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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2025 Aug 21.
Published before final editing as: Adult Learn (Wash). 2024 Oct 23:10.1177/10451595241291888. doi: 10.1177/10451595241291888

Crisis, Confidence, and Conserving Resources: Examining How Adult Education Students Navigate Stressors and Marginalization

Frances J Griffith 1, Sydney C Simmons 1, Shannon Schrader 2,3, Brittany Miller-Roenigk 4, Maria C Crouch 1, Derrick M Gordon 1
PMCID: PMC12367057  NIHMSID: NIHMS2058114  PMID: 40851805

Abstract

Social and systemic barriers contribute to students’ attrition from K-12 education and enrollment in adult basic education (ABE) via the reduction of available resources. Informed by Conservation of Resources Theory, the current study assessed the impact of stress-related risk factors, including trauma and COVID-19-related stress, on ABE students’ (N = 227) vocational confidence. Understanding these factors can inform ABE program development and retention efforts. Survey methods with convenience sampling were used for data collection. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the relationship between trauma exposure and COVID-19-related stress on the outcomes of alcohol use, as a stress response, as well as vocational confidence. On average, past traumatic experiences were more common among ABE students who reported greater social or economic marginalization, especially those identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual or with a history of being unhoused. More past traumatic experiences predicted higher COVID-19-related stress and alcohol use. Higher COVID-19-related stress, in turn, predicted lower vocational confidence. ABE students experiencing marginalization face compounded barriers to achieving their educational and vocational goals when they experience trauma exposure and subsequent stressors. Based on findings, we make practice recommendations for ABE centers, including targeted psychoeducational resources to offset social and systemic stressors that may bolster the vocational confidence of enrolled students.

Keywords: adult basic education, social and economic marginalization, stressors, trauma-informed programs, alcohol use

Introduction

In the US, approximately two million individuals aged 16 to 24 have exited K-12 institutions without completing their high school education requirements (National Center for Education Statistics, 2023). Before the COVID-19 pandemic, over one million individuals were enrolled in adult basic education (ABE) programs to complete their high school requirements or other coursework; however, the early pandemic saw a sharp decrease in ABE enrollment by one third (U.S. Department of Education [DoE], 2021). Stress-related risk factors, such as trauma or stress related to COVID-19, contribute to students’ exit from K-12 education and can lead to later attrition from ABE centers (Miller-Roenigk et al., 2021). Students enroll in ABE to increase their academic and vocational skills and, ultimately, bolster their earning potential (Calhoun, 1993). Given the pivotal role of ABE centers in preparing students to meet their vocational goals, it is critical that these settings develop theoretically grounded strategies to support students experiencing stress-related risk factors that may undermine their vocational confidence and skills.

The vulnerabilities experienced by ABE students may be best understood using the Conservation of Resources (COR) framework. According to COR theory, stress results from loss of resources in an individual’s socio-ecological context, including material and psychological resources (Hobfoll, 2011). Individuals with fewer resources may face compounded impacts from stressful events like the COVID-19 pandemic, which disproportionately impacted people in lower-income jobs (Shelef et al., 2022). During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, some ABE students may have faced increased barriers to engaging in healthy coping skills and, in turn, had challenges continuing their education and building vocational confidence. There is limited research focusing on how ABE students managed the COVID-19 pandemic and other stressors, and the impact of these stressors on vocational confidence.

The current study examined the effects of stress-related risk factors, including past trauma and COVID-19-related stress, on students in an ABE center in the northeastern US. Guided by COR theory, our goals were to determine: (1) whether a history of trauma predicted higher COVID-19-related stress or alcohol use among ABE students as a stress response, and (2) whether higher stress decreased ABE students’ vocational confidence. In the current study, trauma was defined as exposure to potentially traumatic events, such as physical or sexual assault, assessed by the Lifetime Experiences Checklist for DSM-5 (LEC-5; Weathers et al., 2013), or those events most likely to result in posttraumatic stress (PTSD). Alcohol use was selected due to its prevalence as a common stress response in the extant literature (Miller-Roenigk et al., 2021) and its role in lower academic skill-building and barriers to key educational achievements (Holtyn et al., 2015). We defined alcohol use as self-reported drinking behaviors on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT; Saunders et al., 1993) with higher scores indicating more problematic or risky drinking. Vocational confidence, or ABE students’ assurance they will get the job they want in the future, was selected as a highly important outcome rooted in students’ personal definitions of success (Calhoun, 1993; Griffith et al., 2023). Our study aims to inform psychoeducational ABE programs as a targeted resource to offset external stressors and bolster vocational confidence and program retention.

