Patterns of Social Connectedness and Psychosocial Wellbeing among African American and Caribbean Black Adolescents

Risk and protective factors for suicidal thoughts and behaviors among Black female and male youth with depression symptoms - United States, 2004-2019

BACKGROUND

From 2004 to 2019, suicide rates among Black youth increased by 122 % for females and 65 % for males. Guided by the interpersonal theory of suicide, this study explored how perceptions of social support and parental involvement may contribute to suicidal behavior among Black youth aged 12-17 years.

METHODS

Data are from the 2004-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Multivariable logistic regression with backwards elimination was conducted to determine if characteristics associated with outcomes of interest (i.e., suicidal ideation, made a suicide plan, and made a suicide attempt) differed by sex. The characteristics examined included: age, poverty level, health insurance coverage, currently receiving mental health treatment, grades for last completed semester, parental involvement, frequency of arguments or fights with parents, frequency of fights at school or work, parental attitudes, and availability of emotional support.

RESULTS

Over 400,000 Black youth with depression symptoms reported suicidal thoughts and behaviors (80 % female). Females had increased odds of suicidal ideation and making a plan if they had no one to talk to about serious problems. Males had increased odds of attempting suicide if they reported academic struggles.

LIMITATIONS

This is a cross-sectional study and potential biases may affect generalizability of results.

CONCLUSIONS

Risk and protective factors identified in this study aligned with the interpersonal theory of suicide. Evidence-based interventions that focus on increasing connectedness and self-esteem may be effective for Black youth struggling with suicidal ideation. Preventing suicide requires a comprehensive approach including prevention strategies for individuals, families, and communities.

Profiles of interpersonal relationship qualities and trajectories of internalizing problems among Chinese adolescents

Adolescence is a significant period for the formation of relationship networks and the development of internalizing problems. With a sample of Chinese adolescents (N = 3,834, 52.01% girls, Mage = 16.68 at Wave 1), the present study aimed to identify the configuration of adolescents' relationship qualities from four important domains (i.e., relationship quality with mother, father, peers, and teachers) and how distinct profiles were associated with the development of internalizing problems (indicated by depressive and anxiety symptoms) across high school years. Latent profile analysis identified a five-profile configuration with four convergent profiles (i.e., relationship qualities with others were generally good or bad) and one "Father estrangement" profile (i.e., the relationship quality with others were relatively good but that with father was particularly poor). Further conditional latent growth curve analysis indicated the "Father estrangement" profile was especially vulnerable to an increase in the internalizing problems as compared with other relationship profiles. This study contributes to understanding the characteristics of interpersonal relationship qualities and their influences on adolescent internalizing problems in a non-Western context. Results were further discussed from a culturally specific perspective.

'Like fumbling around in the dark': Young people's perceptions and realities of healthy relationships

Learning to negotiate relationships is a key feature of adolescence, yet insight into young people's perspectives on what constitutes healthy relationships is lacking. In this study, therefore, insights were sought on healthy relationship qualities, common issues encountered, and relevant educational experiences. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with 18 young people (11 self-identified as female, 5 male, and 2 trans/gender-diverse) aged 14-20 years, residing in Adelaide, South Australia. Relationships with parents, siblings, peers and intimate partners were topics for discussion. Reflexive thematic analysis was utilised to generate codes and themes. The Five Cs of Positive Youth Development were used to aid understanding of findings. Young people's accounts suggested a disjuncture between desired relationship qualities, realities and education on relationships and sexual health. Young people articulated tensions navigating peer norms and societal expectations in relation to dating and sex, including unrealistic representations, gender stereotyping and strong 'sexpectations'. Participants in this study relied more heavily on personal experience and observation than formal education to develop an understanding of healthy relationships. Achieving healthy relationships was generally perceived to be complex and requiring skills or understanding informants were unsure about. Positive Youth Development could provide a framework for meeting the needs expressed by young people, notably by building communication skills, confidence and agency.

Connections matter: Adolescent social connectedness profiles and mental well-being over time

INTRODUCTION

This study examined profiles of social connectedness among early adolescents in grade 7 before the COVID-19 pandemic was declared (Winter 2020), and in grade 8 during the second Wave of the pandemic (Winter 2021).

