Changing associations between socioeconomic status and self-reported discrimination from the 1990s to the 2010s in the United States

We examined whether prevalence of social class discrimination-and its association with psychological distress-has changed between 1990s and 2010s in the United States. Data were from the original Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study with data collections in 1995-1996 (n = 2931) and 2004-2005 (n = 1708), and the new MIDUS Refresher sample from 2011 to 2014 (n = 2543). Socioeconomic status (SES) became more strongly associated with self-rated discrimination over time, with individuals with the lowest SES experiencing more discrimination (B = 0.75, p < .001) and those with the highest SES less discrimination (B = 0.36, p < .001) over time: at baseline, the difference in self-rated discrimination between the highest and lowest SES groups was 15.3% versus 10.8% (4.7% point difference). This difference increased to 20.0% versus 7.4% in the last study wave (12.6% point difference). Association between self-reported discrimination and psychological distress strengthened over time, but the associations between socioeconomic indicators and distress did not change. The results suggest that people with low SES had higher risk of encountering unfair and disrespectful treatment in the 2010s compared to the 1990s.Peer reviewe

EUV Spectra of the Full Solar Disk: Analysis and Results of the Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer (CHIPS)

We analyze EUV spectra of the full solar disk from the Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer (CHIPS) spanning a period of two years. The observations were obtained via a fortuitous off-axis light path in the 140 -- 270 Angstrom passband. The general appearance of the spectra remained relatively stable over the two-year time period, but did show significant variations of up to 25% between two sets of Fe lines that show peak emission at 1 MK and 2 MK. The variations occur at a measured period of 27.2 days and are caused by regions of hotter and cooler plasma rotating into, and out of, the field of view. The CHIANTI spectral code is employed to determine plasma temperatures, densities, and emission measures. A set of five isothermal plasmas fit the full disk spectra well. A 1 -- 2 MK plasma of Fe contributes 85% of the total emission in the CHIPS passband. The standard Differential Emission Measures (DEMs) supplied with the CHIANTI package do not fit the CHIPS spectra well as they over-predict emission at temperatures below log(T) = 6.0 and above log(T) = 6.3. The results are important for cross-calibrating TIMED, SORCE, SOHO/EIT, and CDS/GIS, as well as the recently launched Solar Dynamics Observatory.Comment: 27 Pages, 13 Figure

The Social Costs of Academic Success Across Ethnic Groups

This study explores the longitudinal association between academic achievement and social acceptance across ethnic groups in a nationally representative sample of adolescents (N = 13,570; Mage = 15.5 years). The effects of school context are also considered. Results show that African American and Native American adolescents experience greater social costs with academic success than Whites. Pertaining to school context, findings suggest that the differential social consequences of achievement experienced by African Americans are greatest in more highly achieving schools, but only when these schools have a smaller percentage of Black students. Students from Mexican descent also showed differential social costs with achievement in particular contexts. The implications of these findings to theory, policy, and future research are discussed

Prospective predictors of positive emotions following spousal loss

Whereas theoreticians are interested in modeling how bereavement contributes to health, the bulk of research on spousal bereavement is conducted after a loss has occurred. Using prospective longitudinal data, this study examined the extent to which positive emotion following spousal loss varies on the basis of preloss characteristics of the bereaved spouse and the marital relationship prior to loss. Analyses are based on the National Survey of Midlife Development (MIDUS), a 2-wave panel survey of adults in the contiguous United States. Results indicate that compared with continuously married controls, widowed participants experienced a significant decline in positive emotion within 3 years following loss. Conversely, no significant declines in positive emotion were evident among widowed persons with greater preloss trait resilience or greater marital strain. Results provide support for the notion that adjustment to loss may be linked to factors that precede actual loss

Childhood Cumulative Risk and Obesity: The Mediating Role of Self-Regulatory Ability

Objectives: We tested whether early childhood risk exposures are related to weight gain in adolescence and evaluate an underlying mechanism, self-regulatory behavior, for the risk-obesity link. Methods: Cumulative risk exposure to 9 sociodemographic (eg, poverty), physical (eg, substandard housing), and psychosocial (eg, family turmoil) stressors was assessed in 244 nine-year-old children. BMI was calculated at age 9 and then 4 years later. At age 9, children’s ability to delay gratification as an index of self-regulatory behavior was assessed. Path analyses were then estimated to evaluate our mediational model (Cumulative risk → Self-regulation → BMI) over a 4-year period in a prospective, longitudinal design. Results: Nine-year-old children exposed to a greater accumulation of multiple risk factors show larger gains in adiposity over the next four year period, net of their initial BMI. These gains in BMI during early adolescence are largely accounted for by deteriorated self-regulatory abilities among children facing more cumulative risks. Conclusions: Early childhood risk exposure leads to larger gains in BMI in adolescence. Given the importance of childhood adiposity to the development of obesity later in life, understanding the underlying mechanisms that link early experience to weight gain is an essential task. Deficiencies in self-regulation in response to chronic stress appears to be an important agent in the obesity epidemic

Cumulative Risk and Adolescent\u27s Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: The Mediating Roles of Maternal Responsiveness and Self-Regulation.

The purpose of the present study was to examine longitudinal associations among maternal responsiveness, self-regulation, and behavioral adjustment in adolescents. The authors used structural equation modeling to test a model that demonstrates that the effects of early cumulative risk on behavioral problems is mediated by maternal responsiveness and self-regulation. Furthermore, the authors examine the contributions of cumulative risk and maternal responsiveness on children\u27s self-regulatory abilities. The study uses a 3-wave longitudinal design with multiple measures of risk and self-regulation from multiple observers. Data were collected from adolescents (N = 265, male = 140) and their parents at age 9, 13, and 17. Results suggest that the mediation hypothesis held true for externalizing, but not internalizing problems. Furthermore, cumulative risk and maternal responsiveness contributed uniquely to children\u27s self-regulation abilities

Differential Effects of Perceived Discrimination on the Diurnal Cortisol Rhythm of African Americans and Whites

The current study considered the influence of perceived discrimination on the diurnal cortisol rhythm of 50 African American older adults and a matched comparison groups of 100 Whites (Mage = 56.6; 58% female). The role of socioeconomic status (SES) as a moderator of the effects of discrimination on the diurnal decline was also considered for each group. In support of the idea that perceptions of unfair treatment take on a unique meaning for stigmatized minority groups, results suggest that perceived discrimination is associated with a flatter (less healthy) diurnal slope among Whites but a steeper (more healthy) diurnal slope among African Americans. Perceived discrimination was also found to be more strongly associated with a steepening of the diurnal slope among lower SES African Americans than higher SES African Americans