Prospective Relations among Low-Income African American Adolescents’ Maternal Attachment Security, Self-Worth, and Risk Behaviors

It is clear that education has an important effect on wages paid in the labour market However it not clear whether this is due to the role that education plays in raising the productivity of workers (the human capital explanation) or whether education simply reflects the ability of the worker (through a signalling role). In this paper we describe and implement, using a variety of UK datasets, a number of tests from the existing literature for discriminating between the two explanations. We find little support for signalling ideas in these tests. However, we have severe reservations about these results because our doubts about the power of these tests and the appropriateness of the data. We propose an alternative test, based on the response of some individuals to a change in education incentives offered to other individuals caused by the changes in the minimum school leaving age in the seventies. Using this idea we find that data in the UK appears to strongly support the human capital explanation

Does father warmth/involvement predict intergenerational teenage pregnancy and adolescent risky sexual behavior?

Previous studies highlight many disadvantages for adolescent mothers who experience an early pregnancy. Among these disadvantages is the high probability of single-parenthood and the likelihood that their children may experience early pregnancies as well, i.e., intergenerational teenage pregnancy. The implications of the Balance Theory suggest that the primary source of warmth for adolescent girls comes from their fathers. Adolescent girls who grow up in father-absent homes may seek this missing warmth outside of the home in intimate sexual relationships. Using data from the Mobile Youth and Poverty Study (MYPS), single mothers who reported giving birth between the ages of 12-19 and their 15-year-old daughters were chosen for the current study. It was hypothesized that adolescent girls in father-absent homes would be more likely to experience an adolescent pregnancy and engage in more risky sexual behavior. Although a small portion of the sample actually experienced an early pregnancy (n=19), levels of father warmth significantly predicted whether adolescent girls had initiated sexual intercourse by age 15 as well as frequency and recency of the sexual intercourse. (Published By University of Alabama Libraries

Does father warmth/involvement predict intergenerational teenage pregnancy and adolescent risky sexual behavior?

Previous studies highlight many disadvantages for adolescent mothers who experience an early pregnancy. Among these disadvantages is the high probability of single-parenthood and the likelihood that their children may experience early pregnancies as well, i.e., intergenerational teenage pregnancy. The implications of the Balance Theory suggest that the primary source of warmth for adolescent girls comes from their fathers. Adolescent girls who grow up in father-absent homes may seek this missing warmth outside of the home in intimate sexual relationships. Using data from the Mobile Youth and Poverty Study (MYPS), single mothers who reported giving birth between the ages of 12-19 and their 15-year-old daughters were chosen for the current study. It was hypothesized that adolescent girls in father-absent homes would be more likely to experience an adolescent pregnancy and engage in more risky sexual behavior. Although a small portion of the sample actually experienced an early pregnancy (n=19), levels of father warmth significantly predicted whether adolescent girls had initiated sexual intercourse by age 15 as well as frequency and recency of the sexual intercourse. (Published By University of Alabama Libraries

Hostile media perception and partisan processing of media messages: self-categorization and involvement in political and religious debates over same-sex marriage and poverty

Hostile media perception (HMP) is a well-documented perceptual media effect. Yet, an understanding of its causal mechanisms has been difficult to ascertain. This study examined two promising, inter-disciplinary theoretical explanations – self-categorization and involvement. An experiment tested the effect of various facets of self-categorization and involvement on personal and perceived media positions regarding two issues that are salient to both political and religious identities – same-sex marriage and poverty. Political and religious self-categorization predicted personal positions on the issues, as well as perceptions of relevant media messages. Both HMP and message assimilation were related to self-categorization. Political self-categorization emerged as the strongest predictor of personal beliefs and media perceptions. Value involvement increased position extremity and message assimilation. Findings suggest particular usefulness of self-categorization in predicting HMP, while raising further questions about how readily HMP occurs, particularly among weaker partisans, and which audience or message factors predict message assimilation or contrast. Theoretical and methodological implications for future research are discussed. (Published By University of Alabama Libraries

Relationships between high school students' health behaviors and perceptions of their 9th grade health education experience

In the majority of U.S. schools, health education has been delivered in a fragmented and disorganized way resulting in poor quality. While studies have assessed the perceptions of health education from lead health education teachers and school administrators, a review of the literature revealed no studies of high school students' perceptions of school health education. The perceived experiences and perceptions of school health education among high school students have not been fully explored. The purpose of this study was to a) assess the perceptions of a 9th grade health education course from 10th and 11th graders attending a rural high school in West Central Alabama, b) identify students' self-reported current health behaviors and c) explore the relationship between the perceptions of their 9th grade health education course and reported health behaviors. Results showed that for each of the National Health Education Standards at least 60% of the students indicated that the course helped them to perform the standard. Results also showed that for each of the six CDC risk behaviors at least 50% of students indicated that the course helped them to make decisions about the risk behaviors. Additionally, at least 55% of high school students in grades 10-11 perceived their 9th grade health education course to be effective in helping them to make decisions about their general health and decisions related to the six types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults, a) behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence, b) sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV infection, c) alcohol and other drug use, d) tobacco use, e) unhealthy dietary behaviors, and f) inadequate physical activity. Over 60% of 10th grade students and 55.4% of 11th grade students perceived their 9th grade health education course to be effective in preparing them to use decision-making skills to enhance health. Similarly, 10th grade students (70.8%) and 11th grade students (59.5%) perceived their 9th grade health education course to be effective in preparing them to comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention. (Published By University of Alabama Libraries