No abstract

The current study examined how adolescents' ethnic-racial identity (ERI) informed the demographic diversity of their friendship network (Goal 1) and the extent of similarity between adolescents' and their friends' ERI (Goal 2). Participants were sixth and seventh grade students (N = 353; M = 11.88, SD = .73; 50% girls; 29% African American, 31% White, 13% Latino) in the Midwestern U.S. Results from longitudinal cross-lagged models (Goal 1) indicated that having more diverse friendships at T2 was associated with greater T3 ERI exploration among all youth. In addition, boys who reported higher ERI resolution at T1 had more diverse friendships at T2. Furthermore, findings from longitudinal social network analyses (SNA; Goal 2) suggested that influence drove similarity between adolescents and their friends in ERI exploration and resolution.

Autologous breast reconstruction has been noted in the literature to provide superior aesthetic outcomes and patient satisfaction. Additionally, free perforator flap tissue transfer has the potential for lower abdominal donor site morbidity. However, it has been noted that the percentage of women who are undergoing autologous breast reconstruction in the United States is decreasing. Factors related to the technical difficulty, prolonged operative times, and decreasing reimbursement have been implicated as the causes. A retrospective review of electronic medical records over a 5-year period was performed with evaluation of 77 autologous breast reconstructions at a single institution. Patient demographics, comorbidities, number of surgeons involved, operative times, length of stay, and postoperative complications were measured. Wilcoxon rank-sum, Pearson's chi-squared, and proportional odds likelihood ratio tests were performed to compare continuous, categorical, and ordinal outcomes, respectively. Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for presurgical covariates and laterality. Operative time and length of stay were both significantly lower in the two- versus the single-microsurgeon groups in the unadjusted setting. When covariates and laterality were adjusted for, operative times still remained significantly shorter in the two-microsurgeon group; there were no differences in complications. Based on our findings, we propose that the two-microsurgeon approach can be utilized in more time-consuming microsurgical cases, such as autologous breast reconstruction, to safely decrease operative times and potentially alleviate surgeon fatigue, reduce operative costs, and thus increase overall surgeon productivity.

The purpose of this study is to examine how parents' documentation status informs their ethnic-racial socialization (ERS) practices and the subsequent implications for Latinx youths' psychological adjustment. The mixed-methods approach combined convergent and exploratory sequential designs to explore the breadth and depth of Latinx parents' messages to their children regarding race and ethnicity. Qualitative data were used to generate hypotheses that were tested quantitatively. Analysis of interviews revealed parents' concerns with obeying the law, avoiding interaction with others, teaching children how to deal with discrimination, the importance of transmitting their culture, and concerns for their children's ever-present fear and stress. Path analysis showed that undocumented parents utilized more cultural socialization and promotion of mistrust messages than their documented counterparts. More promotion of mistrust, in turn, was associated with higher levels of adolescent depressive symptoms. Given the current sociopolitical climate and ethnic-racial tensions in the United States, it is imperative to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the nuanced ERS practices Latinx families employ to both cope with and respond to this situation.

This study offers new insights into the power of peer networks for shaping intergroup relations in a diverse school. Data were drawn from a longitudinal study of sixth-eighth graders (N = 524; M = 11.87; 48% girls; 9% Asian American/Pacific Islander, 28% African American, 13% Latino, 1% Native American, 31% White, 5% Other, and 11% Multiracial) in the Midwestern United States. Students with more positive intergroup contact attitudes (ICA) were most likely to be friends with similarly minded students. Students with more positive ICA were less likely to select friends of the same race/ethnicity than those with less positive ICA. Finally, students' ICA became more similar to their friends' ICA over time. Results implicate school-level norms and contagion in students' ICA.