Literature Review

Adult Basic Education Students and Stress Vulnerability

Systemic barriers, such as social and economic marginalization, increase ABE students’ exposure to subsequent stress-related risk factors like the COVID-19 pandemic (Pickard, 2013). ABE students tend to come from diverse cultural backgrounds, bringing varied strengths, resiliencies, and experiences of discrimination (US DoE, 2020). According to a national summary of ABE students, over half were women, greater than three-fourths were people of color, and about one-fourth reported low socioeconomic status (US DoE, 2020). Students attend ABE to attain upward economic mobility, because a high school diploma, GED, or English proficiency is often necessary to secure and maintain better paying jobs (Calhoun, 1993). Potential systemic factors, like pre-existing poverty and social marginalization, can present barriers and restrict these students’ ability to continue their education.

Restricted access to resources and marginalization can create challenging contexts for ABE students (Holloway-Friesen, 2018). For example, students who are unhoused may frequently change schools and experience social isolation (Miller, 2011), resulting in educational challenges that warrant targeted and supportive educational programs (Abdul Rahman et al., 2015). Students who identify as LGBTQ+ may face harassment and stigmatization in K-12 education settings and at home. These experiences can increase the likelihood of school attrition and mental health challenges (McCann & Brown, 2019). In response to social and systemic barriers, students may turn to coping strategies, like substance use, which can further undermine their educational aspirations (Holtyn et al., 2015). Other mental health challenges, like trauma, may result in stress that further compounds students’ barriers (Miller-Roenigk et al., 2021). As Pickard (2013) asserted, contextual factors are equally or more relevant than dispositional factors in ABE students’ success. Understanding these factors can inform our knowledge of students’ stressors and the development of resources to support them.

Ongoing Stressors Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic

The stress-related impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic were population-wide; however, they differed depending on one’s access to individual and system resources (CDC, 2022; Parker et al., 2022). Individuals with trauma histories reported more anxiety and depression (Parker et al., 2022), pandemic-related stress (Hamam et al., 2021), and posttraumatic stress (Solomon et al., 2021). COVID-19-related stress was also associated with increased alcohol sales (Pollard et al., 2020) and consumption for those with higher pre-pandemic drinking (Kim et al., 2020). Pre-existing barriers to in-person resources, like education and healthcare, also increased during the pandemic. Poverty has been implicated in the escalating vulnerability encountered due to limited access to healthcare and technology and early COVID-19 viral exposure through job type (Williams et al., 2021).

The COVID-19 pandemic also altered the nature of work in 2020 with high levels of unemployment that were slow to stabilize (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2021). The economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in disproportionate hardship and slower wage growth for families with low to middle incomes (Kochhar & Sechopoulos, 2022). Many ABE students fall within these income categories, and low-wage jobs are projected to experience the least growth post-pandemic (McKinsey Global Institute, 2021). Job instability during the COVID-19 pandemic may have increased job-seeking based on “the passion principle,” or the narrative that one should pursue meaningfulness in work as opposed to economic security (Cech & Hiltner, 2022). This zeitgeist may place the burden of work satisfaction on individuals rather than institutions, support meritocratic narratives of job achievement, and devalue motives of economic survival (DePalma, 2021). Careers based singularly on the passion principle may negate the realities of many ABE students, whose economic needs must be considered along with their emotional fulfillment (Frey, 2020). Therefore, it is important to explore the vocational and educational risks associated with COVID-19-related stress for ABE students.

Academic Outcomes and Vocational Confidence

Getting a higher-paying job is a primary goal described by many ABE students (Frey, 2020). Students across ABE centers may enroll and complete their studies chiefly with vocational goals in mind (Griffith et al., 2023). Therefore, academic success in ABE is intertwined with vocational confidence and success. For example, Calhoun (1993) found that GED students who completed their program had higher self-esteem and were more likely to attain a job. Given the lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on work, especially among people in low- to middle-income jobs, it is important to assess the impact of contextual stressors on the vocational confidence of ABE students. Supporting ABE students in navigating stressors could help mitigate impacts on their program completion, vocational confidence, and job acquisition.

