The Association of Interpersonal Relationships to Adolescent Women’s Sexual Self-Efficacy

University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. July 2019. Major: Family Social Science. Advisor: Jodi Dworkin. 1 computer file (PDF); vi, 91 pages.Due to proper contraception use, the rates of unplanned pregnancy among adolescents has decreased since the early 1990’s. However, the US still has the highest adolescent pregnancy rate among countries that track these data. In addition, there is concern about increasing rates of STIs among adolescents. Self-efficacy is a key construct to understanding adolescent women’s capacity to use condoms to prevent unplanned pregnancies and STIs. The Human Ecological Theory lays the foundation for seeing individuals within the context of their environments, particularly the most proximal contexts, that of their family and romantic partners. Two studies were proposed. The first study examined the relationship between family factors and adolescent women’s self-efficacy to refuse sex without condoms and self-efficacy to use condoms. The results of multinomial logistic regressions indicated that 1) family connection predicted 2.31 greater odds of being in the constant high self-efficacy category to refuse sex without condoms compared to the constant low self-efficacy category and 2) family contraception communication predicted 2.26 greater odds of being in the fluctuating high self-efficacy to use condoms category compared to the fluctuating low category. The second study examined the relationship between partner factors and adolescent women’s self-efficacy to refuse sex without condoms and self-efficacy to use condoms. The results indicated that 1) both women’s belief that condoms interfere with pleasure and perceived partner belief that condoms interfere with pleasure were individually associated with women’s sexual self-efficacy and 2) the interaction between the two variables was not significant. In alignment with the theoretical assumptions of self-efficacy and Human Ecological Theory, the findings of the current studies suggest that interpersonal factors influence adolescent women’s sexual self-efficacy. Family members, sexual educators, and primary care providers may influence condom use by addressing adolescent women’s potential beliefs that condoms interfere with pleasure and their partners’ belief that condoms interfere with pleasure. Adolescents may benefit from education around ways to reduce discomfort and increase pleasure when using condoms. Also, adolescent women who experience low levels of family connection may need additional support to develop their sexual self-efficacy compared to their peers who report high levels of family connection

Cornual Abscess Rupture: A Rare Etiology of Acute Abdomen

Ruptured cornual abscess or pyometra can resemble other more common causes of acute abdomen, including appendicitis, diverticulitis, tubo-ovarian abscess, and perforated viscus. Despite its rarity, the diagnosis of ruptured pyometra should always be considered in females presenting with acute abdominal pain, particularly in the setting of a retained intrauterine device

MTurk 101: An Introduction to Amazon Mechanical Turk for Extension Professionals

Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) is an online marketplace for labor recruitment that has become a popular platform for data collection. In particular, MTurk can be a valuable tool for Extension professionals. As an example, MTurk workers can provide feedback, write reviews, or give input on a website design. In this article we discuss the many uses of MTurk for Extension professionals and provide best practices for its use

U Connect Tennessee – Summary of Years 1 and 2, 2015-2016

This is a summary report from the U Connect program's implementation in Tennessee during the first two years of the grant, 2015-2016. This archival publication may not reflect current scientific knowledge or recommendations. Current information available from the University of Minnesota Extension: https://www.extension.umn.edu.U Connect uses a three state model that addresses the critical concerns of middle school aged children in historically vulnerable and marginalized populations. It is a collaboration between three institutions: University of Minnesota, Kentucky State University, andTennessee State University. U Connect is a comprehensive program based on the Check & Connect framework developed at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration with program enhancements from STEM education, nutrition education, and parent engagement. Primary outcomes from U Connect include: 1) Promotion of physical and psychological well-being. Creation of opportunities for youth, families, and community center staff to develop supportive relationships, 2) Demonstration and modeling of positive social norms, and 3) Creation of a safe place of inclusion that supports empowerment and skill building. Young people who participate will improve their pro-social behaviors at school, including attendance, personal behavior, academic performance, and engagement in school and within the after school program. Long term, this will provide youth with what they need to graduate high school, and graduate with sufficient skills for postsecondary education and/or employment. Also, parents will cultivate a home environment conductive for young people’s academic success. This is a summary report from the program's implementation in Tennessee during the first two years of the grant, 2015-2016

U Connect Kentucky – Summary of Years 1 and 2, 2015-2016

This is a summary report from the U Connect program's implementation in Kentucky during the first two years of the grant, 2015-2016. This archival publication may not reflect current scientific knowledge or recommendations. Current information available from the University of Minnesota Extension: https://www.extension.umn.edu.U Connect uses a three state model that addresses the critical concerns of middle school aged children in historically vulnerable and marginalized populations. It is a collaboration between three institutions: University of Minnesota, Kentucky State University, andTennessee State University. U Connect is a comprehensive program based on the Check & Connect framework developed at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration with program enhancements from STEM education, nutrition education, and parent engagement. Primary outcomes from U Connect include: 1) Promotion of physical and psychological well-being. Creation of opportunities for youth, families, and community center staff to develop supportive relationships, 2) Demonstration and modeling of positive social norms, and 3) Creation of a safe place of inclusion that supports empowerment and skill building. Young people who participate will improve their pro-social behaviors at school, including attendance, personal behavior, academic performance, and engagement in school and within the after school program. Long term, this will provide youth with what they need to graduate high school, and graduate with sufficient skills for postsecondary education and/or employment. Also, parents will cultivate a home environment conductive for young people’s academic success. This is a summary report from the program's implementation in Kentucky during the first two years of the grant, 2015-2016

