Online racial discrimination, centrality, and academic outcomes among Black youth.

Online racial discrimination (ORD) has been found to have deleterious effects on the psychological and academic outcomes of youth of color. Racial centrality (i.e., the extent to which one regards their racial group membership as important to their identity) may be a powerful buffer of these effects and has been identified as an important sociocultural asset for Black youth in particular. This study examined the relations among ORD, racial centrality, academic self-efficacy (ASE), and academic achievement among Black children and adolescents (ages 8-17). Results indicated that ORD and centrality increased with age, and the majority (76%) of youth reported at least one incident of ORD in the last year. Racial centrality moderated ORD's relationship with ASE but not with achievement; specifically, ORD and ASE were more strongly related at higher levels of centrality. Centrality was not significantly related to achievement; however, it was indirectly related to achievement via ASE. These findings underscore the importance of disrupting ORD as well as providing support for children and adolescents who experience it. This study also highlights racial centrality as an important mechanism for promoting academic achievement among Black youth. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Online racial discrimination and mental health among Black undergraduates: The moderating role of gender.

Objective: Online racial discrimination (ORD) is rampant; however, little is known about its associations with mental health among undergraduates. This study explored the relations between ORD and mental health among Black undergraduates. It also investigated gender differences in these relations. Participants: Two hundred seventy-eight Black, cisgender men and women enrolled in a minority-serving public university in the Northeast U.S. Methods: Participants completed measures of ORD, depression, generalized anxiety (GA), and social anxiety (SA) via a Web-based survey. Results: Eighty-five percent of participants experienced at least one ORD incident in the last year. Men and women reported comparable exposure. Gender moderated the relations between ORD and depression and SA, respectively; these associations were stronger for women. Conclusions: Exposure to ORD is prevalent among Black undergraduates and is associated with adverse mental health outcomes, especially for women. Campus mental health interventions should address online discrimination in the context of students' intersecting identities.

Alterations in Cortical Activity due to Robotic Gait Training in Traumatic Brain Injury.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI), is one of the leading causes of motor deficits in children and adults, affecting motor control, coordination, and acuity. This results in reduced functional ambulation and quality of life. Robotic exoskeletons (REs) are quickly becoming an effective method for gait neurorehabilitation in individuals with TBI. Neurorehabilitation is based on the principle that the human brain is capable of reorganization due to high dose motor training. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of cortical reorganization will help improve current rehabilitation. The objective of the study is to understand the cortical activity differences due to RE training and recovery of functional ambulation for individuals with chronic TBI, using functional near-infrared spectroscopy. There was an increase in cortical activation in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), bilateral premotor cortex (PMC) and motor cortex (M1) while walking with RE versus without RE at follow-up. Furthermore, decreased activation was observed in PFC, bilateral PMC and M1 from baseline to follow-up while walking without RE with a corresponding improvement in functional ambulation. These preliminary results for one participant provide initial evidence to understand the cortical mechanisms during RE gait training and the recovery induced due to the training.