Theoretical Framework

Conservation of Resources Theory

In contrast to stress-coping theories that focus on individuals’ appraisals of stress, the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory underscores the importance of context and its impact on stressors (Hobfoll, 2011). According to COR, individuals are driven to obtain, protect, and retain resources, whether tangible or psychological. Therefore, stress responses may arise from a perceived threat to resources, loss of resources, or imbalance between energy expended and resources gained. COR also accounts for the additive impact of different stressors on an individual’s functioning. For example, someone living in a resource-limited context may be more impacted by exposure to a traumatic experience (Ferreira et al., 2019).

Based on COR theory, when an individual is faced with stressors, they turn to available coping strategies to offset the contextual resources lost (Hobfoll, 2011). Environments with access to sufficient resources and protections may promote resilience and healthy coping. In contrast, environments that lack sufficient contextual resources may be associated with less adaptive coping, like substance use. COR theory emphasizes contextual and systemic factors in stress-coping responses. Resilience is a contextual trait rather than an individual trait in which communities provide resources to individuals to offset stressors. Therefore, from a COR perspective, enhanced coping and resilience for ABE students during crises would be possible through greater access to basic resources and mental health supports within and outside of ABE centers. COR theory has implications for post-COVID-19 pandemic challenges experienced by ABE students, given the differential impacts by income level and social status (CDC, 2022).

Current Study

There is limited research on the compounded impacts of trauma and the COVID-19 pandemic stressors on ABE students’ substance use and vocational confidence. Observations from this line of inquiry could be critical in highlighting possible approaches to support ABE students that are contextually stressed as they navigate educational goals. First, we completed an exploratory, preliminary analysis to examine the relationship between trauma experience and having different identities that may be socially or economically marginalized. We then used COR theory to guide our examination of how past trauma exposure and COVID-19-related stress impacted alcohol use and vocational confidence for ABE students. We made the following hypotheses:

  • Hypothesis 1: Higher reported levels of trauma exposure will predict higher COVID-19-related stress and higher alcohol use.

  • Hypothesis 2: Higher reported COVID-19-related stress will predict lower vocational confidence.

Methods

Study Context

The current research took place in an ABE center in an urban setting of the northeastern US. This ABE center houses five educational programs (GED, HSC, National External Diploma, ESOL/Test of English as a Foreign Language, and Certified Nursing Assistant [CNA]). About 1600 students attend the ABE center each year, with students ranging in age from 17 to over 65 years old. The school is supported by public funding, including federal grants, enabling it to be free to residents of its town and at a nominal fee for residents from other towns. Students have access to a variety of on-site resources, including mental health services and skill-building groups, as well as referrals for help with housing, food, childcare, and transportation.

Participants

A total of 275 students across ABE programs expressed interest in the study, with 227 consenting and continuing past five questions (Table 1). There were varying levels of missingness across items (completed subsets ranging from n = 102 to n = 225). Participants tended to drop out progressively, so we speculated that time and effort were likely the reasons for dropouts. Most participants self-identified as female (64.0%, n = 144) and heterosexual (78.8%, n = 164). The largest racial groups of participants identified as Black or African American (22.9%, n = 49) or another race not listed/multiracial (55.6%, n = 119). The largest ethnic group of participants identified as Latine (53.4%, n = 118).

Table 1.

Participant Characteristics (N = 227a).

n (%) n (%)
Gender Employment
 Female 144 (64.0)  Not working 82 (38.0)
 Male 78 (34.7)  Working full time 47 (21.8)
 Transgender 1 (0.4)  Working part time 41 (19.0)
 Other 2 (0.9)  Student 27 (12.5)
Race  Retired 5 (2.3)
 African American/Black 49 (22.9)  Have disability 4 (1.9)
 European American/White 23 (10.7)  Volunteering 1 (0.5)
 Asian American 16 (7.8)  Other 9 (4.2)
 American Indian/Alaska Native 5 (2.3) Experience of houselessness
 Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 2 (0.9)  No 179 (81.4)
 Other/Mixed race 119 (55.6)  Yes 41 (18.6)
Latine Incomeb
 Yes 118 (53.4)  < $10,000 79 (45.9)
 No 103 (46.6)  $10,001 – 15,000 29 (16.9)
Sexual orientation  $15,001 – 19,999 14 (8.1)
 Heterosexual/Straight 164 (78.8)  $20,000 – 29,999 21 (12.2)
 Bisexual 9 (4.3)  $30,000 – 39,999 11 (6.4)
 Gay/Lesbian 13 (6.3)  $40,000 – 49,999 7 (4.1)
 Other 22 (10.6)  $50,000 – 59,999 9 (5.2)
Born in US  $70,000 – 79,999 1 (0.6)
 No 158 (70.2)  > $90,000 1 (0.6)
 Yes 67 (29.8)
Adult basic education program
 ESOL 74 (35.6)
 General education development 67 (32.2)
 High school credit diploma 56 (26.9)
 TOEFL 9 (4.3)
 National external diploma 2 (1.0)
Participant age M (SD) = 34.67 (13.96) years; Range of 17–81
No. of children M (SD) = 1.69 (1.76); Range of zero-7
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a

