436 The Professional Counselor | Volume 13, Issue 4 and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP; 2023) asserted that short-term cannabis use can lead to, among other things, problems with memory and concentration, school difficulties, increased aggression, and worsening of underlying mental health conditions. Given these potential harms, it behooves parents and community and government leaders to develop programs and services that can discourage or otherwise lessen the use of cannabis among all youth. Although many programs and services have been proffered and continue to be developed to address cannabis use among youth, punitive methods that disproportionately affect Black youth continue to be the most dominant approach (Volkow, 2021). Black youth tend to be penalized more frequently and to a greater degree when compared to their White counterparts (Ammerman et al., 2015). Instead of being assessed for treatment and support to help them manage stressors or cope with traumas or other emerging mental health challenges, Black youth disproportionately receive school disciplinary actions ranging from detention to suspension as well as referrals to the JJS (Sheehan et al., 2021), a process that has been aptly referred to as the school-to-prison pipeline (Bacher-Hicks et al., 2021; Blitzman, 2021). Ecology of Black Youth Several studies that examined racial differences in motives for cannabis use have found that Black adolescents and emerging adults tend to use cannabis for three main reasons: coping, emotional enhancement, and social motives (Buckner et al., 2016; Patrick et al., 2011; Terry-McElrath et al., 2009). Therefore, counselors must seek to understand the environmental context of Black youth, particularly those who live in low-SES communities, to address their cannabis use competently and ethically. Bronfenbrenner’s (1995) ecological systems theory can help counselors understand the ecological context in which Black youth’s development occurs and, by extension, potentially why they use cannabis. According to Bronfenbrenner (1995), complex interactions between individuals and their environments shape human development. Bronfenbrenner’s model consists of five interrelated systems: microsystem, mesosystem, ecosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem. Examining these various systems will help counselors deal with their biases and increase their knowledge so they can forge culturally responsive approaches in managing cannabis use. Although numerous aspects are implicated in Black youth’s ecological systems, Black youth are frequently more vulnerable to socioeconomic and psychosocial factors that affect their mental health (American Psychological Association, 2017), often leading to maladaptive coping strategies such as cannabis use. A few of these factors are discussed below. Black youth are more likely to live in impoverished neighborhoods with limited access to quality education, health care, and recreational resources (Sanders et al., 2023). Additionally, Black youth encounter higher rates of unemployment and underemployment compared to their White counterparts (Ren, 2022). These factors sustain their rationale for using cannabis to cope with stressors (Andrews et al., 2015; Mrug et al., 2016). Black Youth and Mental Health Another important factor to consider in the ecology of Black youth is their poor mental health status resulting from their social context. Black youth are more likely than their White counterparts to be overrepresented in environments where adverse childhood experiences occur, such as low-income neighborhoods and the foster care system (Bernard et al., 2020). Black children are more likely than White children to be exposed to frightening or threatening experiences (Morsy & Rothstein, 2019). Twice as many Black children compared to White children have lost caregivers to COVID-19 (Treglia et al., 2023), and they have also experienced vicarious racism and trauma in witnessing the widely televised murders of Black people (J. C. Williams et al., 2019).
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