Nonorganizational Religious Involvement and Psychosocial Well-Being Among African American and Caribbean Black Youth

Often cited as a developmental and cultural resource, religion has been widely studied. However, few studies have explored the relationship between nonorganizational religious involvement (NRI) and psychosocial well-being among Black youth or within ethnic groups of Black youth. This study examined this relationship among 1,170 African American and Caribbean Black youth who participated in the National Survey of American Life–Adolescent Supplement study. Moderated hierarchical regression results showed significant main effects of NRI on life satisfaction, self-esteem, coping, and depressive symptoms after accounting for study covariates (i.e., age, gender, family income, denomination, ethnicity, religious service attendance, and religious socialization). No significant interaction effects were observed between NRI and ethnicity on any of the psychosocial well-being outcomes. Results illuminate a promotive effect of NRI in this sample. Though no significant ethnicity and religiosity interaction effects were observed, findings suggest the importance of NRI as a key intervention target to support better psychosocial well-being among Black youth, in an effort to promote overall youth development.

“He Was a Good Boy”: The Caribbean Black Mothers’ Experience of Coping and Grief With the Homicide of Their Sons in Trinidad

There is little research on Caribbean Black mothers coping with the homicide of their sons. This phenomenological study examines mothers’ grief and coping after the homicide of their male child on the small island state of Trinidad, where people are close knit and socially interconnected. In-depth interviews of 10 mothers who suffered the loss of their sons within a 10-year period were conducted and four themes emerged: normalizing the child against stigma, spirituality and meaning making, concealment and suppression of emotions, and collective support. Results highlighted the immense grief mothers are still struggling with, due to lack of closure with their son’s murder case and the stigma associated with homicide. Additional supports are needed to help mothers with the grieving process.

Getting a foot in the door: A critical anti-race analysis of underemployed second generation Caribbean Black Male Youth

This study utilizes a Critical Anti-Race Qualitative Phenomenological Methodology to challenge the dominant deficit perspective which reinforces the notion that the cultural deprivation of Blacks causes their marginalization. From this viewpoint, Blacks should take individual responsibility for changing their life conditions. However, this article offers narratives of Black men that reveal how structural factors grounded in the notion of racial battle fatigue limit their autonomy, education, and access to employment opportunities. The study focuses on underemployed, second-generation Caribbean Black Male Youth between 18 years and 30 years of age who have made the post-high school transition into the labor market but remain underemployed. This study seeks to understand the central theme emerging in the counternarratives: Caribbean Black Male Youth perceive and experience a lack of employment opportunities. This article’s aim is to show how Caribbean Black Male Youth struggle to address their limited employment opportunities by exploring the impact of the intersecting politics of race, gender, and class on the City of Toronto labor force.