Each variable contains different levels of missingness. Percentages reflect proportions of people who answered each question as follows: Gender (n = 225), Born in US (n = 225), Latine (n = 221), Experience of Houselessness (n = 220), Employment (n = 216), Age (n = 214), Race (n = 214), ABE Program (n = 208), Sexual Orientation (n = 208), Number of children (n = 180), and Income (n = 172).

b

No participants selected income brackets of $60,000 – 69,999 or $80,000 – 89,999.

Procedure

The current study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Yale University. Participants were recruited through classroom presentations. The survey was administered using Qualtrics in November 2021 with on-site computers.

Measures

In the current study, relevant variables, including level of alcohol use, past trauma, COVID-19-related stress, and vocational confidence, were operationalized using the described measures.

Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT).

The AUDIT is a 10-item screening tool used to assess a person’s current level of problematic alcohol use based on drinking-related problems in the past year (Saunders et al., 1993). The AUDIT has good test-retest reliability (r = .88) and internal consistency (α = .85) in community samples (Daeppen et al., 2000), as well as in our sample (α = .86). Items were totaled to obtain a composite score (0–7 = no or low levels of risk, 8–14 = potential harmful alcohol use, 15+ = potential alcohol dependence; Saunders et al., 1993).

Life Experiences Checklist for DSM-5 (LEC-5).

The LEC-5 assesses potentially traumatic experiences over a person’s entire lifetime (Weathers et al., 2013). Participants select different levels of event exposure: experiencing it, witnessing it, learning about it, or experiencing it in their job. The LEC-5 has good convergent validity with other measures, including the PTSD Checklist, the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale, and the Mississippi Scale for Combat-related PTSD. It also has good test-retest reliability (r = .82; Gray et al., 2004). There is no formal scoring protocol, so we calculated a total score to by adding a point for each endorsement of experiencing, witnessing, or learning about an event. Total LEC-5 scores have been derived in previous literature (e.g., Brewerton et al., 2022).

Perceived Stress Scale (PSS).

The PSS-10 was used to measure COVID-19-related stress. Prior to the scale questions, we asked participants to consider stressors related to the COVID-19 pandemic when answering. The PSS-10 is a 10-item measure that assesses participants’ perceptions of stress in the past month, including feeling their lives are overloaded, unpredictable, or uncontrolled (Cohen et al., 1983). The items ask participants to rank the frequency of their perceptions and experiences of stress. The PSS-10 has good internal consistency across psychometric studies (.78 < α < .91; Lee, 2012). However, in our sample, internal consistency was between questionable and acceptable levels (α = .68), which may be due to the focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. Scores were totaled to obtain a composite index of perceived COVID-19-related stress, with higher scores indicating more stress.

Vocational Confidence.

Participants rated their vocational confidence by responding to the prompt: “Think over your current situation…how confident are you about finding the job you really want in the near future?” (Feather & O’Brien, 1987). This item was chosen to approximate confidence in finding a job in line with “the passion principle” narrative predominating in US culture that intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic (Cech & Hiltner, 2022).

Results

Preliminary Analyses

We assessed whether study participants with complete data differed significantly on demographic variables from those with missing data. A total of 141 participants with complete data were included in the analysis of variance (ANOVA) predicting history of trauma. For the structural equation model (SEM), 152 participants with complete data were included. There were no significant differences between people who completed all relevant study items for either analysis and those who had missing data on any demographic variable, including age, gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, birth in the US, ABE program, employment status, history of houselessness, number of children, and income range.

Full-information maximum likelihood (FIML) estimation was used to address data missingness in the SEM. Given that survey respondents tended to leave questions towards the end of the survey unanswered and question blocks were randomized, we judged that data were likely missing at random (MAR). FIML was selected because it may be a less biased strategy to account for MAR data than listwise deletion of entire cases (Newman, 2014). Preliminary analyses were also conducted to assess the characteristics and interrelation of study variables. Among study variables, a history of trauma was significantly and positively correlated with COVID-19-related stress (r = .44, p < .001) and heavier alcohol use (r = .23, p < .01).

