology has on hair fiber mechanics and will promote cultural inclusion among researchers and consumers possessing curly and kinky/coily hair