African American Children and Mental Health

This groundbreaking two-volume set examines the psychological, social, physical, and environmental factors that undermine or support healthy development in African American children while considering economic, historical, and public policies. How does one go about shifting the psychology of a people whose sense of worth, purpose, and potential have been denigrated and disenfranchised for decades? What specific factors conspire to douse African American children's dreams before they reach adolescence? And what can we learn from African American families determined to help their children beat the odds and succeed? This unique two-volume set examines the forces affecting psychological development and achievement motivation in African American children today. These books address the current political, global, economic, and social contexts as they impact African American families and tackle the tough issues of genes, environment, and race. Experts from leading universities, research institutes, federal agencies, and nonprofit organizations discuss factors such as parenting beliefs and practices, peer influences, school and community environments, racial profiling, race and ethnicity, spirituality, and immigrant status.

Nancy E. Hill is associate professor in the Department of Psychology and Neurosciences at Duke University, Durham, NC; visiting associate professor at Harvard University, Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA; and faculty affiliate of the Center for Developmental Science at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
Tammy L. Mann, PhD, is executive director of the Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute at United Negro College Fund which focuses on examining barriers and facilitators of educational attainment for African Americans and other underrepresented minorities across the P-16 education pipeline.
Hiram E. Fitzgerald is series editor for the Praeger series, Child Psychology and Mental Health. He is associate provost for university outreach and engagement, University Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI; and adjunct professor of psychiatry at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.

Series Foreword
Hiram E. Fitzgerald
Foreword
Tammy L. Mann, Nancy E. Hill, and Hiram E. Fitzgerald
Preface
Hiram E. Fitzgerald
1. Prevention, Intervention, and Public Policy to Enhance Outcomes for African American Children and Youth: Connections and Disconnections
Tammy L. Mann and Suzanne M. Randolph
2. Home Visitation: "Entering the Developmental Niche" of African American Children and Families
Brenda Jones Harden
3. The Role of Early Head Start in the Lives of African American Children
Rachel Chazan-Cohen, Helen H. Raikes, and John M. Love
4. Ecological and Sociocultural Determinants of Risk and Health-Promoting Behaviors among African American Youth
Velma McBride Murry, Cady Berkel, and Nikeea Copeland-Linder
5. Interconnections among Obesity, Self-Esteem, and School Performance: An Overview of Community-Based Obesity Interventions for African American Children
Bettina M. Beech and Marino A. Bruce
6. Effective Parenting Intervention Strategies for Preventing Youth Risky Behaviors among African American Boys: Is There a Role for Fathers?
Cleopatra Howard Caldwell, Jasmine Darrington Ward, Thomas Reischl, and E. Hill De Loney
7. Effective Parenting and Its Impact on Conduct Problems among African American Children
Linda C. Halgunseth, Emilie Phillips Smith, and Amanda Craig
8. Family-School Mediation: Righting the Mental Self-Perceptions of 1.5 and 2.0 African Youth in U.S. Schools
Janet T. Awokoya and Immaculee Harushimana
Index
About the Editors and Contributors