ANOVA: Trauma

As an exploratory analysis, we examined if reports of trauma were higher for students from groups who have historically experienced social and economic marginalization (i.e., sexual, gender, and racial/ethnic minority students, or those with experiences of houselessness). We used the programming language R (R Core Development Team, 2022) to conduct ANOVA and examine whether reports of trauma varied across different demographic identities. Using a data-driven, stepwise model selection process, a variety of factors were entered into the initial model (sexual orientation, gender, age, race, ethnicity, experiences of houselessness, income, employment status, birth in the US, and ABE program) and pruned using Akaike’s Information Criterion.

The final ANOVA model was significant (F (3, 137) = 14.78, p < .001) and explained 24% of the variance in the reported history of trauma. Significant factors retained in the model included sexual orientation (F (1, 137) = 17.88, p < .001), experiences of houselessness (F (1, 137) = 7.08, p < .01), and being born in the US (F (1, 137) = 19.38, p < .001; see Table 2, Figure 1). Tukey’s multiple comparisons of means was used to compare levels of trauma reported by groups. Those identifying as LGB reported significantly higher levels of trauma than those identifying as heterosexual (Δ = 2.94 events [1.08 logged], p < .001). Students who had experienced houselessness reported higher levels of trauma than those who had not experienced houselessness (Δ = 1.63 events [0.49 logged], p < .05). Students born in the US reported higher levels of trauma than those not born in the US (Δ = 1.95 events [0.54 logged], p < .001).

Table 2.

Analysis of Variance: History of Trauma (LEC-5 Logged; n = 141).

Predictor df SS MS f
Born in the US 1 15.92 15.92 19.38***
Sexual orientation 1 14.69 14.69 17.88***
Experience of houselessness 1 5.82 5.82 7.08**
Residuals 137 112.57 0.82
 Model Selectiona
Formulab Δ AIC
 Final modelc LEC ~ SO + BUS + EH 0.00
 Starting model LEC ~ A + G + R + E + SO + BUS + ABE + EH + LCR + Em + C + I 20.34
 Tukey’s Multiple Comparison of Meansd
 Factor levels Δ LEC (logged) 95% CI
 LGB – Heterosexual 2.94 (1.08)*** 0.57, 1.58
 Born in the US – Not born in the US 1.95 (0.67)*** 0.35, 0.98
 Experienced houselessness – Never experienced houselessness 1.63 (0.49)* 0.10, 0.88
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*

p < .05,

**

p < .01,

***

p < .001.

a

Model selection was completed with a subset of 114 with complete data for all demographic variables.

b

“LEC” is the Life Experiences Checklist for DSM-5 (LEC-5), which was log-transformed (after adding 1 to each score due to the presence of zeros) to correct for non-normality. “SO” is sexual orientation. “ABE” is adult basic education program. “EH” is experience of houselessness. “A” is age. “G” is gender. “R” is race. “E” is ethnicity. “BUS” is birth in the US. “LCR” is length at current residence. “Em” is employment. “C” is number of children. “I” is income.

c

Final Model Multiple R2 = 0.24, F (3, 137) = 14.78***.

d

Difference is shown in original LEC units and logged LEC units used in the analysis.

Figure 1.

Figure 1.

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Boxplot from the analysis of variance (ANOVA) with demographic risk factors predicting reported history of trauma. The final model was significant (F(3, 137) = 14.78, p < .001) and explained 24% of the variance in self-reported history of trauma.

SEM: Trauma, COVID, Alcohol, and Vocational Confidence

In support of Hypothesis 1, ABE students who reported experiencing more trauma also reported experiencing more COVID-19-related stress and drinking. Hypothesis 2 was also supported. Greater reported COVID-19-related stress predicted decreased vocational confidence for ABE students. We used SEM with the lavaan package (Rosseel, 2022) to assess multiple causal and mediation paths predicted in both hypotheses. In the initial full SEM model, paths entered included: higher COVID-19-related stress being predicted by more reported trauma; higher levels of alcohol use being predicted by more reported trauma and higher COVID-19-related stress; and lower vocational confidence being predicted by more reported trauma, COVID-19-related stress, and alcohol use. Causal paths were pruned using different metrics (fit indices, standard effect estimates, significance, and variance explained).