METHOD

Linked data from 1753 early adolescents (49% female) from British Columbia, Canada who completed the Middle Years Development Instrument survey in grades 7 and 8 were used. Participants reported on life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, and connectedness with peers and adults at home, school and in the community. We used Latent Profile Analysis to identify connectedness profiles at both time points, and Latent Transition Analysis to examine transitions in connectedness profiles over time. Multiple regression analyses examined the associations between profile membership in grade 7 and mental well-being in grade 8, and the associations between transitions in profile membership (i.e., increase vs. decrease in connectedness over time) and mental well-being.

RESULTS

Connectedness in multiple domains in grade 7 was related to significantly higher levels of mental well-being in grade 8, controlling for demographics, well-being in grade 7, and COVID-related mental health worries. Well-being was highest when students felt highly connected in all domains and lowest when they felt lower levels of connection. Increases in connectedness were associated with improvements in mental well-being and decreases with a decline in well-being over time.

CONCLUSIONS

Experiencing connectedness with peers and adults is critical for the mental well-being in early adolescence. Providing opportunities to connect is important in the context of major societal challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Adolescent Mothers' Psychological Wellbeing during Pregnancy and Infant Emotional Health

OBJECTIVE

Although many studies have identified risk factors for adolescent pregnancy, much less is known about factors that support pregnant adolescents' psychological wellbeing and offspring outcomes. This study drew on strength-based frameworks to investigate family and neighborhood factors linked to social connectedness that predict psychological wellbeing during adolescent pregnancy and offspring outcomes.

METHOD

Participants included 135 adolescent mothers (ages 14-21; 90% Black American) assessed annually since childhood as part of a longitudinal study. During preadolescence (ages 11-13), data on contextual stressors and neighborhood support were gathered from participants' caregivers; participants also rated their perceived trust/attachment with caregivers before and during pregnancy. To assess changes in psychological wellbeing, adolescents reported positive and depressed mood before and during pregnancy. A path analysis model tested the prospective associations between family and neighborhood factors, psychological wellbeing during pregnancy, and offspring outcomes (birth outcomes; observed infant positive/negative emotions at age 3-months).

RESULTS

Positive mood decreased from pre-pregnancy to pregnancy, whereas depressed mood remained stable. Adjusting for pre-pregnancy mood, perceived caregiver trust/attachment during pregnancy was associated with prenatal positive mood. Prenatal positive mood, in turn, reduced risk of preterm birth and indirectly predicted positive infant emotions via birth outcomes. Neighborhood support in preadolescence predicted lower prenatal depressed mood, but depressed mood did not predict infant outcomes beyond positive mood. Contextual life stress was not associated with prenatal mood after adjusting for family and neighborhood support.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings highlight changes in positive-valence emotions during adolescent pregnancy that may have unique associations with birth outcomes and offspring emotions.

Social Support Coping for African American Adolescents: Effect of a Culturally Grounded Randomized Controlled Trial Intervention

The effect of the Adapted-Coping with Stress (A-CWS) intervention on social support coping was examined, using a randomized controlled trial design. The participants were 410 ninth-grade students (ages 14 to 16 years and mostly African American) living in low-resourced neighborhoods. Participants were randomly assigned 1:1 to either the A-CWS intervention or a standard care control condition. All participants were assessed at their schools before implementation of the intervention, at intervention completion, and again at 6- and 12-month post-intervention. Engagement in social support coping was examined in both intention-to-treat and treatment-as-received samples (i.e., intervention participants who attended at least 12 A-CWS treatment sessions and participants in the standard care control condition), using latent growth models. In intention-to-treat analyses, no significant treatment effects were identified. In treatment-as-received analyses, results revealed a significant association between social support coping and treatment condition; levels of social support coping decreased over time in the control condition, but they remained relatively stable in the treatment condition. The results indicate adequate intervention adherence and efficacy of the A-CWS to sustain social support coping within a sample of youth at high risk for stress exposure and associated disorders.Clinical Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT0395445.

