A vast health disparity exists in which African American youth are significantly more likely to both exhibit antisocial behavior and to be the victim of others’ antisocial acts.  Unfortunately, there is a tremendous lack of culturally sensitive, evidence-based interventions to combat the specific risk factors that lead to antisocial behavior for African American youth. In order to effectively combat the development of antisocial behavior among youth, cultural factors must be strategically and purposefully incorporated into program designs.

This Phase I project was designed to develop the prototype curriculum for the Celebrating the Strengths of Black Youth (CSBY) intervention. Phase I included two primary objectives: (1) to develop prototypes of each component of CSBY (including the Professional Manual, session scripts and activities, child handouts, video segments, and supplemental materials) and (2) to conduct initial product testing of the CSBY prototype materials with child mental health professionals and African American youth (ages 5-8) and their primary caregivers. Results of product testing indicated very positive ratings of all aspects of the prototype by mental health professions who work with African American youth and their families.  Caregivers rated most program components as highly valuable and recommended continued development of the program. However, caregivers felt that the level of difficulty was too high and recommendations for literacy, developmental, and artistic modifications were noted and incorporated into the Phase II development plan

Based on Phase I findings, an application for Phase II funding was sought in order to fully develop and test the CSBY intervention product.  Once complete, this intervention will represent an innovative, much needed resource for preventing and decreasing existing behavioral health disparities in African American children.