U Connect Minnesota – Summary of Years 1 and 2, 2015-2016

This is a summary report from the U Connect program's implementation in Minnesota during the first two years of the grant, 2015-2016. This archival publication may not reflect current scientific knowledge or recommendations. Current information available from the University of Minnesota Extension: https://www.extension.umn.edu.U Connect uses a three state model that addresses the critical concerns of middle school aged children in historically vulnerable and marginalized populations. It is a collaboration between three institutions: University of Minnesota, Kentucky State University, andTennessee State University. U Connect is a comprehensive program based on the Check & Connect framework developed at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration with program enhancements from STEM education, nutrition education, and parent engagement. Primary outcomes from U Connect include: 1) Promotion of physical and psychological well-being. Creation of opportunities for youth, families, and community center staff to develop supportive relationships, 2) Demonstration and modeling of positive social norms, and 3) Creation of a safe place of inclusion that supports empowerment and skill building. Young people who participate will improve their pro-social behaviors at school, including attendance, personal behavior, academic performance, and engagement in school and within the after school program. Long term, this will provide youth with what they need to graduate high school, and graduate with sufficient skills for postsecondary education and/or employment. Also, parents will cultivate a home environment conductive for young people’s academic success. This is a summary report from the program's implementation in Minnesota during the first two years of the grant, 2015-2016

WHEN THE TEACHER BECOMES THE STUDENT: YOUTH IMPACT ON PARENT TECHNOLOGY USE

We are only beginning to understand the ways in which young people are introducing technologies into the family system and the ways that is impacting family relationships. What seems clear is that the face-to-face relationship does not translate directly to the online context, and online communication is not completely replacing in-person family relationships. Despite the lack of existing research, it is reasonable to expect that family relationships impact how youth and parents use online media. Building on socialization theory, in the current study we considered the ways in which youth technology use impacts parent technology use in parent-child dyads from India and the U.S. (98 dyads; youth: 37% female; mean age=17.3; parents: 54.6% female; mean age=41.5). When considering frequency of six types of technology use in a series of linear regression analyses: 1) general use to look for information, news, and use online tools, 2) audio or video calls, 3) texting, instant messaging, discussion boards, or email, 4) sending or receiving audio or video, and photos, 5) create or maintain blogs, microblogs, or websites, and 6) social networking sites, child technology use accounted for 8.4% to 27.0% of the variance in parent use. Despite the small sample size, it is clear that child technology use is strongly associated with parent use, even when considering diverse ways of using technology. Future research should use longitudinal data to explore how children impact parents’ technology use over time – how that influence changes with age, sociohistorical time and place, and life transitions

Parental Awareness of Rural Adolescents’ Dating Behaviors: Implications for Parent Education

Most parent education programming focuses on educating parents with young children. Programming has focused less on supporting parents during their adolescent children’s dating and sexual development. This study extends literature by exploring the extent to which rural parents are aware of their adolescent child’s dating behaviors, as perceived by adolescents. Findings reveal three main themes: parents are fully aware of their child’s dating behaviors, parents are aware they date but not aware of specific dating behaviors, and parents are not aware at all. Discussion includes practical implications for Extension and other parent education efforts in rural areas based on findings to support the development of healthy relationships during adolescence and into adulthood

U Connect Tennessee – Year 3 Evaluation Report, Fall 2016-Spring 2017

This is a summary report from the U Connect program's implementation in Tennessee during the third of the grant, Fall 2016-Spring 2017. This archival publication may not reflect current scientific knowledge or recommendations. Current information available from the University of Minnesota Extension: https://www.extension.umn.edu.U Connect uses a three state model that addresses the critical concerns of middle school aged children in historically vulnerable and marginalized populations. It is a collaboration between three institutions: University of Minnesota, Kentucky State University, andTennessee State University. U Connect is a comprehensive program based on the Check & Connect framework developed at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration with program enhancements from STEM education, nutrition education, and parent engagement. Primary outcomes from U Connect include: 1) Promotion of physical and psychological well-being. Creation of opportunities for youth, families, and community center staff to develop supportive relationships, 2) Demonstration and modeling of positive social norms, and 3) Creation of a safe place of inclusion that supports empowerment and skill building. Young people who participate will improve their pro-social behaviors at school, including attendance, personal behavior, academic performance, and engagement in school and within the after school program. Long term, this will provide youth with what they need to graduate high school, and graduate with sufficient skills for postsecondary education and/or employment. Also, parents will cultivate a home environment conductive for young people’s academic success. This is a summary report from the program's implementation in Tennessee during the third of the grant, Fall 2016-Spring 2017

U Connect Kentucky – Year 3 Evaluation Report, Fall 2016-Spring 2017

This is a summary report from the U Connect program's implementation in Kentucky during the third year of the grant, fall 2016-spring 2017. This archival publication may not reflect current scientific knowledge or recommendations. Current information available from the University of Minnesota Extension: https://www.extension.umn.edu.U Connect uses a three state model that addresses the critical concerns of middle school aged children in historically vulnerable and marginalized populations. It is a collaboration between three institutions: University of Minnesota, Kentucky State University, andTennessee State University. U Connect is a comprehensive program based on the Check & Connect framework developed at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration with program enhancements from STEM education, nutrition education, and parent engagement. Primary outcomes from U Connect include: 1) Promotion of physical and psychological well-being. Creation of opportunities for youth, families, and community center staff to develop supportive relationships, 2) Demonstration and modeling of positive social norms, and 3) Creation of a safe place of inclusion that supports empowerment and skill building. Young people who participate will improve their pro-social behaviors at school, including attendance, personal behavior, academic performance, and engagement in school and within the after school program. Long term, this will provide youth with what they need to graduate high school, and graduate with sufficient skills for postsecondary education and/or employment. Also, parents will cultivate a home environment conductive for young people’s academic success. This is a summary report from the program's implementation in Kentucky during the third year of the grant, fall 2016-spring 2017