"So, Do Not Fear": Religion and the prevalence, persistence, and severity of anxiety disorders among Black Americans.

BACKGROUND: There is a dearth of scholarship that explicates the effects of religious participation on anxiety disorders among Black Americans. A better understanding of the links between religious participation, a coping resource, and anxiety disorders among Black Americans remains essential, given Black Americans are less likely than their white counterparts to seek professional treatment for mental health problems, leading to greater unmet mental health needs. The aim of this study was to investigate whether religious participation is associated with the prevalence, persistence, and severity of anxiety disorders among Black adults. METHODS: We used a national sample of Black adults (N = 4999) from the National Survey of American Life, a cross-sectional study conducted from 2001 to 2003. Five anxiety disorders were assessed: posttraumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and agoraphobia. Three dimensions of religious participation were assessed: organizational, non-organizational, and subjective religious participation. Weighted logistic and linear regressions were estimated to examine the associations between religious participation and anxiety disorders. RESULTS: Findings indicate that organizational religious participation and subjective religiosity were associated with lower odds of anxiety disorders and decreased severity. Findings for non-organizational religious participation in relation to the prevalence, persistence, and severity of anxiety disorders were mixed. LIMITATIONS: The study limitations include the utilization of self-reported measures, cross-sectional study design, and age of the data set. CONCLUSIONS: Different dimensions of religious participation have differing effects on anxiety disorders. Religious participation may be an important resource for Black Americans in coping and preventing anxiety disorders.

Sociodemographic Factors and Neighborhood/Environmental Conditions Associated with Social Isolation Among Black Older Adults.

Objectives: To investigate sociodemographic factors and neighborhood/environmental conditions associated with social isolation (SI) among Black older adults. Methods: We utilized data from the 2014 and 2016 Leave-Behind Questionnaire from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS LBQ) among those who self-identified as Black (N = 2.323). Outcome variables for our study included SI from adult children, other family members, friends, disengagement from social participation and religious services, being unmarried, and living alone. These indicators were also combined into an overall SI index. Critical predictors included gender, age, household income, education, employment status, neighborhood cohesion, neighborhood disorder, urbanicity, and region of residence. Results: Sociodemographic factors of gender, education and household income were significantly associated with SI indicators. Additionally, some neighborhood/environmental conditions were associated with SI indicators. Discussion: SI was found to be patterned by sociodemographic factors. These results can be used to develop effective interventions to mitigate SI among Black older adults.

COVID-19 and Psychological Distress: Racial Differences Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted older adults and Black individuals. Research has focused on physical outcomes, with less attention to the psychological effects of COVID-19. The objective of this study was to examine the interplay between perceptions of the COVID-19 outbreak as a threat to one's day-to-day life, race, and psychological distress among middle-aged and older men and women. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Analyses were conducted on a subsample of self-identified non-Latino Whites and Black individuals aged 50 and older (N = 3,834) from the American Trends Panel. Psychological distress was assessed with 5 items adapted from the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7. Perceived COVID-19 day-to-day threat was assessed with a single question. Negative binomial regressions tested the study aim. RESULTS: Perceptions of COVID-19 day-to-day threat were positively associated with psychological distress. Black individuals reported lower distress than Whites. Regardless of gender, greater perceptions of COVID-19 day-to-day threats were associated with greater distress among both White respondents and Black respondents. However, this association was weaker among Black respondents than White respondents. Among men only, the association between COVID-19 day-to-day threat and distress varied by race, patterned similarly to the race differences identified in the total sample. This association did not vary by race among women. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: This study contributes to the emerging literature focused on older adults and COVID-19 related stressors and psychological distress. An intersectional lens shows how structural oppression may shape perceptions of the pandemic. Future work should consider coexisting intersections in marginalized identities and mental health during COVID-19.

Discrimination and Hypertension Among Older African Americans and Caribbean Blacks: The Moderating Effects of John Henryism.

