Citation
Walsemann, Katrina M.; Bell, Bethany A.; & Maitra, Debeshi (2011). The intersection of school racial composition and student race/ethnicity on adolescent depressive and somatic symptoms. Social Science and Medicine. vol. 72 (11) pp. 1873-1883Abstract
Schools are one of the strongest socializing forces in the U.S. and wield considerable influence over individuals’ social and economic trajectories. Our study investigates how school-level racial composition, measured by the percentage non-Hispanic white students in a school, affects depressive and somatic symptoms among a representative sample of U.S. adolescents, and whether the association differs by race/ethnicity. We analyzed Wave I data from the US National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, resulting in a sample size of 18,419 students attending 132 junior and senior high schools in 1994/5. After controlling for individual and school characteristics, our multilevel analyses indicated that with increasing percentages of white students at their school, black students experienced more depressive symptoms and a higher risk of reporting high levels of somatic symptoms. After including students’ perceptions of discrimination and school attachment, the interaction between black student race and school-level racial composition was no longer significant for either outcome. Our findings suggest that attending predominantly-minority schools may buffer black students from discrimination and increase their school attachment, which may reduce their risk of experiencing depressive and somatic symptoms.URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.03.033Keyword(s)
DepressionReference Type
Journal ArticleJournal Title
Social Science and MedicineAuthor(s)
Walsemann, Katrina M.Bell, Bethany A.
Maitra, Debeshi