Corrigendum: Nurturing resilience in American Indian/Alaska Native preschool children: the role of cultural socialization, executive function, and neighborhood risk.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1279336.].

Parenting in 2 Worlds: Testing improved parent-adolescent communication about sexuality in Urban American Indian families.

Urban American Indian (AI) adolescents are more likely than non-Natives to have early sexual debut, teen pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, and inadequate sexual health information. A RCT in three Arizona cities, with 585 parents of urban AI adolescents, tested whether a culturally tailored parenting intervention for urban AI families, Parenting in 2 Worlds (P2W), increased parent-adolescent communication about sexuality, compared to an informational family health intervention that was not culturally tailored. P2W produced significantly larger increases on two measures: communication about general sexual health and about sexual decision-making. The desired effects of P2W on the first measure were stronger short-term for cross-gender dyads, while for the second measure, they were stronger long-term for both mothers and fathers of adolescent sons.

Nurturing resilience in American Indian/Alaska Native preschool children: the role of cultural socialization, executive function, and neighborhood risk.

Introduction: American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children possess numerous cultural assets, yet higher exposures to neighborhood risks (e.g., lack of housing, crime) may present barriers to healthy cognitive development, including executive function (EF). Cultural socialization may promote resilience and support children's early cognition, but this has not been adequately studied. The present study examined the effects of neighborhood risk and cultural socialization on EF for AI/AN preschool children. Method: Parents/caregivers of 768 AI/AN preschoolers from the 2015 AI/AN Head Start Family and Community Experiences (FACES) Study rated neighborhood risk via two scales: "Neighborhood Problems" and "Environmental Conditions," and cultural socialization practices via two scales: cultural activities and tribal language activities. Children's EF was measured directly using the Pencil Tap Task and the Leiter-R attention subscale. Results: Families perceived neighborhood risks as relatively low, and overall risk did not predict children's EF. However, higher average language socialization was significantly related to higher EF, as were two specific language activities (encouraging children to learn their tribal language, making sure children heard their tribal language) and two cultural activities (playing AI/AN games, participating in tribal ceremonies), controlling for neighborhood risk. Discussion: Findings suggest some aspects of cultural socialization may promote resilience among AI/AN preschoolers by supporting early EF. Mechanisms may include increased spiritual, social, and cultural connections, and practice with EF skills during cultural games. Future research should partner with AI/AN communities to investigate culturally grounded EF interventions and reevaluate measures of neighborhood risk to promote resilience and connectedness for AI/AN children.

Chronic stress predicts post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms via executive function deficits among urban American Indian children.

Little is known about how chronic exposure to stress affects mental health among American Indian (AI) children. The current study aimed to fill this gap by exploring if hair cortisol concentration (HCC), an indicator of chronic stress, predicted post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms through deficits in executive function (EF) skills commonly referred to as inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility. A total of 163 urban AI children between 8- and 15-years old participated in the study (92 girls, 56.4%; Mage = 11.19, SD = 1.98). Chronic stress was measured as the concentration of cortisol in children's hair. EF deficits and PTSD symptoms were reported by primary caregivers using the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function and the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children. The results demonstrated that higher HCC was indirectly associated with more PTSD symptoms through deficits in EF skills. Specifically, higher levels of HCC were related to more symptoms of PTSD arousal through impaired working memory, and more symptoms of PTSD avoidance and Intrusion through deficits in cognitive flexibility. The findings suggest interventions that reduce or buffer chronic stress, or that focus on improving EF skills, may promote not only cognitive development but also the mental health of AI children.

Parenting in 2 worlds: Effects of a culturally grounded parenting intervention for urban American Indians on participant cultural engagement.

BACKGROUND: Culturally appropriate, evidence-based prevention programs are seldom available to the growing majority of American Indians (AIs) who now live in cities. Parenting in 2 Worlds (P2W), a culturally grounded parenting intervention, was created to strengthen family functioning and reduce behavioral health risks in urban AI families from diverse tribal backgrounds. OBJECTIVES: This study reports on the AI cultural engagement of the P2W participants as an outcome of the intervention. METHOD: Data came from 575 parents of AI children (ages 10-17) in a randomized controlled trial in three Arizona cities. Parents were recruited through urban Indian centers and randomized to P2W or to an informational family health curriculum, Healthy Families in 2 Worlds (HF2W). Both P2W and HF2W consisted of 10 workshops delivered weekly by AI community facilitators. Pretests and posttests measured identification and engagement with traditional AI heritage, culture and practices. Tests of the efficacy of P2W versus HF2W used baseline adjusted regression models using FIML estimation to adjust for attrition, including random effects (site, facilitator), and controlling dosage. Moderated treatment effects by pretest levels of cultural engagement were tested with mean centered interactions. RESULTS: Compared to parents in HF2W, those in P2W reported significantly larger increases in AI ethnic identity, AI spirituality, and positive mainstream cultural identification. Increases in cultural engagement were significantly larger for P2W participants who were relatively less culturally engaged at pretest. CONCLUSIONS: Culturally adapted parenting interventions like P2W that effectively build on AI cultural heritage can also promote greater AI cultural identification and involvement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

ASSESSING PARENTING AND FAMILY FUNCTIONING MEASURES FOR URBAN AMERICAN INDIANS.

