Betty Yung

Psychology's role in the public health response to assaultive violence among young African-American men.

African-American male adolescents face disproportionate risk for death or injury resulting from assaultive violence. This article presents a public health framework for examining the problem and developing interventions. A brief interdisciplinary review of research is provided on the nature and extent of the problem, its etiology, and current approaches to prevention. Attention is called to intra- and intergroup differences in patterns among White and ethnic minority youth and to specific theories and research about assaultive violence among young African-American men. Emerging imperatives in the search for solutions are identified, emphasizing the need for cultural sensitivity in the design of preventive interventions and an expanded role for psychologists in the public health response to this critical health problem.

Preventing Violence in At-Risk African-American Youth

Homicide and nonfatal injuries resulting from interpersonal violence are significant contributors to the excess early mortality and morbidity of African-American youth. Although there is growing recognition of the need for prevention programs specifically directed to these youth, culturally relevant programs to reduce aggression and victimization in high-risk racial and ethnic groups are virtually nonexistent. This article reports preliminary findings of a program to train African-American adolescents in social skills, an approach which shows promise as a means of preventing violence. The pilot study suggests a need for continued research on this and other prevention approaches to reduce the disproportionate-and preventable-risk of injury or death for this vulnerable population.

Panel IV: Risk-Taking and Abusive Behaviors Among Ethnic Minorities

The health status and health outcomes of many ethnic minorities have remained poor, or have deteriorated, despite massive health promotion campaigns. Multiple factors that encourage ethnic minorities to engage in high-risk behaviors and those that discourage health promotive behaviors must be closely examined before any health interventions are likely to be successful in decreasing substance abuse, high-risk sex, accidental deaths and injuries, and violence. Cultural and contextual factors may put some ethnic minorities in jeopardy and at higher risk for poorer health than their White counterparts (B. W. K. Yee, 1995, in press). This review article identifies contributing factors in high-risk behaviors and highlights research gaps for Americans of African, Indian, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Hispanic descent.

Capacity-building needs of minority health nonprofits

This article reports on the results of a statewide assessment of the capacity-building needs of organizations that provide health services to ethnic minority groups in Ohio. The research addressed gaps in knowledge about the specific needs of these organizations for improved effectiveness and long-term sustainability. A telephone survey of 659 organizations, supplemented by focus groups with 37 participants in the states largest cities, indicated substantial need and interest in capacity-building technical assistance in areas such as revenue-generating activities, marketing and public relations, information technology training, program evaluation, and board leadership development. The limited ability of these organizations to pay for the needed assistance creates challenges for planning approaches to meet these vital needs.

Evaluation of Social Marketing Efforts Designed to Increase Enrollment in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)

ABSTRACT Expanded eligibility criteria for children in the federally funded Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP) has created unique social marketing challenges because of the need to engage families that historically have not received public support. The purpose of this article is to evaluate statewide outreach strategies to increase CHIP enrollment. Quantitative research identified the outreach strategies used by Ohio counties and determined the counties that demonstrated the greatest increases in child health insurance enrollment. Qualitative research explored consumer and outreach staff perceptions of which marketing strategies led to success. Findings, implications, and application to social marketing theory are discussed.

Breaking the Cycle

Although our knowledge of violence prevalence is far from complete, there is virtually no question that male and female African Americans of all ages are consistently overrepresented as the victims and perpetrators of interpersonal violence. This fact appears to hold true across the continuum of severity, from relatively inconsequential fights among school children to the violent deaths reflected annually in national mortality data. Evidence further suggests that within African-American families and communities there is a greater reported incidence of violent acts affecting all types of relationships (spouse/partner, parent/child, and youth and their peers) than is found among all other groups.

Severe Mental Illness

This chapter examines the role of severe mental illness in suicide. Understanding motivations for suicide cannot be complete without addressing the way in which mental illness interacts with other risk factors and triggering events. Among our overall sample, 656 of 1280 cases were identified as having psychological problems. Victims were most often diagnosed with depression (75%), bipolar disorder (7%), schizophrenia (2%), multiple diagnoses (9%), and miscellaneous other diagnoses (7%). The presence of any kind of mental illness can increase the risk of suicide, but the most prevalent mental illness found in completed suicides is clinical depression.

Collaborative needs assessment for child mental health program development

A needs assessment for child mental health program development involving a collaboration between a state university clinical psychology training program and a coalition of publicly funded child-serving agencies is described. The benefits of the joint research effort for all partners are highlighted as well as the lessons learned about the processes of such a partnership. Application of the results included curricular modifications to the university’s training program, the addition of new programming and the improvement of existing services to address child mental health needs, and interventions to increase community awareness of available services.

Protective Factors and Resilience

This chapter examines protective factors in greater depth. Books on suicide all examine motivations for suicide, but often do not examine the motivations for living. The mundane and ordinary aspects of life sustain people, and an approach to combatting suicide that recognizes those positive factors builds on what already exists. It is possible to construct communities that promote and foster social support systems, healthy lifestyles, and full use of people’s skills and gifts. This includes finding a reason to live, and that often comes from having responsibility—though not at such a level that it is overwhelming.

Chapter 3 – Suicide Motivated by Interpersonal Relationships

This chapter examines interpersonal relationships as a motivation for suicide. Conflict in interpersonal relationships, specifically with intimate partners, was the motivation for approximately one-fifth of our cases. Two main categories emerged: suicide related to intimate partners and suicide motivated by other interpersonal relationships. Three subgroups emerged within suicide related to intimate partners: unrequited or lost love (45%), abusive relationship (30%), and unknown cause (24%). For these groups, the suicides may have represented different ways of achieving balance in a relationship that had become imbalanced. Suicides that are due to interpersonal conflict with other family members represent other dynamics and may be tied to perceived burdensomeness. One subgroup that emerged within this category was murder-suicide. A detailed explanation of these categories and our findings are presented in this chapter.