Session
Neighborhood Risk and School Protection: ACEs and Suicide Attempts Among Asian American Youth
Suicide is a leading cause of death among Asian American youth and is strongly associated with exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Despite being the fastest-growing racial/ethnic group in the United States, Asian American youth are often overlooked in public health research due to structural racism, xenophobia, and the Model Minority Myth. This study examines how neighborhood social vulnerability and school connectedness moderate the association between ACEs and attempted suicide among Asian American youth. Using 2023 district-pooled Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance data (N=1,414), multilevel logistic regression models tested both structural (neighborhood social vulnerability) and contextual (school connectedness) moderators. Results show that youth with ≥4 ACEs had over four times higher odds of attempting suicide (AOR=4.0, p<0.001). Neighborhood social vulnerability amplified this association (AOR=9.80, p=0.030), whereas school connectedness was independently protective (AOR=0.57, p=0.022) and attenuated the ACE–suicide relationship (AOR=0.51 for ≥4 ACEs, p=0.008). Findings underscore the need for place-based and school-based prevention strategies that address both structural disadvantage and social connectedness to reduce suicide risk among Asian American youth.
Xiang Gao
Assistant Professor of Public Health Education/University of North Carolina Greensboro
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