Interpersonal relationships and health behaviors among systems-involved youth

The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development awarded Providence College $554,233 on August 1, 2026, under the Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.865) to study interpersonal relationships and health behaviors among systems-involved youth.

The research employs technology-mediated communication combined with ecological momentary assessment and interview methodologies to examine how caregivers, peers, and romantic partners influence dating violence risk, sexual health, and psychosocial adjustment in 100 systems-involved adolescents ages 14–18. The study uses a measurement burst design to model proximal and distal associations between interpersonal communication processes and health outcomes, collecting intensive data across one year. Youth will be recruited from the Rhode Island Family Court. The project runs through July 31, 2029, with place of performance in Providence, Rhode Island.

Abstract

Systems-involved adolescents experience higher rates of dating violence, sexual risk behaviors, and psychosocial adjustment concerns. Prior self-report data has established that caregivers and peer interpersonal experiences are critical to risk and resilience in these health domains. Romantic relationships are similarly central to systems-involved adolescents' social lives and socio-emotional adjustment; yet, surprisingly little work has examined these relationships. The precise role that caregivers, peers, and romantic partners play in risk and resilience is impossible to capture with current predominant methods. Existing work relies on self-report "snapshots" of these interpersonal relationships. Yet, among adolescents, the most striking feature of these interpersonal relationships is their changing nature. Innovation is needed to accurately capture these dynamic processes through intensive sampling and real-time characterization of their interpersonal relationships. The proposed project will employ a novel combination of technology mediated communication (TMC) with ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and interview methodologies to predict both same-day and distal relationship health, sexual health, and psychosocial adjustment. Using a measurement burst design, the current study will model the proximal and distal associations between interpersonal communication processes with caregivers, peers, and romantic partners among 100 systems-involved adolescents (14-18 years old). We have previously recruited and retained systems-involved adolescents (juvenile justice- and child welfare-involved) for both intervention and observational studies. Youth will be recruited from the rhode island family court and complete measurement bursts of intensive data across one year. Significance: consistent with the nichd strategic plan, the proposed research will address the role technology and social media use has on immediate health outcomes as well as developmental trajectories of relationship health, sexual health, and psychosocial adjustment during the critical transition into late adolescence or adulthood. This study will support the R15 goals of creating a research environment as IT engages undergraduate students in meaningful opportunities but also positions their contributions as essential to the research process. Through their unique perspectives, students are necessary members of the research team, actively enriching the coding and interpretation of technologically mediated communication. As such, our innovative methodologies leverage undergraduate student engagement and insight into the research process and represent a reciprocal relationship wherein student involvement directly elevates the methodological rigor and ecological validity of the study and simultaneously supports student learning.