Neighborhood Stress and Life Satisfaction: Is there a Relationship for African American Adolescents?
Robert F Valois, Jelani C Kerr, Michael P Carey, Larry K Brown, Daniel Romer, Ralph J DiClemente, Peter A Vanable
Author Information
Robert F Valois: Department of Health Promotion, Education & Behavior, Arnold School of Public Health, Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208 USA RFValois@mailbox.sc.edu 803-917-5844 or 803-781-8302.
Jelani C Kerr: Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, School of Public Health and Information Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202.
Michael P Carey: Miriam Hospital and Brown University, Centers for Behavioral & Preventive Medicine, Providence, RI, 02903 USA.
Larry K Brown: Miriam Hospital and Brown University, Centers for Behavioral & Preventive Medicine, Providence, RI, 02903 USA.
Daniel Romer: Adolescent Communication Institute, Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA.
Ralph J DiClemente: Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, College of Global Public Health, New York University, New York, NY 10003 USA.
Peter A Vanable: Department of Psychology, Center for Health and Behavior, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY 13244 USA.
This study identified associations between perceived neighborhood stress and adolescents' perceptions of life satisfaction. African American adolescents aged 13-18 (=1,658) from four matched, mid-sized cities in the northeastern and southeastern USA, completed a self-report questionnaire using an audio computer-assisted self-interview (ACASI). Analyses examined relationships between perceived neighborhood stress and perceived life satisfaction, while controlling for socioeconomic status (SES). Life satisfaction was found to be related to neighborhood stress for both males and females, with variability in neighborhood stress characteristics and in the magnitude of associations by gender. Further research should identify the particular characteristics of youth and specific aspects of adolescent life satisfaction associated with perceived neighborhood stress to develop community-based and culturally-sensitive quality of life improvement/health promotion programs.
