Sexual Risk Taking in Adolescence: The Role of Self-Regulation and Attraction to Risk

Precursors of adolescent sexual risk taking were examined in a multiethnic sample consisting of 443 children (51% girls) of National Longitudinal Survey of Youth participants. Respondents were 12–13 years old in 1994 and 16–17 in 1998. Controlling for demographic and contextual factors, self-regulation—but not risk proneness—was significantly (modestly) associated with overall sexual risk taking 4 years later, Analyses of individual sexual behaviors indicated that self-regulation may affect choices made after becoming sexually active (e.g. number of partners) rather than the initiation of sexual activity. Measures of parent and peer influence had independent effects on sexual risk taking but did not moderate the effects of self-regulation and risk proneness, Findings add to the growing literature on implications of self-regulation for individual development

Future expectations of Brasilian street youth

Future expectations of youth surviving on the streets of Porto Alegre, Brasil, were examined. The sample consisted of 35 boys and 34 girls aged 10–18 (M age 14.4) who participated in a sentence completion task and semi-structured interviews. Responses to two incomplete sentences regarding the future revealed a mismatch between hoped-for and expected events. When completing the sentence, “In the future, I hope…” the majority of youth gave optimistic (but generally non-specific) responses. In contrast, the sentence “For me, the future…” elicited more pessimistic responses. Few gender or age-related differences emerged. Findings are discussed in light of prior research with general populations of adolescents as well as studies of street youth. Taken as a whole, results suggest that life on the street shapes and constrains how youth see their futures. Implications of the findings for policy makers and practitioners are addressed

Sexual Risk Taking in Adolescence: The Role of Self-Regulation and Attraction to Risk

Precursors of adolescent sexual risk taking were examined in a multiethnic sample consisting of 443 children (51% girls) of National Longitudinal Survey of Youth participants. Respondents were 12–13 years old in 1994 and 16–17 in 1998. Controlling for demographic and contextual factors, self-regulation—but not risk proneness—was significantly (modestly) associated with overall sexual risk taking 4 years later, Analyses of individual sexual behaviors indicated that self-regulation may affect choices made after becoming sexually active (e.g. number of partners) rather than the initiation of sexual activity. Measures of parent and peer influence had independent effects on sexual risk taking but did not moderate the effects of self-regulation and risk proneness, Findings add to the growing literature on implications of self-regulation for individual development

Acculturation Status and Sexuality Among Female Cuban American College Students

The authors examined relations among different measures of acculturation, and between acculturation and sexual behavior, in a sample of female Cuban American college students (n = 61, M age = 18.4 years) who completed self-report surveys. In the first set of analyses, weak to moderate associations emerged among 4 measures of acculturation (birthplace, childhood language use, current language use, and ethnic identity), suggesting that inconsistent findings from prior research may have resulted from measurement limitations. In multivariate analyses, the authors examined predictors of sexual behavior and found that 1 aspect of acculturation (higher levels of ethnic identity) and background characteristics (being older and less religious) were associated with voluntary sexual intercourse. Moreover, higher levels on a sexual risk composite were associated with being born in the United States, more ethnically identified, older, and less religious. These analyses highlight the need for specificity in assessing acculturation in a college student population and support the need to examine cultural factors directly in sexuality research

Parent-Teen Communication About Sexual Topics

Parent-teen communication about sexual topics was examined in 666 mother-teen and 510 father-teen pairs. Parents and their 8th- through 12th-grade children completed parallel surveys that assessed demographic, relationship, and attitudinal variables hypothesized to be linked to sexual communication. Logistic regression analyses were used to determine which variables were linked to teens’ reports of “one good talk” about each of three sexual topics (whether teen sex is okay, the dangers of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, and birth control) in the past year. Aside from gender of parents and teens, demographic variables were largely nonsignificant in the final models. Instead, relationship and attitudinal variables were linked to sexual discussions in both mother-teen and father-teen dyads. Discussion focused on implications for program development and directions for future research

Problem Behavior Theory: An Examination of the Behavior Structure System in Latino and non-Latino College Students

Scholars have proposed that diverse problem and conventional behaviors reflect a single underlying factor; however, others suggest that the strength and pattern of interrelations among problem and conventional behaviors are not consistent across different cultural groups. The present study investigated the factor structure of problem and conventional behaviors in Cuban, non-Cuban Latino, and non-Latino college students. Two hundred and sixty-nine college students (70% women; M age=19.0, SD=2.34) reported on their substance use, and involvement in deviant (e.g., fighting, shoplifting, vandalism) and conventional (e.g., school performance, religiosity) behaviors. In support of the behavior system of Problem Behavior Theory (PBT), a single-common factor accounted for the significant interrelations among the different problem behaviors for the entire sample. However, variations in the number of factor structures emerged by ethnic group and gender, suggesting that the behavior system may operate differently across these groups. A discussion of the role of culture on problem and conventional behaviors is presented. Escolares han propuesto que diversos comportamientos problematicos y convencionales reflejan solo un factor subyacente: sin embargo, otros sugieren que la fuerza y el modelo de interrelaciones entre comportamientos problematicos y convencionales no sean constantes a través de diversos grupos culturales. El estudio presente investigó la estrucutra factorial de comportamientos problematicos y convencionales en Cubano, no-Cubano Latino, y no- Latino estudiantes de universidad. Doscientos y sesenta nueve estudiantes de la universidad (mujeres 70%; M edad = 19.0, SD = 2,34 divulgaron sobre su uso de la sustancia y su implicación en comportamientos irregulares (e.g. el luchar, el robar en tiendas, el vandalismo) y convencionales (e.g. funcionamento en la escuela, religiosidad). En sustento del sistema del comportamiento en la Teoría del Comportamiento Problematico (TCP), solo un factor común consideró las interralaciones significativas entre los diversos comportamientos problematicos para la población entera. Sin embargo, las variaciones en el número de las estructuras factoriales emergieron por el grupo étnico y el género, sugiriendo que el sistema del comportamiento puede funcionar diferentemente a través de estos grupos. Una discusión de la función de la cultura en comportamientos problemáticos y convencionales se presenta

Ecology of Depression in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence: A Profile of Daily States and Activities

This study investigated daily states and time use patterns associated with depression. Four hundred eighty-three 5th to 9th graders reported on their experience when signaled by pagers at random times. Depressed youth reported more negative affect and social emotions, lower psychological investment, lower energy, and greater variability in affect. These differences were weaker for 5th and 6th graders, suggesting that self-reported feeling states are a poor indicator of depression prior to adolescence. No differences were found in the daily activities of depressed youths nor in the amount of time spent alone, but depressed youths experienced other people as less friendly and more often reported wanting to be alone, especially when with their families. They also spent less time in public places and more time in their bedrooms. Finally, depressed boys, but not girls, spent much less time with friends, particularly of the same sex, suggesting that social isolation is more strongly associated with depression for boys

How Do Brazilian Street Youth Experience ‘The Street’?: Analysis Of A Sentence Completion Task

This study investigated how homeless Brazilian youth experience the street and examined factors linked to positive and negative feelings about the street. An opportunity sample of 35 boys and 34 girls aged 10–18 completed a structured interview and sentence completion task aimed at eliciting open-ended responses in a standardized manner. Analyses revealed great diversity in youths’ views of the street; moreover, in analyses controlling for age and gender, youth reporting feeling positive on the street differed from those who felt negative in reasons for leaving home, family situation and daily survival. The findings support the value of the sentence completion task in exploring the subjective experiences of street youth