Social Connectedness and Associations with Gambling Risk in New Zealand

Multiple factors are associated with disordered gambling, with some populations having a greater risk for developing disordered gambling than others. The present study, utilising data previously collected for a New Zealand (NZ) national gambling survey, explored the associations of social connectedness and leisure activities with risky gambling behaviour and quality of life. Poorer social connectedness and leisure activities were found to be associated with increased gambling risk and poorer quality of life, respectively. Social connectedness and leisure activities strongly predicted type of gambling activities and quality of life. Furthermore, Māori (NZ's indigenous population) had lower social connectedness and fewer leisure activities, and a greater gambling risk, as well as higher psychological distress, than the NZ European/Other population. These findings indicate that the risk of progressing from recreational gambling to risky gambling is relatively higher for Māori, and that social connectedness and leisure activities could be contributing factors for this increased risk. It is, therefore, important that social connectedness and leisure activities are seriously considered in public health and treatment efforts to reduce gambling harm for vulnerable populations.

Childhood neighborhoods and health: Census-based neighborhood measures versus residential lived experiences

This study examines the impact of neighborhood disadvantage and neighborhood social connectedness during childhood on subsequent health status during early adulthood. We link longitudinal data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics with Census data on children's surrounding neighborhoods. We estimate results with conventional linear regression and novel methods that better adjust for neighborhood selection processes. We find that neighborhood connectedness in childhood is protective against psychological distress in early adulthood, net of selection effects. However, greater connectedness exacerbates the risk of obesity within disadvantaged contexts for Black youth. Our results highlight a potential pathway for improving population health by investing in the social connectedness of neighborhoods alongside reducing structural inequalities.

Adolescent Connectedness: Testing Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Hemingway: Measure of Adolescent Connectedness-Bahasa Melayu Version (HMAC-BM)

Measuring the factors that underlie adolescent connectedness has become a prominent focused issue in past studies across many disciplines. Thus far, the Hemingway: Measure of Adolescent Connectedness (HMAC) is the first research-based measure of adolescent's relationship and sense of belonging with other people and their surroundings. The current study aimed to examine the measurement model of the Hemingway: Measure of Adolescent Connectedness which has been translated into Bahasa Melayu (HMAC-BM) in order to check for its feasibility among Malaysian adolescents. A total of 377 adolescents aged 16 years old were recruited from the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. Three factors, namely connectedness to family, school, and neighbors with seven sub-factors of the HMAC-BM, were analyzed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) using the IBM SPSS Amos 23.0 (23.0, IBM Technology, Armonk, NY, USA). Results of the CFA supported the second-order factor of the HMAC-BM structures. The overall HMAC-BM scale and its subscales have higher factor loadings ranging from 0.60 to 0.79. Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranged from 0.78 to 0.95 for the three subscales and 0.84 for the total scale. Results also revealed seven sub-factors with forty-one factors-solution that accounted for 0.89% of total variance explained for adolescent connectedness. Findings provide empirical support for the feasibility of HMAC-BM in explaining Malaysian adolescents' social connectedness. Hence, the HMAC-BM is a promising measure that can be used on Malaysian adolescents. The findings have important implications which provide a clear picture of HMAC-BM as an accurate instrument to measure adolescent's social connectedness toward enhancing prosocial attitudes and well-being.

Nicotine vaping for relaxation and coping: Race/ethnicity differences and social connectedness mechanisms

The current study examined race- and ethnicity-based differences in the reasons that youth report for vaping, with an emphasis on understanding the relationship between race/ethnicity and vaping for relaxation and stress/anxiety coping. This work also sought to go beyond examining race-based differences as a cause of tobacco-use disparities by assessing social connectedness factors that mediate relationships between race/ethnicity and vaping for relaxation and coping. Research questions were tested using data from the 2019-2020 California Student Tobacco Survey, a representative school-based survey of 10th and 12th grade public school students throughout schools in California. Overall, 7.78% of the sample reported using nicotine vapes in the past 30 days. The final sample included 11,112 high school student current vape users. The most important reason that youth vaped was for relaxation and stress/anxiety coping, with racial and ethnic minorities most likely to report this vaping motivation. Analyses of the structural mechanisms underlying the relationship between race/ethnicity and vaping reasons showed that minority youth reported lower school, peer, and family connectedness when compared to White youth. Lower school and family connectedness were in turn correlated with being motivated to vape to relax or relieve stress and anxiety, and lower overall mental health. Findings imply that future intervention efforts might profitably focus on reducing stressors associated with relaxation and stress/anxiety coping motivations and highlight the importance of connectedness for indirectly decreasing vape use risk by improving negative mood and mental health.

