Health risk behaviours among adolescents in the English-speaking Caribbean: a review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The aim of this paper was to review and summarize research on prevalence of health risk behaviours, their outcomes as well as risk and protective factors among adolescents in the English-speaking Caribbean.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Searching of online databases and the World Wide Web as well as hand searching of the <it>West Indian Medical Journal </it>were conducted. Papers on research done on adolescents aged 10 – 19 years old and published during the period 1980 – 2005 were included.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Ninety-five relevant papers were located. Five papers were published in the 1980s, 47 in the 1990s, and from 2000–2005, 43 papers. Health risk behaviours and outcomes were divided into seven themes. Prevalence data obtained for these, included lifetime prevalence of <b>substance use</b>: cigarettes-24% and marijuana-17%; <b>high risk sexual behaviour</b>: initiation of sexual activity ≤ 10 years old-19% and those having more than six partners-19%; <b>teenage pregnancy</b>: teens account for 15–20% of all pregnancies and one-fifth of these teens were in their second pregnancy; <b>Sexually-Transmitted Infections (STIs)</b>: population prevalence of gonorrhoea and/or chlamydia in 18–21 year-olds was 26%; <b>mental health</b>: severe depression in the adolescent age group was 9%, and attempted suicide-12%; <b>violence and juvenile delinquency</b>: carrying a weapon to school in the last 30 days-10% and almost always wanting to kill or injure someone-5%; <b>eating disorders and obesity</b>: overweight-11%, and obesity-7%. Many of the risk behaviours in adolescents were shown to be related to the adolescent's family of origin, home environment and parent-child relationships. Also, the protective effects of family and school connectedness as well as increased religiosity noted in studies from the United States were also applicable in the Caribbean.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>There is a substantial body of literature on Caribbean adolescents documenting prevalence and correlates of health risk behaviours. Future research should emphasize the designing and testing of interventions to alleviate this burden.</p

Percepções dos indivíduos sobre as consequências do teletrabalho na configuração home-office: estudo de caso na Shell Brasil

Com o avanço da tecnologia da informação e da comunicação e as mudanças da sociedade, novas formas de flexibilização das relações de trabalho têm se disseminado, entre as quais o teletrabalho. Uma das modalidades de teletrabalho é aquela em que o indivíduo executa as tarefas de casa, mantendo, porém, o vínculo de emprego formal com uma organização. Este artigo focaliza, em especial, essa modalidade, levantando as percepções dos indivíduos que nela atuam sobre as consequências para a sua vida pessoal e profissional. Trata-se de estudo de caso na Shell Brasil, empresa que, desde 2000, promoveu a migração de alguns funcionários para o regime home-office. A metodologia de natureza qualitativa compreendeu entrevistas com profissionais desse grupo. Os resultados permitiram identificar um quadro conceitual que aponta elementos condicionantes e elementos que os indivíduos parecem utilizar como balizadores de suas avaliações sobre a condição de teletrabalhadores home-office. Entre os condicionantes, destacam-se características da pessoa, da organização, dos recursos e procedimentos disponibilizados, do trabalho, da família, do espaço doméstico e da sociedade. Como elementos balizadores surgem: o desempenho na empresa e os efeitos para a carreira, a relação com o trabalho, a vida pessoal e as relações sociais e em família