The Influence of Bullying on Unhealthy Weight Control Practices among Overweight Adolescents

Background: Overweight and obesity rates continue to rise in the United States, specifically among adolescents. While there are many programs aimed at teaching today's youth about maintaining a healthy weight, no programs exist that specifically address risk factors for anorexia nervosa and/or bulimia nervosa among overweight or obese adolescents. Rather, these programs primarily focus on individuals who are underweight, or below a normal weight range. Another highly prevalent issue impacting U.S. adolescents involves bullying. Bullying has been linked with a number of negative health outcomes, including low self-esteem, poor psychological health and judgment. Methodology: The purpose of this research study was to examine the relationship between bullying and unhealthy weight control practices among overweight and obese adolescents. This secondary data analysis was conducted using the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBS), which represents on-going research by U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The 2011 YRBS questionnaire was administered to a nationally representative high school students living throughout the United States. Results: A statistically significant association (p<.001) was found between being bullied and the practice of unhealthy weight controlling behaviors by means of fasting, purging, or using diet pills/powders/liquids among a sample of overweight/obese adolescents, when controlling for age, race/ethnicity and gender. Conclusion: Insight gained from this study may assist health education practitioners develop effective weight loss methods, while also addressing unhealthy weight controlling practices, specifically aimed at overweight and obese adolescents.Master'sSchool of Health Professions and Studies: Health EducationUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/117687/1/Cooper.pd

Neuropsychological profiles of adolescents with a history of childhood trauma

Traumatic events experienced in childhood, such as physical and sexual abuse, can lead to multiple long-term effects on later cognitive functioning. Empirical research has shown that specific brain regions are affected by traumatic stress, including the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex. It follows that the cognitive abilities subserved by these regions, including spatial navigation, new learning, and executive functioning, are negatively affected. The aim of the current study was to provide a thorough investigation of how trauma exposure and PTSD effect adolescents' cognitive functioning (looking specifically at those tasks subserved by the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex), correcting for the methodological flaws seen in the research thus far

Technology Mediated Recruitment: An Exploration of How Students Used Social Media to Choose College

This qualitative study explored the use of social media as a tool to recruit prospective college students. Social media was defined as any electronic media that serves as a networking tool with the ability to educate prospective and current college students about an institution of higher education (i.e. Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, etc.). The researcher met with two focus groups comprised of current college students to discuss their use of social media during their college search process. Recommendations were developed for student affairs professionals and for future research. General themes and categories from participant responses were evaluated. The findings suggest that social media is present during all stages of the search process and professionals should consider what tools work best for them and how to best utilize social media in their marketing plans

Change in active travel and changes in recreational and total physical activity in adults: longitudinal findings from the iConnect study.

BACKGROUND: To better understand the health benefits of promoting active travel, it is important to understand the relationship between a change in active travel and changes in recreational and total physical activity. METHODS: These analyses, carried out in April 2012, use longitudinal data from 1628 adult respondents (mean age 54 years; 47% male) in the UK-based iConnect study. Travel and recreational physical activity were measured using detailed seven-day recall instruments. Adjusted linear regression models were fitted with change in active travel defined as 'decreased' (15 min/week) as the primary exposure variable and changes in (a) recreational and (b) total physical activity (min/week) as the primary outcome variables. RESULTS: Active travel increased in 32% (n=529), was maintained in 33% (n=534) and decreased in 35% (n=565) of respondents. Recreational physical activity decreased in all groups but this decrease was not greater in those whose active travel increased. Conversely, changes in active travel were associated with commensurate changes in total physical activity. Compared with those whose active travel remained unchanged, total physical activity decreased by 176.9 min/week in those whose active travel had decreased (adjusted regression coefficient -154.9, 95% CI -195.3 to -114.5) and was 112.2 min/week greater among those whose active travel had increased (adjusted regression coefficient 135.1, 95% CI 94.3 to 175.9). CONCLUSION: An increase in active travel was associated with a commensurate increase in total physical activity and not a decrease in recreational physical activity

MR449: Allagash Wilderness Waterway Visitor Survey 2019

Quality in outdoor recreation can be defined as the degree to which recreation opportunities provide the experiences for which they are designed and managed. Key to protecting the backcountry experiences is an understanding of the different types of visitors to the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, each one with different needs and expectations, and the different levels of importance they place on recreation opportunities and conditions. In this report, visitor management implications and suggested further research focus on the diversity of use of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway in order to maximize the quality of the visitor experiences while protecting the unique natural setting.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/aes_miscreports/1030/thumbnail.jp

Selected pages from Characteristicks of men, manners, opinions, times.

3 v. illus., port. 2d. ed., corr. Some of the pages in this document were selected as part of a class project for Professor Garth Bond’s History of the Book seminar, Spring 2012. The abstract was prepared by Alexis VanZalen.https://lux.lawrence.edu/selections/1006/thumbnail.jp

SOCL 490: A Typology Linking Rural Community Health and Volunteering Using Mixed Methodology

The objective of this research is to examine the health implications of volunteering at a rural therapeutic riding program. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with volunteers. Then, saliva samples were collected from volunteers. The saliva analysis indicates the distinction between the initial collection, prior to volunteering, compared to the subsequent collection, after participants have completed their volunteering experience. Findings suggest there is a health benefit to volunteering that could have significant implications for rural health initiatives