The final SEM model included paths with more reported trauma predicting COVID-19-related stress (B = .41, p < .001, R2 = .17) and heavier alcohol use (B = .23, p < .01, R2 = .05; see Figure 2). More COVID-19-related stress also predicted lower vocational confidence (B = .23, p < .05, R2 = .05). The overall model was a very good fit for observed data (X2 = 0.63, p = .73; CFI = 1.00, TLI = 1.15, RMSEA = 0.00, SRMR = 0.02).

Figure 2.

Figure 2.

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Structural equation model showing causal paths from a history of trauma to COVID-related stress, history of trauma to alcohol misuse, and COVID-related stress to job confidence. The overall model was a very good fit (X2 = 0.63, p = .73; CFI = 1.00, TLI = 1.15, RMSEA = 0.00, SRMR = 0.02). History of trauma is the composite score from the Life Experiences Checklist for DSM-5, alcohol misuse is the composite score from the AUDIT, and COVID-related stress is the composite score from the Perceived Stress Scale.

Discussion

COR theory argues that stress is experienced in proportion to the coping resources available to buttress resource loss (Hobfoll, 2011). We examined how experiences of trauma and COVID-19-related stress increased risks for heavy drinking and reduced vocational confidence for enrolled ABE students. A COR framework is relevant to ABE students given that some encounter ongoing experiences of oppression, including social and economic marginalization, stress, and challenging life circumstances (US DoE, 2020). Further, COR theory can inform ABE program development because it stresses that resilience is cultivated through the expansion and targeting of contextual resources to offset stressors and resource loss. From a COR approach, promoting enhanced resilience for ABE students, mitigating the impacts of stressors, and lessening use of unhealthy coping strategies, could be facilitated through the provision of greater resources and ABE program development rather than efforts focused on students’ individual traits or strategies.

We observed that ABE students who identified as LGB, faced houselessness or were born in the US reported experiencing more trauma. Extreme economic marginalization, such as houselessness, can undermine students’ educational and vocational goals and increase school mobility without supportive educational programs to counter these challenges (Abdul Rahman et al., 2015; Miller, 2011). Further, students who are unhoused may have lower academic achievement due to their resource loss (Manfra, 2019). Extant literature (e.g., McCann & Brown, 2019) suggests that LGBTQ+ students report experiencing more trauma, victimization, and bullying. In the context of lower resources, these experiences may also contribute to the negative outcomes observed in LGBTQ+ students. The current study did not assess the intersectional impacts of identifying as LGBTQ+ and experiencing houselessness, but previous research suggests that LGBTQ+ youth have a higher likelihood of experiencing houselessness and may have more limited access to resources than other youth who are unhoused (McCann & Brown, 2019). Our sample was predominantly US-born, and these US-born students reported experiencing more trauma. This raises questions about the contextual settings these students must navigate and how these settings may contribute to stressful experiences and their impact on students’ exit from K-12 institutions.

In line with extant research, we observed that higher levels of reported trauma predicted higher levels of alcohol use (Miller-Roenigk et al., 2021). Substance use has been shown to exacerbate barriers to academic success (Holtyn et al., 2015). From a COR perspective, ABE students may experience repeated and prolonged social and economic marginalization with fewer contextual supports to buffer against potentially traumatic events. These experiences may undermine their educational goals and promote alcohol use to cope. Further, these students and their communities may be under-resourced and less able to help mitigate their stressors, including limited access to health-promoting resources post-pandemic (Williams et al., 2021).

As a result of past trauma and lack of resources, some ABE students may be more vulnerable to the impacts of subsequent stressors like the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that more reported trauma predicted higher COVID-19-related stress among ABE students. Using COR theory as our frame, ABE students experiencing social marginalization may have depleted their available resources and, therefore, are unable to address novel stressors like the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, the pandemic may have also limited their access to structural supports, like mental health care or educational resources, via remote learning and telehealth (Williams et al., 2021).

Research examining the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic unearthed vocational barriers that ABE students may be experiencing. We observed that higher reported COVID-19-related stress predicted reduced vocational confidence among ABE students. In the US, individuals with lower-income jobs were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, including having greater risk for viral exposure (Williams et al., 2021), prolonged economic disruption, and stymied job growth (Kochhar & Sechopoulos, 2022; McKinsey Global Institute, 2021). Therefore, it is understandable that, for ABE students, having fewer contextual resources due to the COVID-19 pandemic would result in lowered vocational confidence, leading to reduced job acquisition.