Development of a Psychometric Tool to Measure Community Solidarity Among Sexual Minorities: Evidence From a Pay-it-Forward Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Community solidarity is increasingly important in public health. However, few studies have examined solidarity in relation to health outcomes. The purpose of this study was to develop a psychometric tool to measure solidarity among Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM) and assess whether community solidarity relates to differences in sexually transmitted infection testing.

METHODS

We used data from the pay-it-forward randomized controlled trial of 301 men from Beijing and Guangzhou, China. Men who have sex with men were randomized into pay-it-forward (participants receive free gonorrhea/chlamydia testing as gifts and choose to donate toward subsequent MSM's tests), pay-what you-want, and standard payment arms. After testing decision, participants completed a cross-sectional questionnaire to assess community solidarity. Factor analysis was conducted to identify dimensions of solidarity. The solidarity factors were compared across study arms and assessed against gonorrhea/chlamydia test uptake in multivariable logistic regression.

RESULTS

Two hundred eighty-eight participants responded to the survey. We identified 3 latent community solidarity factors: engagement, social network support, and sense of belonging. Several items related to belonging were significantly greater among participants in the pay-it-forward scenario compared with those assigned to other scenarios. Higher sense of belonging was associated with higher odds of gonorrhea and chlamydia test uptake.

CONCLUSIONS

Community solidarity among MSM in China can be characterized by 3 factors: engagement, social network support, and sense of belonging. Sense of belonging was higher in the pay-it-forward intervention arm and may be associated with the uptake of gonorrhea/chlamydia test. Future studies are warranted to confirm the psychometric structure of community solidarity and further investigate behavioral mechanisms of pay it forward.

An Exploratory Case Study of the Types of Resources Black Boys Use to Support Their Mental Health

Black adolescent boys experience mental health challenges because of their exposure to a greater frequency and severity of psychosocial stressors. This study used a sample of Black boys at a high school in southeastern Michigan as a case study to understand the types of resources Black boys might use to support their mental health. After conducting a rigorous analysis of the study data using a rapid and an accelerated data reduction technique, four themes helped us answer the question: What kinds of mental health support resources are Black boys using? Four themes emerged from our analysis: online resources, community and trusted individuals, self-reliance, and additional needs. This case study is a springboard for further work to tailor a mental health education and support intervention, such as the YBMen Project, for Black boys and for building additional support amid the multiple crises occurring that impact their mental health and safety. Findings have implications for future research, practice, and policy to improve the mental health of Black boys in high school.

Adolescent Connectedness: A Scoping Review of Available Measures and Their Psychometric Properties

Introduction

Adolescent connectedness, a key component of positive youth development, is associated with various positive health outcomes. Several measures have been developed to assess this construct. However, no study has summarized data on the existing measures of adolescent connectedness. We conducted this scoping review to fill this gap. We specifically aimed to: (i) identify the existing measures of adolescent connectedness, (ii) determine the most frequently used measures among the identified measures, and (iii) summarize the psychometric properties of these measures with a keen interest in highlighting their cross-cultural utility and validity.

Methods

We searched CINAHL, Embase, PsycInfo, PubMed, and Web of Science databases for relevant articles published since database inception to 7th February 2021. Our search structure contained the key words "Adolescents", "Connectedness", and "Measures". We also searched Open Gray for potentially relevant gray literature.

Results

We identified 335 measures from 960 eligible studies assessing various domains of adolescent connectedness, including school, family, community, peer, ethnic, racial, cultural, religious/spiritual, and self-connectedness. Most of the included studies (72.1%) were from North America and Europe. Most of the measures (n = 132, 39.4%) were measures of school connectedness among adolescents. Of the identified measures, 60 of them met our criteria of frequently used measures (i.e., the top five most used measures per domain of connectedness). These frequently used measures were used across 481 of the included studies with 400 of them reporting their psychometric properties. The reported reliability of these measures was adequate (Cronbach's alpha ≥ 0.70) in 89.8% of these studies. These measures also appeared to be valid in terms of their face, content, construct, criterion, convergent, discriminant, concurrent, predictive, measurement invariance, and cross-cultural validity.

