This study examines economic and social stressors and their effects on the parenting styles and adolescent adjustment of African American families. It systematically characterizes and explains the nature of some of the chronic economic and social stressors experienced by poor African American families as they affect parenting and adolescent adjustment, and addresses the processes linking family stressors to adolescent adjustment. The stressors may include: (1) a high level of poverty; (2) low family income resulting from divorce, work cutbacks, or family illness; and (3) a high level of job uncertainly for various reasons. Research has indicated that economic hardship has a negative effect on psychological functioning and the quality of family relationships. The impact of living in stressful neighborhoods also causes psychological distress that results in less adequate parenting. Research on the linkage between African American parents' social networks and adolescent adjustment is scarce, but empirical studies have shown that adults and younger children benefit from the availability of an extended kin network and that social support from relatives enhances family functioning. Parenting style and family management practices may also be linked to adolescent adjustment. The processes that link stressful experiences to parental and adolescent adjustment need further exploration, as do the ways in which neighborhood characteristics affect family and adolescent adjustment. Normative data are needed to explain typical behavior patterns of poor and nonpoor African American families. Two related publications are listed for additional reading. (SLD)