How adolescent racism and discrimination affect later substance use and mental health
Measuring the impact of structural racism and discrimination during adolescence on substance use, psychological distress
This project looks at whether experiences of racism and discrimination during youth are linked to later substance use, psychological distress, criminal-legal involvement, and treatment-seeking for people who grew up in racially diverse rural communities.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Research Triangle Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Research Triangle Park, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11035106 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would be joining a long-term group of people who were in 6th–8th grade in three North Carolina counties in 2002 and have been followed into adulthood. Researchers will collect one more survey and link your responses to school, peer network, neighborhood, and administrative records to capture experiences of structural racism and discrimination during adolescence. They will examine how those adolescent experiences relate to adult substance use, mental health distress, interactions with the criminal legal system, and whether people sought treatment. The team will also look for community resilience factors that might protect people and suggest possible places to intervene.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults who were in 6th–8th grade in the three participating North Carolina public-school counties in 2002 and who are willing to complete a survey and allow linkage to records.
Not a fit: People who were not part of the original cohort or who cannot provide linkable records are unlikely to be eligible or to directly benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to community- and school-level actions that reduce long-term harms from adolescent racism and improve prevention and treatment connections.
How similar studies have performed: Longitudinal studies have linked childhood adversity to adult substance use and mental health, but combining detailed peer, school, and neighborhood measures to capture structural racism across adolescence is a newer approach.
Where this research is happening
Research Triangle Park, United States
- Research Triangle Institute — Research Triangle Park, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gottfredson O'shea, Nisha — Research Triangle Institute
- Study coordinator: Gottfredson O'shea, Nisha
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.