Mark A. Bolden

Examining the Role of Culture-Specific Coping as a Predictor of Resilient Outcomes in African Americans From High-Risk Urban Communities

This investigation examined the role of culture-specific coping in relation to resilient outcomes in African Americans from high-risk urban communities. Participants (N = 385) were administered a survey questionnaire packet containing measures of culture-specific coping, traditional resilience factors (cognitive ability, social support, and familial factors), and resilient outcomes (physical, psychological, social, and environmental quality of life). Structural equation modeling was used to test the degree to which culture-specific coping would uniquely contribute to the prediction of quality of life above and beyond traditional predictive factors of resilience. Findings indicated that spiritual and collective coping were statistically significant predictors of quality of life outcomes above and beyond the traditional predictive factors. Overall, the findings indicated that both traditional and cultural factors were predictors of resilient outcomes (i.e., positive quality of life indicators) for African Americans.

Spiritual Well-Being as a Mediator of the Relation between Culture-Specific Coping and Quality of Life in a Community Sample of African Americans

This study examines the antecedent factors affecting the quality of life of African Americans. A theoretical model is proposed that identifies the effects of culture-specific coping and spiritual well-being as predictors of quality of life. A sample of 281 African Americans was administered a battery of questionnaires that examined the constructs of interest. The theoretical model was tested within a structural equation—modeling framework to identify both direct and indirect effects. Results indicate overall model fit, with both culture-specific coping and spiritual well-being as significant predictors of quality of life. Spiritual well-being partially mediated the effects of culture-specific coping on quality of life. The article concludes with a discussion of the studys findings in relation to quality of life issues for African Americans.

A Confirmatory Test of the Factor Validity of Scores on the Spiritual Well-Being Scale in a Community Sample of African Americans

This study examined a five-factor model of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS; Ellison, 1983) proposed by Miller, Fleming, and Brown-Anderson (1998). A confirmatory factor analytic procedure was conducted to determine whether the Miller et al. model fit the data for the current sample of African Americans. For comparative purposes, several alternative SWBS models were included in the studys design. The findings indicated that none of the SWBS models provided an adequate fit to the data for the current sample. Implications for future use of the SWBS with African American populations are discussed.

Moderator effects of cognitive ability and social support on the relation between race-related stress and quality of life in a community sample of Black Americans

The current study examined the combined moderating effects of cognitive ability and social support on the relation between race-related stress and quality of life in a sample of Black Americans. Participants (N = 323) were administered the Wonderlic Personnel Test (WPT; E. F. Wonderlic Associates, Inc., 1983), the Multidimensional Social Support Scale (MDSS; Winefield, Winefield, & Tiggemann, 1992), the Index of Race-Related Stress-Brief (Utsey, 1999), and the WHOQOL-BREF (The WHO Group, 1998). The findings indicated that cognitive ability and social support, conjointly, moderated the relation between individual and cultural race-related stress and quality of life for Black Americans in the current sample. The paper concludes by discussing the studys findings, limitations, and by offering recommendations for future research related to this area of inquiry.

Do sociocultural factors predict suicidality among persons of African descent living in the U.S.

Given that researchers have found increased risk for suicidality and other psychiatric problems among acculturated individuals, we predicted similar results for African-descended people living in the U.S. We surveyed a community sample of 423 adult men and women of African descent to determine acculturations relationship to Black suicide. Participants completed the African American Acculturation Scale, the Multi-Dimensional Support Scale, and a subscale of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale. Suicidal ideation and history of suicide attempt were defined as a “yes” response to the questions, “have you ever considered taking your own life?” and “have you ever attempted to take your own life?” We found that religious well-being (not acculturation) was predictive of both suicidal ideation and history of suicide attempt.

Testing the Structural Invariance of the Africultural Coping Systems Inventory Across Three Samples of African Descent Populations.

Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the factorial invariance of the Africultural Coping Systems Inventory’s (ACSI) measurement model and underlying factor structure across three independent and ethnically distinct samples of African descent populations. Results indicated that factor pattern coefficients of the ACSI’s underlying structural model were invariant across the three samples, but its variance and covariance parameters were not.