Applying an Indigenous Connectedness Framework to Examine Environmental Risk and Protective Factors for Urban...

Area of Science:

• Indigenous knowledge systems
• Developmental psychology
• Public health

Background:

• Indigenous frameworks identify connecting and disconnecting forces impacting American Indian (AI) children's development across five domains: spirituality, family, intergenerational ties, community, and environment/land.
• Understanding these factors is crucial for AI children's well-being and cognitive development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the prevalence of connecting and disconnecting forces among urban AI parents and their children.
• To investigate the associations between these forces and child executive function (EF).

Main Methods:

• 156 urban AI parents and their children participated.
• Parents reported on stressful life events, discrimination, neighborhood risks, knowledge of tribal history, and engagement with cultural beliefs/practices.
• Child EF was assessed using parent-reported (BRIEF) and child self-reported measures.

Main Results:

• Connecting forces, including knowledge of tribal history and cultural engagement, were associated with higher parent- and child-reported EF.
• Disconnecting forces, such as discrimination and neighborhood risks, were linked to lower child EF, even after controlling for income and child age.

Conclusions:

• Cultural connectedness plays a protective role in the cognitive development of urban AI children.
• Centering Indigenous theory is vital for effective risk and resilience research with AI families.