Member Research Spotlight: Donte Bernard Ph.D.

Featured Research Study

Bernard, D. L., & Pollock, M. L. (2024). Racial discrimination and trauma symptoms among Black adolescent-caregiver dyads. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2024.2426119

In 1-2 sentences, describe your research interests and the focus of your research program. 

My program of research broadly examines the direct and indirect pathways by which racism and broader forms of adversity compromise the mental health and well-being of Black youth and families. Central to this work is the emphasis on risk and resilience factors that influence psychological vulnerability to cultural and broader forms of adversity, to identify who is most at risk, who demonstrates resilience, and what culturally salient assets can be leveraged to promote positive outcomes.

In 1-2 sentences, share what motivated you to conduct this featured research.

I was motivated to conduct this research to address the limited understanding of how racial trauma extends beyond the individual to affect the broader family system.

In a short paragraph (up to 200 words), describe your feature study. 

This study examined how the harmful effects of racial discrimination can be shared between Black youth and their caregivers. We surveyed 202 Black adolescents and their caregivers to see how each person’s experiences of racial discrimination related to both their own and their family member’s trauma. Three main findings emerged. First, when adolescents or caregivers experienced racial discrimination, they each reported more trauma-related symptoms. Second, one family member’s experience with discrimination was also linked to higher trauma symptoms in the other. Third, the traumatic impact of racial discrimination was more pronounced among caregivers whose children also reported high levels of racial discrimination. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of understanding and addressing the harmful effects of racial discrimination through a family systems lens, as focusing only on individuals may miss the full picture of its impact across family members.

Learn more about Dr. Bernard’s work on LinkedIn, Twitter/X @donte_bernard, and on the Racism Risk and Resilience Lab website https://www.ther3lab.com/

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