Momma's Girl

Abstract

Abstract Using data from the 1998 Youth Survey conducted by the Institute for Social Science Research, this paper examines the correlation between perceived maternal figure support and hope for future success among 866 African-American adolescent girls. The majority of girls in this sample perceive themselves as receiving high levels of support from their maternal figures. The oldest girls, ages 18 and 19 years, represented the largest percentage of respondents who reported receiving no maternal support, over twice the percentage for the entire sample. The impact of higher levels of maternal support on hope development in the girls of this sample was less influential than hypothesized. Implications for practice include the need to consider development of programs that support or promote enrichment of formal and informal support systems for African-American girls considered to be at risk for potentially Key Words: Adolescent girlsAfrican-American mothers African-American adolescents social support African-American girls