When ABE students enroll in classes, they may be motivated by vocational and economic success as well as emotional fulfillment (Frey, 2020). The emphasis on “the passion principle” in work during the COVID-19 pandemic may too have helped to undermine ABE students’ vocational confidence. These students must manage the pressure to pursue their dream job, despite having limited educational resources, more economic demands, and fewer contextual resources available. This experience may reduce their confidence and hopes for upward mobility, while accentuating the economic and social burdens they carry. As highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic, more attention and resources (e.g., access to technology) are needed to support ABE students to demonstrate an appreciation for their value.

Limitations

Despite contributions to the extant literature, our study had several limitations. A proportion of the data was missing. The data were cross-sectional, so causality between predictor and outcome variables cannot be determined. Additionally, we did not account for intersecting inequality via interaction effects of having multiple marginalized identities. Because of the diverse representation of the students enrolled at ABE centers, language barriers may have also introduced additional bias to the dataset. Not all assumptions of regression were met, including homogeneous variance and normal distribution (corrected with log transformation). Finally, using the PSS-10 to measure COVID-19-related stress may have reduced internal consistency in this scale.

In addition to the methodological challenges, there are limitations to our recommendations listed below based on study observations. While ABE centers may be motivated to meet these calls to action, ABE centers may have limited fiscal ability and may not have the required time, knowledge, and staff. Further, building these capacities may take away from a system that is already overtaxed and under-resourced. Moving forward, it is important to think creatively in collaboration with stakeholders at ABE centers to identify these barriers and integrate these barriers into any approach to meet program development needs.

Practice Recommendations for ABE Centers

The observations from this study have several implications for ABE centers serving students experiencing systemic barriers to achieving their academic goals. Notably, all practice recommendations should be tailored and implemented with consideration of the specific center’s context and available resources. Students may enter ABE centers having faced economic marginalization. ABE centers could help mitigate these risks by offering connections to community resources that promote economic viability. Within an inter-organizational network, ABE centers could collaborate with anti-poverty community agencies, healthcare organizations, social service organizations, supported employment agencies, and higher education. Thus, ABE centers could serve as an access point to expand the contextual supports available to ABE students. Through these connections, ABE centers could provide resources and tools (e.g., job training, financial and housing support) that enable healthy adaptations to stressors encountered. Specifically, ABE centers could create community resource lists and event calendars to distribute to students in the short-term. As a long-term goal, they could develop assessment and referral pathways based on students’ level of need for job, housing, financial, or healthcare services from community organizations. These supports could help to expand stressor-buffering tools available to students as they work towards meeting their academic goals.

Our results also highlight ways ABE centers can address the effects of the social exclusion and marginalization reported by students from diverse cultural backgrounds. We observed that LGB, unhoused, and US-born students reported more experiences of trauma. Past trauma, in turn, predicted higher COVID-19-related stress and alcohol use. To protect against these outcomes, ABE centers could create spaces that are more affirming to students with LGB and other marginalized identities as a short-term, lower-cost strategy. Specifically, visual markers of queer culture (e.g., stickers, flags, posters) in the ABE center could help signal safe spaces to new students. Further, ABE teachers and administrators could attend cultural humility trainings specific to the diverse groups and history of their region, building an environment that meets enhances students’ capacity.

As a longer-term option, ABE centers could offer or increase on-site evidence-based mental health resources that bolster available contextual supports. On-site interventions (e.g., psychotherapy, psychoeducation, social-emotional learning groups) could enhance ABE students’ experiences and support their educational goals. Development of these programs could be challenging for some ABE centers depending on their nature, size, available resources, and community partnerships. ABE centers could partner with local colleges and universities that offer social work, counseling, psychology, or expressive arts therapy graduate degrees to become a practicum site for students earning supervised clinical hours. Additionally, ABE centers could jointly apply for grant funding with local mental health or healthcare organizations to become an external service site, using existing center space or a mobile clinic. With access to more healthy contextual supports, ABE centers could help increase students’ healthy coping strategies and reduce the likelihood of using unhealthy ones.

ABE centers are also well-positioned to foster and support inclusive practices that value and promote diverse perspectives and capitalize on adult learners’ strengths and wisdom. Teachers, administrators, and staff could be key participants in ongoing trainings that promote cultural humility and responsiveness. Continued teacher education may help educators create culturally relevant curricula that affirm diverse adult learners. Trainings could include allyship for ABE students with intersectional identities (e.g., LGBTQ+, unhoused, or BIPOC students). Further, ABE centers can draw on the unique strengths of diverse learners to support learning and continued enrollment. ABE centers can offer a wealth of experiences through student peer mentorship and peer tutoring in foundational subjects, language, and culture. Peer support programs can both enhance learning and build a sense of community for adult learners (Cherrstrom et al., 2018). Such programs could be facilitated by comprehensively assessing the unique strengths of adult learners (e.g., creativity, life skills) along with their areas for growth (Pickard, 2022). These assessments can help to identify and bolster contextual supports naturally present within the ABE setting and students.

