Abstract
The vast and disproportionate incarceration of African American men has sparked research that makes clear the deleterious consequences of incarceration for children of the incarcerated. However, though African American children are more likely than children of other race/ethnic groups to experience parental incarceration, African American children are not a monolithic group, as children in this group have differential risks of being exposed to parental incarceration. To understand the differential risks of experiencing parental incarceration among African American boys, we use data from the 2011–2012 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) to describe the demographic, socioeconomic, and behavioral characteristics that shape African American boys’ risks of exposure to parental incarceration. We argue that to understand how African American boys remain resilient in light of the challenges they face—including parental incarceration—we must first consider their heterogeneous risks of exposure to these challenges. The differences in exposure to challenges (e.g. poverty, violence, and reduced educational opportunities and resources) that shape their risk can guide relevant programs, services, and policies to aid in resiliency for youth.
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Acknowledgements
This research was supported by a grant from the Foundation for Child Development to Kristin Turney. The authors are grateful to the Data Resource Center for Child and adolescent Health, Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative for providing the 2011–2012 National Survey of Children’s Health.
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Turney, K., Adams, B.L. (2016). Considering Risk and Resiliency Among Children of Incarcerated Parents. In: M. Burton, L., Burton, D., M. McHale, S., King, V., Van Hook, J. (eds) Boys and Men in African American Families. National Symposium on Family Issues, vol 7. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43847-4_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43847-4_4
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