Background Research on mobile health (mHealth) app use during adolescence is growing; however, little attention has been paid to black adolescents, particularly black girls, who are generally underresearched and underserved in psychological intervention research. Cognitive restructuring is an important tool in anxiety and fear management and involves two parts: (1) recognizing and deconstructing erroneous thoughts and (2) replacing negative anxiety and stress-provoking thoughts with positive thoughts. In our work with black adolescent females, we found that cognitive restructuring is a difficult skill to practice on one’s own. Thus, drawing upon the importance of music in the black community, we developed the Build Your Own Theme Song (BYOTS) app to deliver a musical form of the technique to middle-school black girls. Objective Our aim in this mixed methods study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the BYOTS app. We hypothesize that participants will expect the app to be effective in reducing negative thoughts and that the app will meet their expectations and data generated from the app will demonstrate a reduction in negative thinking and anxiety. Methods A total of 72 black or biracial seventh- and eighth-grade adolescent females were enrolled in Sisters United Now (SUN), an eight-session culturally infused and app-augmented stress and anxiety sister circle intervention. Before using the BYOTS app, girls completed the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children 2 and the App Expectations Survey. Usage data collected from the app included an assessment of negative thinking before and after listening to their song. After completion of the intervention, focus groups were held to gather qualitative data on participants’ app experience. Results Results using paired sample t tests indicated negative thinking was significantly lower at day 7 than day 1 ( t 31 =1.69, P =.05). Anxiety from preuse to postuse of the app was also reduced ( t 38 =2.82, P =.004). Four effectiveness themes emerged from the focus groups: difference in behavior and temperament, promoted calmness, helpfulness in stressful home situations, and focused thinking via the SUN theme song. Conclusions The BYOTS app is a useful tool for delivering musical cognitive restructuring to reduce negative thinking and anxiety in an underserved urban population. Changes were supported both quantitatively and qualitatively. Participants, their peers, and their family noted the difference. Findings support expanding the research to black girls of various socioeconomic statuses and geographic diversity. Currently, the app augments SUN, a culturally relevant intervention. Future research will explore BYOTS as a stand-alone app.

Adolescence is a period when many youth are subjected to close scrutiny by peers. Acting white is one of the most negative accusations one African American adolescent can hurl at another. The accusation has been documented as early as elementary school; however, the research indicates it is most salient and first likely to occur during early adolescence. In this paper, the assessment of adolescents' experience of the acting white accusation is sought. A series of studies are presented that explore both qualitative and quantitative approaches to assessing the acting white accusation wherein the qualitative data and findings guide the formation of a quantitative assessment of the acting white accusation experience. Based on the results, a mixed methods approach is recommended to facilitate further understanding of the accusation.

Research on anxiety treatment with African American women reveals a need to develop interventions that address factors relevant to their lives. Such factors include feelings of isolation, multiple roles undertaken by Black women, and faith. A recurrent theme across treatment studies is the importance of having support from other Black women. Sister circles are support groups that build upon existing friendships, fictive kin networks, and the sense of community found among African Americans females. Sister circles appear to offer many of the components Black women desire in an anxiety intervention. In this article, we explore sister circles as an intervention for anxious African American women. Culturally-infused aspects from our sister circle work with middle-class African American women are presented. Further research is needed.

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Trichotillomania (TTM) is a little understood disorder that has been underresearched in the African American community. Furthermore, the incorporation of cultural factors into TTM research has virtually been ignored. Existing data from an African American college student population suggest TTM is associated with high levels of anxiety. In this study, we explored anxiety symptoms and cultural hair messages in an African American female community sample with TTM symptoms. We predicted high levels of TTM severity and impairment would be associated with high level of anxiety symptoms. We also predicted that cultural messages about hair will influence both TTM and anxiety symptoms. In this telephone study, 41 African American females participated in interviews about their TTM. TTM impairment and severity was positively correlated with general anxiety symptoms as measured on the Symptom Checklist 90-Revised (SCL 90-R(®) ). Severity was also positively correlated with obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Given the significance of hair for African American women, we also explored the childhood cultural messages receive about hair. Over half the sample received at least one cultural message about hair. Although many women received the same message, the value they placed on the message differed. Messages received about hair were not associated with TTM severity or impairment. The association among obsessive-compulsive symptoms and hair messages approached significance. Results highlight the importance of assessing anxiety comorbidity and culture with African American TTM samples. Little is known about TTM in African American samples. Existing research indicates this population seeks TTM help from their hairdressers. Among college students, a significant correlation has been found for anxiety as measured on the Beck Anxiety Inventory and TTM. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper to examine cultural messages about hair in an African American sample. In addition, rather than looking at college students, this research is conducted with a community sample of mostly professional African American women. The use of the SCL-90-R(®) specific anxiety dimensions demonstrates the relationship with TTM severity and impairment.

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These three experiments investigated the effects of the performer's viewing position (from the side or front) of an apparently approaching stimulus (Bassin Anticipation Timer) upon error (AE, CE, VE) in anticipation of coincidence. Exps. 1 and 2 gave no evidence for the superiority of any viewing position for adults. Exp. 3 assessed ipsilateral (right eye and hand) and contralateral (left eye and right hand) preferences of children (ages 5.5 to 10.1 yr.). No evidence was obtained to support the hypothesized increment in performance for contralaterals when the "lead-eye" was the preferred eye; in fact, the descriptive data suggested the reverse. Those with ipsilateral preferences evidenced less AE and VE than contralaterals. Display speed affected performance so greater accuracy occurred at the fast speed in Exps. 1 and 3 whereas the two slower speeds led to less error in Exp. 2. The differential speed effect was interpreted to represent an experience/skill factor.