Conclusions

There exists a wide array of measures of adolescent connectedness. Sixty of these measures have been frequently used across studies and appear to be reliable and/or valid. However, this evidence is mostly from North America and Europe. This is a reflection of the limitation of this review where only studies published in English were considered. It might also reflect the paucity of research in other regions of the world. More research is needed for clearer insights.

Profiles of substance use related protective and risk factors and their associations with alcohol and tobacco use initiation among black adolescents

Insufficient attention to protective and risk factors of particular salience for Black youth (e.g., racial identity and racial discrimination) in population-based substance use studies has left gaps in our understanding of alcohol and tobacco use development in Black adolescents. The current study aimed to capture the clustering of such understudied factors and their collective influence on alcohol and tobacco use initiation among Black adolescents. Data were drawn from The National Survey of American Life (n = 1,170; age range = 13-17; 6.9% Afro Caribbean, 93.1% African American; 50.0% female). Latent profile analysis applied to 11 indicators representing family, community, and individual level protective and risk factors revealed (1) High Vulnerability (high risk, low protective factors; 17.5%), (2) Moderate Vulnerability (moderate on both; 63.2%), and (3) Low Vulnerability (high protective, low risk factors; 19.3%) classes. Classes differed significantly by religious community support, school bonding, quality of relationship with mother, religious involvement, and interpersonal trauma. Relative to Class 2, Class 1 had higher odds of alcohol (OR = 1.518, CI:1.092-2.109) and tobacco use (OR = 1.998, CI:1.401-2.848); Class 3 had lower odds of alcohol (OR = 0.659, CI:0.449-0.968) but not tobacco use (OR = 0.965, CI:0.611-1.523). Findings suggest that alcohol and tobacco use initiation among Black adolescents is shaped by the collective influence of community and family level support, with commonly experienced risk factors such as non-interpersonal trauma distinguishing liability to a lesser degree. The equally modest prevalence of tobacco use among low and moderate vulnerability classes further indicates that fostering these connections may be especially effective in reducing tobacco use risk.

"We Are Young, We Run Free": Predicting Factors of Life Satisfaction among Young Backpackers

Although research from a positive psychology perspective is conducted among different populations, few studies have examined the predictors of life satisfaction among young backpackers. The current study focused on young adults (ages 21–30), an age group for whom backpacking treks are a growing phenomenon, during their treks in the Far East and South America. Direct and indirect models were used to identify personal factors and environmental resources contributing to life satisfaction. After at least one month abroad, 318 young adults (M = 23.76) answered a self-report quantitative questionnaire. The findings show that personal resources, social support, and community participation were positively associated with life satisfaction, and risk-taking behaviors were negatively associated with life satisfaction. Social support and community participation partially mediated the association between risk-taking behaviors and life satisfaction and between personal resources and life satisfaction. The implications of the findings for the subjective well-being of young backpackers during their transition to adulthood include, among others, the need to help young backpackers maintain their personal and social resources as valuable assets for coping with challenges during their trips. It is also important to increase awareness of the possible wide-ranging negative effects of risk-taking behaviors during backpacking trips.

Outdoor public recreation spaces and social connectedness among adolescents

Background

Outdoor public recreation spaces are important settings for leisure and physical activity. Adolescents’ use of these spaces may contribute to social connectedness via social interaction with peers and the community in these settings. However, research on this topic is limited. This exploratory study examined associations of frequency of visitation and physical activity in outdoor public recreation spaces with social connectedness among adolescents in Melbourne, Australia.

Methods

Adolescents self-reported their frequency of visitation to parks, trails, beach/lake, and sports facilities; frequency of physical activity in a park, local street or path, and their street; and social connectedness. Separate analyses were conducted for visitation (n = 349, 15.4 ± 1.6 years, 58% female) and physical activity (n = 441, 15.4 ± 1.6 years, 59% female) using multilevel linear regression models.

Results

No significant associations were observed for frequency of visitation to a park (B = 0.86, 95% CI = − 0.26, 1.99), trails (B = 0.41, 95% CI = − 0.61, 1.44), beach/lake (B = − 0.44, 95% CI = − 1.46, 0.57), or sports facilities (B = 0.64, 95% CI = − 0.43, 1.70), nor for frequency of physical activity in their street (B = − 0.07, 95% CI = − 0.46, 0.31), local street/path (B = − 0.05, 95% CI = − 0.43, 0.33) or in a park (B = 0.23, 95% CI = − 0.14, 0.60) with adolescents’ social connectedness.

