Urban American Indian Adolescent Girls: Framing Sexual Risk Behavior

Adolescent sexual risk behavior can have devastating effects for young women, including unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STI). American Indian (AI) adolescent females have higher rates of sexual activity, births and STIs compared to the national average. However, research is limited on urban AI adolescent girls’ sexual behavior, pregnancy and STIs. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to explore how individual, family, tribal factors and processes, and national policy influence urban adolescent AI females’ in sexual risk behavior as a basis for developing a theoretical model. This grounded theory study revealed that urban AI adolescent females’ sexual behavior is influenced by social and structural systems consistent with Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model. The microsystem, mesosystem, and macrosystem framed sexual behavior for the AI girls in this study. The microsystem, including long-term goals, identification of being a normal teenager, and cultural identity helped participants form an identity that allowed them to make choices about sexual behavior consistent with the identity they developed. The mesosystem included family, friends, neighborhood, school, media, and health care. The messages that girls in this study received from these structural influences either discouraged or encouraged sexual behavior. Family and friends were reported as most influential on sexual behavior with neighborhood, school, media, and health care influences also reported as influential. The macrosystem, including culture and federal policy were influential on the daily lives of participants. The subsequent grounded theory model that emerged was an adaptation of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model. Urban AI adolescent girls reported similar social and structural influences on sexual risk behavior as urban adolescents from other racial and ethnic groups. However, there were differenced noted in the family structure, cultural heritage, and unique history of AIs in American society. The similarities among racial groups can be used for guiding future research and when caring for this population in health care settings. Future research should focus on further exploration of microsystem, mesosystem, and macrosystem influences on sexual risk behavior among AI girls. Subsequently, providers should be cognizant of the AI girls’ social and structural surroundings and provide culturally sensitive care based upon these variables.Ph.D.NursingUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/89693/1/msaftner_1.pd

Advancing Community‐Based Research with Urban American Indian Populations: Multidisciplinary Perspectives

The US has witnessed significant growth among urban American Indian (AI) populations in recent decades, and concerns have been raised that these populations face equal or greater degrees of disadvantage than their reservation counterparts. Surprisingly little urban AI research or community work has been documented in the literature, and even less has been written about the influences of urban settings on community‐based work with these populations. Given the deep commitments of community psychology to empowering disadvantaged groups and understanding the impact of contextual factors on the lives of individuals and groups, community psychologists are well suited to fill these gaps in the literature. Toward informing such efforts, this work offers multidisciplinary insights from distinct idiographic accounts of community‐based behavioral health research with urban AI populations. Accounts are offered by three researchers and one urban AI community organization staff member, and particular attention is given to issues of community heterogeneity, geography, membership, and collaboration. Each first‐person account provides “lessons learned” from the urban context in which the research occurred. Together, these accounts suggest several important areas of consideration in research with urban AIs, some of which also seem relevant to reservation‐based work. Finally, the potential role of research as a tool of empowerment for urban AI populations is emphasized, suggesting future research attend to the intersections of identity, sense of community, and empowerment in urban AI populations.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/117185/1/ajcp9643.pd

What are we missing? Risk behaviors among Arabâ American adolescents and emerging adults

Background and purposeResearch on Arabâ Americans as a distinct ethnic group is limited, especially when considering the health of Arabâ American youth. This study describes health risk (substance use, violence); health promotive behaviors (hope, spirituality); and sexual activity (oral, vaginal, anal sex) of Arabâ American adolescents and emerging adults (aged 15â 23) within their life context, as well as the association between these behaviors.MethodsA secondary analysis of data on a subset of Arabâ American participants obtained from a randomizedâ control trial was utilized to conduct mixed methods analyses. Qualitative analyses completed on the openâ ended questions used the constant comparative method for a subsample (n = 24) of participants. Descriptive quantitative analyses of survey data utilized bivariate analyses and stepwise logistic regression to explore the relation between risk behaviors and sexual activity among the full sample (n = 57).ConclusionsQualitative analyses revealed two groups of participants: (a) multiple risk behaviors and negative lifeâ events, and (b) minimal risk behaviors and positive lifeâ events. Quantitative analyses indicated older youth, smokers, and those with higher hope pathways were more likely to report vaginal sex.Implications for practiceThe unique cultural and social contexts of Arabâ American youth provide a framework for recommendations for the prevention of risk behaviors.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134166/1/jaan12352.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134166/2/jaan12352_am.pd