Objective: A review of current empirical research on adolescent stress reveals that measures of stress were developed using primarily suburban adolescents. However, there has not been a thorough examination of stressors that specifically affect urban minority adolescents. This article discusses the findings from the Urban Hassles Scale (UHS). Method: A nonrandom sample of 131 African American adolescents was surveyed to assess the stressors within their environments. Results: Findings suggest that the UHS has construct and concurrent validity with a Cronbach’s alpha of .85. Conclusions: The UHS has practical implications for practitioners providing services to adolescents residing in the urban milieu. Social worker researchers can utilize the UHS to further study the cumulative effect of constant stress on adolescents living in such environments.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Compas, B. E.
, Davis, G. E., Forsythe, C. J., & Wager, B. M. (1987). Assessment of major and daily stressful events during adolescence: The Adolescent Perceived Events Scale. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 55, 534-541.
2.
Hambleton, R. K.
, Swaminathan, H., & Rogers, J. (1991). Fundamentals of item response theory. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
3.
Jacoby, W. G.
(1991). Data theory and dimensional analysis. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
4.
Kanner, A. D.
, Coyne, J. C., Schaefer, C., & Lazarus, R. S. (1981). Comparison of two modes of stress measurement: Daily hassles and uplifts versus major life events. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 4, 1-39.
5.
Kanner, A. D.
, Feldman, S. S., Weinberger, D. A., & Ford, M. E. (1987). Uplifts, hassles, and adaptational outcomes in early adolescents. Journal of Early Adolescence, 7(4), 371-394.
6.
Lazarus, R. S.
(1984). Puzzles in the study of daily hassles. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 7, 375-389.
7.
Luthar, S. S.
, & Zigler, E. (1991). Vulnerability and competence: A review of research of resilience in childhood. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 61, 6-22.
8.
Marsella, A. J.
(1998). Urbanization, mental health, and social deviancy. American Psychologist, 53, 624-634.
9.
Michell, J.
(1990). An introduction to the logic of psychological measurement. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
10.
Miller, D. B.
(1997). Urban African American adolescents and educational involvement: Can racial socialization and racial identity protect them from a hostile environment? Unpublished manuscript, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University.
11.
Miller, D. B.
, & MacIntosh, R. (1999). Promoting resilience in urban African American adolescents: Racial socialization and identity as protective factors. Social Work Research, 23, 159-170.
12.
Mullis, R. L.
, Youngs, G. A., Mullis, A. K., & Rathge, R. W. (1993). Adolescent stress: Issues of measurement. Adolescence, 28, 267-279.
13.
Nugent, W. R.
, & Hankins, J. A. (1989). The use of item-response theory in social work measurement and research. Social Service Review, 63, 447-473.
14.
Rasch, G.
(1980). Probabilistic models for some intelligence and attainment tests. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (Original work published 1960)
15.
Rowlison, R. T.
& Felner, R. D. (1985). Major life events, hassles, and adaptation in adolescence: Confounding in the conceptualization and measurement of life stress and adjustment revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55, 432-444.
16.
Safyer, A. W.
(1994). The impact of inner-city life on adolescent development implications for social work. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 64, 153-167.
17.
Seidman, E.
, Allen, L., Alber, J. L., Mitchell, C., Feinman, J., Yoshikawa, H., et al. (1995). Development and validation of adolescent-perceived microsystem scales: Social support, daily hassles, and involvement. American Journal of Community Psychology, 23, 355-387.
18.
Smith, R. M.
(1991). IPARM: Item and person analysis with the Rasch model. Chicago: MESA Press.
19.
Swearingen, E. M.
, & Cohen, L. H. (1985). Measurement of adolescents’ life events: The junior high life experiences survey. American Journal of Community Psychology, 13, 69-85.
20.
Taylor-Gibbs, J.
(Ed.). (1988). Young, Black and male in America: An endangered species. Dover, MA: Auburn House.
21.
Tolan, P.
(1988). Socioeconomic, family, and social stress correlates of adolescent antisocial and delinquent behavior. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 16, 317-331.
22.
Tolan, P.
, Miller, L., & Thomas, P. (1988). Perceptions and experience of types of social stress and self-image among adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 17, 147-163.
23.
Tolan, P.
, & Thomas, P. (1988). Correlates of delinquency participation and persistence. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 15, 306-322.
24.
Wright, B. D.
, & Masters, G. (1982). Rating scale analysis. Chicago: MESA Press.
