Home life and health among native American, African American, and Latino adolescents

Objective: Research provides limited detail on how aspects of home life influence basic health status for ethnic/racial minority adolescents. This study examined 2 aspects of the home environment as they relate to 2 markers of health status for Native American, African American, and Latino adolescents. The study addressed the hypothesis that family companionship and investment is associated with adolescent health in all 3 groups. Method: Data collectors made visits to the homes of 53 Native American, 132 African American, and 155 Latino families with an adolescent living in residence. They administered the HOME Inventory along with components of the Child Health and Illness Profile and the American Community Survey to parents and adolescents. Results: Significant correlations were observed between the Companionship and Investment domain of LA-HOME and the 2 markers of health for all 3 racial/ethnic groups. Very few significant correlations were observed for the other LA-HOME domain (Physical Environment). When health outcomes were regressed on the 2 home environment factors and gender, Companionship and Investment was a significant predictor in 4 of the 6 models run, with near significant differences in a 5th. Conclusions: In households where there was a high level of connectedness between adolescents and other family members, adolescents showed more endurance and had fewer health problems. Because adolescence is a period when children tend to spend less time with other family members and are prone to engage in risky behavior, implementing programs that promote parent-adolescent communication and productive time together would seem helpful.