Practice Examples

To illustrate these recommendations, we have included a practice example from the study ABE center. Informed by surveys to understand students’ strengths and needs, the ABE center has implemented two practice changes to better address students’ stress-related risk factors and increase vocational confidence. First, the center has successfully established a collaborative relationship with a local university. This partnership has provided the center with additional grant-writing support to apply for funds for educational and service programs for students. It has also resulted in the provision of several services, including program-level consultation (e.g., ongoing program evaluation) and clinical assessment/treatment by clinical faculty and trainees. One concrete outcome from this partnership has been the addition of social and emotional learning groups (based on modified Dialectical Behavioral Therapy skills) into the ABE center’s curriculum with the goal of bolstering students’ resilience and stress-related resources. Second, an increased focus on student resilience post-COVID-19 has resulted in more strengths-based measures and qualitative data collection being added to formal and informal assessments at the center. This has opened another venue for students to voice what aspects of programs are working well, such as supportive relationships with teachers, and which could be improved, such as adding more vocational referrals and trainings.

Conclusion

ABE centers serve a diverse student body, including those experiencing social and economic marginalization and restricted access to resources and contextual supports. Acknowledging and addressing students’ individual- and systems-level barriers may help to mitigate the impacts of stressors and bolster students’ resilience. With greater access to contextual supports to meet their needs, ABE students may be better positioned to devote more cognitive and material resources to achieving their educational and vocational goals.

Funding

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, (T32DA019426), and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, (F32AA029627).

Biographies

Frances J. Griffith, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral fellow in the NIDA T32 program through the Division of Prevention and Community Research in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine. Frances’ research and clinical-community interventions focus on increasing health equity for people in recovery with intersecting marginalized identities. Branches of her research focus on the development and evaluation of (1) peer-led programs in healthcare organizational settings, (2) individual- and systems-level interventions to reduce stigma and structural discrimination towards people in recovery, and (3) scalable, digital or arts-based interventions for health promotion and prevention of mental illness and substance misuse.

Sydney C. Simmons, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral fellow in the NIDA T32 program through the Division of Prevention and Community Research in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine. She graduated with a doctorate in Clinical and School Psychology from the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on the prevention of risk behaviors and the promotion of positive development in youth- and young-adult serving settings, and strengthening services, settings, and systems that interface with youth in crisis.

Shannon Schrader, Ph.D., is a staff psychologist at VHA Connecticut. She is the Program Coordinator of the Critical Time Intervention (CTI) Program, which is a time-limited intensive treatment that assists Veterans with serious mental illness who are experiencing homelessness. Across both clinical and scholarly pursuits, Dr. Schrader is interested in elucidating the role of self-control during periods of transitions in peoples’ lives.

Brittany Miller-Roenigk, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education, Department of Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Miller-Roenigk earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology and sociology from the University of Louisville and her master’s and doctoral degrees in psychology (clinical) from the University of Cincinnati. Her research interests focus on substance use and mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority populations, namely, Black adults.

Maria Christina Crouch (Deg Hit’an and Coahuiltecan Tribes), Ph.D., is a clinical-community psychologist and an Assistant Professor Adjunct at Yale School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry. Her clinical work and program of research is focused on the intersection of trauma-informed care, evidence-based practices, and practice-based evidence (Indigenous approaches) to address alcohol and drug misuse, trauma, and related health impacts of social determinants among American Indian and Alaska Native communities from a cultural, strengths-based approach.

Derrick Gordon, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry (Psychology Section), Child Study Center and Public Health at Yale University School of Medicine. He is the Director of the Program on Male Development in the Division of Prevention and Community Research of the Department of Psychiatry and is a Core scientist in the Community Research Core of the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA). Dr. Gordon has considerable experience in intervention and prevention development focused on those factors that either support or undermine men transitioning from prison back to the community; the engagement of low-income, non-custodial fathers; the identification and service of adolescent fathers committed to child protection services; and men mandated to batterer intervention groups in the community. His funding portfolio includes NIH, foundation, HHS, local government, and community-based programs.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

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