Conclusions

The findings did not support the hypothesis that visiting and being active in outdoor public recreation spaces are associated with adolescents’ social connectedness. Future research should consider the duration and context of outdoor public recreation space use (e.g., sports, socialising, relaxing alone) and whether different types and/or a combination of public spaces are more/less conducive to social connectedness.

What Racism Has to Do with It: Understanding and Reducing Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Youth of Color

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are high in populations of color compared to Whites. High-risk sexual behaviors are widely viewed as the key contributors to the levels of STDs, especially in adolescents and young adults. This article situates the sexual risk behaviors of Black, Indigenous, and other young people of color within the framework of racism. It begins with an overview of racial inequities in common STDs and shows how racism gives rise to several risk factors for high-risk sexual behaviors. These risk factors for STDs identified in prior research are best understood as adaptations to the challenges and constraints faced by youth in socially disadvantaged environments. Both social adversity and the mental health problems that it triggers can lead to risky sexual behaviors. Drawing on findings from prior research with youth of color, this paper describes the needed interventions that can markedly reduce STDs and their risk factors. It also describes needed research on interventions that could contribute to the knowledge and understanding of the adverse conditions fueled by racism that affect youth of color, their health, and their communities.

Connecting Youth: The Role of Mentoring Approach

While formal youth mentoring can positively influence youth connectedness, little research has studied the specific approaches mentors engage in that support mentee social development. This study examines how mentors' specific approaches are uniquely associated with youth connection outcomes in formal community-based mentoring. Participants were 766 youth, ranging in age from 11 to 14 (M = 12.29), 56.7% female, and racially/ethnically diverse (41.0% Black/African American, 21.4% Hispanic/Latinx, 20.0% White, 10.2% Multiracial/Multiethnic, 5.9% Native American, 1.2% other race, and 0.4% Asian/Pacific Islander). Person-centered analyses revealed three mentoring profiles which were differentially associated with youth outcomes: "Status Quo Mentors," who reported low-to-moderate levels of closeness within the mentor-mentee dyad, low levels of connecting their mentees with programs and people in their community, and low levels of mediating for their mentees; "Close Connectors," who reported moderate-to-high levels of closeness, moderate-to-high levels of connecting, and low levels of mediating; and "Connector-Mediators," who reported moderate levels of closeness, connecting, and mediating. Youth mentored by "Close Connectors" demonstrated the greatest benefit, with significant improvements in parent-child relationship quality, extracurricular activity involvement, and help-seeking. Results suggest that community-based mentoring programs that emphasize connecting youth within their communities may be more effective in enhancing youth support networks.

An Online Behavioral Health Intervention Promoting Mental Health, Manhood, and Social Support for Young Black Men: The YBMen Project

Conventional definitions of mental health, manhood, and social support create barriers to accessing behavioral health care for Black men ages 18 to 30. Targeted behavioral health interventions sensitive to culture, social norms, and gender that circumvent these barriers are desperately needed to improve access and integrated care for this group. This article reports mixed methods findings from the 2017 iteration of the Young Black Men, Masculinities, and Mental Health (YBMen) project, a social media-based, psychoeducational program that promotes mental health, progressive definitions of manhood, and sustainable social support for Black men. Young Black men (n = 350) across two universities in the Midwest completed baseline surveys on their mental health, definitions of manhood, and social support. Forty of the men participated in the YBMen intervention and at postintervention reported experiencing fewer depressive symptoms on the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9, Z = -2.05, p < .01) and the Gotland Male Depression Scale (GMDS; Z = -1.76, p < .05). There were also changes on the Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory (CMNI) for Self-Reliance (Z = -0.34, p = .26) and Heterosexual Self-Presentation (Z = -0.18, p = .59), though these changes were not statistically significant. A qualitative review of postintervention interviews revealed participants' appreciation of the YBMen project and its influence on their mental health, manhood, and social support. Programmatic efforts that support the behavioral health, positive development, and social relationships of Black men translate into positive families, communities, and experiences as they live, learn, love, and work over the life course.