OBJECTIVES: Discrimination is a major contributor to health disparities between Black and White older adults. Although the health effects of discrimination are well established, less is known about factors that may intervene in the discrimination-health connection, such as coping strategies. The study aim was to determine whether John Henryism (JH; high-effort coping) moderates the association between racial discrimination and hypertension in nationally representative samples of older African Americans and Caribbean Blacks. METHODS: The analytic sample was drawn from the National Survey of American Life-Reinterview, which was conducted 2001-2003, and included African Americans (N = 546) and Caribbean Blacks (N = 141) aged 55 and older. Study variables included racial discrimination, JH, and hypertension. Logistic regressions, which controlled key sociodemographic differences, were used to test the study aim. RESULTS: Among both Black ethnic groups, discrimination and JH were not associated with hypertension. For African Americans low and moderate in JH, discrimination was unrelated to hypertension; discrimination was positively associated with hypertension for African Americans high in JH. For Caribbean Blacks, discrimination was positively associated with hypertension among respondents low in JH. Among Caribbean Blacks moderate and high in JH, discrimination was not associated with hypertension. DISCUSSION: The findings indicate that JH, in the face of discrimination, is associated with hypertension of older African Americans but may be an effective coping strategy for older Caribbean Blacks due to cultural and sociodemographic differences between the 2 ethnic groups. Future research should investigate the differing mechanisms by which JH influences health in heterogeneous older Black populations.

Depressive Symptoms and Loneliness Among Black and White Older Adults: The Moderating Effects of Race.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Loneliness is consistently linked to worse depression/depressive symptoms; however, there are few studies that have examined whether the relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms varies by race. The purpose of this study was to determine whether race moderated the relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Data come from the 2014 wave of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) Core survey and Psychosocial Leave-Behind Questionnaire; only black and white older adults were included in the analysis (N = 6,469). Depressive symptoms were operationalized by the eight-item Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale; however, the "felt lonely" item was removed given concerns with collinearity. Loneliness was operationalized using the Hughes 3-Item Loneliness Scale. Sociodemographic variables included gender, age, education, household income, employment status, marital status, and living alone or with others. Furthermore, social support and negative interactions from family members and friends, and religious service attendance were included in the analysis. Lastly, we created an interaction term between race and loneliness. All analyses used survey weights to account for the complex multistage sampling design of the HRS. Missing data were multiply imputed. RESULTS: In multivariable analysis, we found race significantly moderated the relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms while controlling for sociodemographic covariates, social support and negative interaction variables, and religious service attendance. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: Our findings demonstrate a differential racial effect for loneliness and depressive symptoms. For both blacks and whites, greater loneliness affected depressive symptoms; however, the effect was stronger among whites than it was for blacks. Given this is one of the first studies to examine the differential effects of race on loneliness and depressive symptoms, more research is necessary to determine the consistency of these results.

Race and Objective Social Isolation: Older African Americans, Black Caribbeans, and Non-Hispanic Whites.

OBJECTIVES: Social isolation is a major risk factor for poor physical and mental health among older adults. This study investigates the correlates of objective social isolation among older African Americans, Black Caribbean immigrants, and non-Hispanic Whites. METHODS: The analysis is based on the older subsample (n = 1,439) of the National Survey of American Life. There are eight indicators of objective social isolation: no contact with neighbors, neighborhood groups, friends, family members, religious congregation members, not being married and no romantic involvement, living alone, and not being a parent. RESULTS: Very few older Americans are socially isolated from family and friends. Non-Hispanic Whites are more likely than both African Americans and Black Caribbeans to live alone, to be childless, and have limited contact with religious congregation members. For both African Americans and Black Caribbeans, being female is protective against social isolation, but for both populations, men are more likely to be married or have a romantic partner. For African Americans, residing in the South is also protective against social isolation. DISCUSSION: This analysis provides greater clarity on racial and ethnic differences in social isolation among older adults, as well as within-group differences in objective social isolation among African Americans and Black Caribbeans.

Information and Communication Technologies in Social Work.

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are electronic tools used to convey, manipulate and store information. The exponential growth of Internet access and ICTs greatly influenced social, political, and economic processes in the United States, and worldwide. Regardless of the level of practice, ICTs will continue influencing the careers of social workers and the clients they serve. ICTs have received some attention in the social work literature and curriculum, but we argue that this level of attention is not adequate given their ubiquity, growth and influence, specifically as it relates to upholding social work ethics. Significant attention is needed to help ensure social workers are responsive to the technological changes in the health care system, including the health care infrastructure and use of technology among clients. Social workers also need ICT competencies in order to effectively lead different types of social change initiatives or collaborate with professionals of other disciplines who are using ICTs as part of existing strategies. This paper also identifies potential pitfalls and challenges with respect to the adoption of ICTs, with recommendations for advancing their use in practice, education, and research.