Bridgette Peteet

Racial Identity, Self-Esteem, and the Impostor Phenomenon Among African American College Students

The Impostor Phenomenon (IP) is marked by an individual’s persistent perception of incompetency despite contrary evidence. The presence of IP has been found to negatively affect many college students, but literature on IP among African American college students, specifically, is limited. Previous literature has emphasized a positive association between racial identity and self-esteem for African Americans, and an inverse association between self-esteem and IP among non-African American samples. However, few studies have examined these variables in African American undergraduate samples. Objectives: The current study examined the relationships between racial identity, self-esteem, and IP among African American undergraduate students. It was hypothesized that self-esteem would mediate the relationship between racial identity and IP. Method: The participants were 112 (74% female) self-identified African American undergraduate students who completed an online survey. Results: Mediation testing via bootstrapping revealed support for the hypothesis—self-esteem mediated the relationship between racial identity and IP. Conclusion: University initiatives should focus on creating inclusive environments that foster racial identity development and self-esteem for African Americans to reduce experiences of IP.

Correlates of Injection Drug Use Among Rural Appalachian Women

BACKGROUND Limited research has focused on correlates of injection drug use (IDU) among high-risk subgroups of drug users, particularly women, who may be at increased risk for transmission of infectious diseases such as HIV and Hepatitis C. The purpose of this study is to better understand the contextual and health correlates of IDU among women living in rural Appalachia by examining (1) differences between injectors and noninjectors, and (2) the unique correlates of recent IDU and past IDU. METHODS This study involved random selection, screening, and face-to-face interviews with 400 rural Appalachian women from jails in one state. Analyses included descriptive statistics, multinomial logistic regression, and stepwise regression to identify significant correlates of recent IDU and past IDU compared to never injecting. RESULTS Findings indicated that 75.3% of this randomly selected sample reported lifetime injection of drugs. Contextual factors including drug use severity (RRR = 8.66, P < .001), more male sex partners (RRR = 1.01, P < .05), and having injecting partners (RRR = 7.60, P < .001) were robust correlates of recent injection practices. CONCLUSIONS This study makes an important contribution to understanding factors associated with IDU among rural Appalachian women drug users, which are strongly associated with both relational and health factors. Study findings on the specific factors associated with IDU risk have important implications for tailoring and targeting interventions that should include a focus on the relationship context reducing high-risk injection practices.

Beyond a Bachelor’s: Implementing a Graduate School Preparation Program

Advancing the education of Blacks is of paramount importance. Black students are underrepresented in graduate degrees in Science Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields. Much attention has been paid to undergraduate retention but very little to graduate degree preparation, a requirement in many professional fields. Given the popularity of the field of psychology, the most popular undergraduate major, and the underrepresentation of people of color in graduate programs, we present a case study of a university-sponsored graduate bridge program, EMERGE. We highlight essential program components including university buy-in, economic considerations, program leadership, mentorship, cultural engagement, and academic preparedness. The implementation of these elements in to the EMERGE program are discussed as well as its demonstrated effectiveness in increasing application competitiveness and doctoral admissions. The program can serve as a model bridge program for all fields of post-baccalaureate education.

Rural Incarcerated Women: HIV/HCV Knowledge and Correlates of Risky Behavior:

Rural incarcerated women have an increased risk of acquiring the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the hepatitis C virus (HCV) due to prevalent engagement in drug use and sexual behaviors. Limited research has investigated HIV and HCV knowledge in this high-risk population. Furthermore, the interplay of sociodemographic factors (i.e., education, age, income, and sexual orientation) and risky behavior is understudied in this population. The present study evaluated a sample of adult, predominately White women from rural Kentucky (n = 387) who were recruited from local jails. The sample had high HIV and HCV knowledge but also reported extensive risk behaviors including 44% engaging in sex work and 75.5% reporting a history of drug injection. The results of multiple regression analysis for risky sexual behavior indicated that sexual minority women and those with less HIV knowledge were more likely to engage in high-risk sexual behaviors. The regression model identifying the significant correlates of risky drug behavior indicated that HIV knowledge, age, and income were negative correlates and that sexual minority women were more likely to engage in high-risk drug use. When HCV knowledge was added to the regression models already including HIV knowledge, the interaction was significant for drug risk. Interventions for rural imprisoned women should consider the varied impact of sociodemographic background and prioritize HIV education to more effectively deter risky sexual and drug behaviors.

Psychosocial risks of prescription drug misuse among U.S. racial/ethnic minorities: A systematic review

ABSTRACT Prescription drug misuse (PDM) is the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S. One in five Americans report at least one lifetime incident of PDM. PDM has been studied extensively, yet there is limited inclusion of racial/ethnic minorities due to purportedly lower rates of PDM. However, health disparate groups often face more detrimental consequences of substance abuse including behavioral, social, and medical/mental health (e.g., injury, HIV/AIDS, incarceration, educational attainment, and comorbidity). Failing to characterize risk factors for and consequences of PDM in racial/ethnic minorities may mask the disproportionate negative impact of this epidemic. This systematic review of three research indexes revealed 28 peer-reviewed studies published on PDM in racial/ethnic minority adults. Results indicated a high prevalence of PDM among veterans, bisexual and gay young adults, and substance abusers compared to the general population. Demographic correlates of PDM included younger age, male gender, less educated, unmarried, and those with health/emotional issues. Rates of PDM in demographically vulnerable populations suggest that broadening inclusiveness in PDM research, interventions, and clinical practice is imperative.

Something New: A Scholarly Review and Clinical Perspective of Black Online Dating

For many busy and transient Black professionals, online dating may seem like a viable social option yet qualitative inquiry in a clinical setting revealed apprehensiveness to meeting potential partners on the internet. Perceived personal barriers included an interest in dating others who were similar (e.g., homogamy) in class, race, and/or religion. An exploration of quantitative research findings supports the broad existence of these perspectives among some Black professionals. Economic considerations, such as the cost of computers and online dating memberships, are also outlined as potential barriers. Additionally, soft research techniques (e.g., internet search results describing a topic subjectively, culturally, or opinion-based) were implored to fill the gap left by the limited hard research on the process of online dating, the challenges associated with its use (e.g., discrimination, digital deception), and the cultural norm differences in face-to-face versus online dating. Research on online dating is growing but minimal attention has been given to the experiences of Blacks who might be increasingly utilizing these social networking tools. The present paper examines these perceptions in the context of the sparse literature on Black online dating. Implications for future research and recommendations for Black online daters are provided.