Urban American Indian (AI) families often "live in two worlds," and widely used parenting measures may not adequately capture their parenting styles. Drawing from baseline surveys of AI parents living in 3 urban communities in Arizona (n = 606), this study examines the applicability of using 6 previously validated measures with urban AI parents: parent self-agency, parental supervision, positive parenting practices, discipline, family cohesion, and parent-adolescent conflict. A 4-step factor analytic sequential procedure was employed, and results indicate the only measure remaining as a single factor is discipline. The χ2 difference tests of the remaining 5 measures indicate multiple factors fit the data significantly better than the previously validated single factor. These findings indicate previously validated measures are not adequate holistic descriptions of the parenting and familial experiences of urban AIs. Understanding how urban AIs conceptualize parenting provides a foundation for strengthening urban AI families.

Involvement in traditional cultural practices and American Indian children's incidental recall of a folktale.

This study examined incidental recall of a folktale told to 91 Tohono O'odham American Indian children (average age 9 years) who either were directly addressed or had the opportunity to overhear the telling of the folktale. Learning from surrounding incidental events contrasts with learning through direct instruction common in Western schooling, which was familiar to all the children and their families. We hypothesized that Tohono O'odham children who have greater cultural engagement in traditional Tohono O'odham practices (Tohono O'odham language, activities, and storytelling) would have greater incidental recall of the story, especially in the overhearing condition, due to the emphasis on learning through listening to others in this community. Cultural engagement significantly predicted incidental story recall for both overhearing children and those who were directly told the story. Further, cultural engagement explained additional variance in the number of story events recalled in the overhearing group.

An exploratory analysis of American Indian children's cultural engagement, fluid cognitive skills, and standardized verbal IQ scores.

This exploratory cross-sectional study examined fluid cognitive skills and standardized verbal IQ scores in relation to cultural engagement amongst Tohono O'odham children (N = 99; ages 7 to 12 years). Guardians with higher socioeconomic status engaged their children in more cultural activities, and participation in more cultural activities contributed to higher standardized verbal IQ scores. Mean cognitive skill scores varied as a function of age and Tohono O'odham language knowledge. Children who understood and/or spoke Tohono O'odham started out with lower average scores than did children with no language knowledge, but mean scores generally increased in the older age groups such that they were equal to or higher than those of nonspeakers by age 9. Children with higher fluid cognitive skill scores had higher standardized verbal IQ scores than did children with lower scores.

The influence of a friend's perspective on American Indian children's recall of previously misconstrued events.

The ability of American Indian children (N = 99; 7-12 years of age) to reframe a memory of a friend's seemingly mean-spirited actions (Story 1) after hearing the friend's perspective detailing her/his good intentions (Story 2) was explored. Children in a control group heard an unrelated Story 2 and did not alter their retelling of Story 1. Good verbal skills facilitated the integration of the friend's perspective in memory for the children who heard the friend's explanation. Higher scores on the working memory and inhibition tasks were associated with higher verbal ability scores. Older children had better working memory and inhibitory skills than younger children. Cultural engagement predicted better social competence ratings but not higher memory reframing scores as predicted.

Exploring maternal social perceptions and child aggression among urban American Indians.

Currently, the majority of American Indian families live in urban areas. A number of statistics demonstrate that urban American Indian families deal with a variety of stressors such as poverty and isolation. However, very little is known about how these families perceive their lives. This report provides an exploratory study examining the status of 20 urban American Indian mother/child dyads. Mothers were asked about the role of American Indian culture in their lives, their views of life in general, and their attributions for their child's mild misbehavior. Two measures of child aggression were collected as well. The links between maternal perceptions and child aggression were complex, indicating the need for more studies of urban American Indian families.

The influence of another's perspective on children's recall of previously misconstrued events.

Children's abilities to reframe their memories of events after hearing another child's perspective of the same events were examined, and links between memory reframing, cognitive ability, and social competence were explored. Nine- to 11-year-olds (N = 79) were told to imagine that the events in a narrated story happened to them. Next, they heard another story that described either the same events (experimental condition) or unrelated events (control condition) from another child's perspective. The children in the experimental group reframed their memories in light of the alternative perspective, whereas the children in the control condition did not. Children with higher cognitive scores had higher memory reframing scores and received higher social competence ratings than children with lower cognitive scores.