An Introduction to Parenting and Mental Health Services Utilization Among African American Families: The Role of Racial Socialization.

The articles in this special issue are a significant contribution to the literature pertaining to racial socialization, which is defined as messages parents communicate about race and culture, how African Americans are perceived societally, and how to cope with discrimination due to their skin color. More specifically, these articles examine the relationship between racial socialization and parental mental health status, child socio-behavioral functioning, and the utilization of mental health and prevention services for both parent and child. Overall, the results of these articles indicate that various racial socialization practices do indeed influence key variables such as the child's behavioral functioning and decision-making, parental mental health status, and the receipt of prevention and mental health services. Implications of these findings suggest that racial socialization beliefs and practices may in fact influence the health and functioning of African American youth and families.