Adolescent social marginalization and psychological distress across the transition to adulthood

Adolescence is a developmentally rich stage of the life course during which young people lay the foundation for future adjustment, functioning, health, and well-being. Adolescents experience profound changes to their brains and bodies, individuate from their parents, traverse the complex social systems of U.S. high schools, and ascribe increased importance to their relationships with peers. The confluence of these changes means that young people who become socially marginalized or disconnected from peers in high school face psychological distress in the short term. Moreover, the implications of adolescent marginalization for mental health may reverberate and cascade across the transition to adulthood, jeopardizing trajectories of psychological well-being. In this spirit, this dissertation asks: will adolescent social marginalization leave permanent scars on mental health, and if so, for whom? To explore these questions, I draw on a developmental life course framework and apply structural equation modeling techniques to longitudinal data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health; n = 10,869). Results from my analyses revealed that adolescence is a sensitive period of the life course during which marginalization from peers triggers problematic mental health trajectories into adulthood regardless of post-high school experiences and despite accessing social resources in high school that would otherwise buffer youth from unhealthy psychological trajectories. These patterns were more distinct among girls than boys. Additionally, trajectories of distress were closely connected with trajectories of binge drinking among marginalized youth in general, and particularly among boys. The bi-directionality of these trajectories suggests that the social ups and downs of high school affect adjustment, functioning, and behaviors well into adulthood. Overall, this dissertation informs theoretical understanding of risk and resilience by pointing to adolescence as a sensitive developmental moment during which social risks are particularly influential on long-term trajectories of health and well-being.Sociolog

Teachers\u27 Perceptions of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Incidence and Management

ADHD continues to be a common diagnosis of school children, and according to the DSM-IV, it affects approximately 3-5% of the population. Teachers are often the primary source of information regarding ADHD diagnoses in school children. A previous study by Glass and Wegar (2000) found that teachers were over-identifying children with ADHD and that medication was preferred as the primary treatment for these students. This study further examines teacher perceptions on the causes, incidence, and appropriate treatment methods of ADHD. In addition, this study also examines the prevalence of ADHD as determined by the ADHD Rating Scale-IV (School Version) (DuPaul et al., 1998), and determines if it carries biases towards gender or ethnicity. Results show that teachers are still over-identifying children with ADHD when compared to expected prevalence rates by the DSM-IV. Out of 121 rating scales analyzed, 23.97 percent were identified by teachers as meeting criteria for one of the three types of ADHD. Males had significantly higher scores than females and Whites had significantly higher scores than Hispanics. In conclusion, more research needs to be conducted on developing culturally appropriate rating scales for ADHD as well as making changes in the DSM-IV to reflect the growing incidence rates of ADHD

Childhood Food Insecurity in Rural America: Raising Awareness and Inspiring Action Through Art and Design

Children go hungry in America every day, particularly in rural communities, where statistics show food insecurity to be as high as 17%. This means one in six children in rural communities lacks nutritionally adequate food or the ability to acquire it on a daily basis. In one of the wealthiest countries in the world, this appalling statistic is unacceptable. But how do we mitigate food insecurity for children and its resulting effects on a child’s physical, mental, and social development? This project proposes to educate, raise awareness, and inspire and/or enable action by all stakeholders to reduce food insecurity, specifically for the children of rural America, through research-based, charitable-event signage and a children’s illustrated book. The expected result of these materials is that those who have resources to give will be inspired to do so, and those who suffer from food insecurity will better understand where and how to get assistance, no matter their age. To effectively accomplish this goal, I conducted research into the following: the definition and factors of food insecurity, food insecurity in rural America, the effects of food insecurity on children, reducing food insecurity for children, psychological factors for charitable giving, and designing with the intent to influence an audience. Unfortunately, the recent COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the situation due to supply-chain issues, rising unemployment rates, and inflation. Therefore, we cannot delay in raising awareness and providing aid to the food insecure. This project aims to do just that through illustrated story and printed signage

Forging Relationships and Filling Repositories

Poster presentation for 2018 United States Agricultural Information Network (USAIN) 16th Biennial Conference at Washington State UniversityPoster presentation for 2018 United States Agricultural Information Network (USAIN) 16th Biennial Conference at Washington State Universit

Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle

Feed cost has been estimated to account for approxi¬mately 70% of the expenses associated with a beef cattle operation. The consequences of under- or overfeeding beef cows can be substantial. Underfeeding cows can result in thin body condition, poor reproductive performance, and poor milk production. On the other hand, overfeeding can be unnecessarily expensive, increase calving difficulty, reduce milk production, and potentially have a negative impact on the environment. To effectively balance diets, it is essential to know the nutrient requirements of the animal. Demand for nutrients can vary by numerous factors. However, the requirements defined in this publication will only address variability associated with animal size, stage of production, and milk production. When applying these requirements to cows in excessively cold or hot climates, adjustments will be neces¬sary to achieve predicted animal performance. Throughout this publication, all nutrient requirements are expressed as either % or parts per million (ppm) of the diet dry matter (DM). Parts per million may also be expressed as milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg). With the exception of water, nutrients are supplied to the animal only from the DM portion of the diet. As such, it is essential to convert the amount of each ingredient from an as-fed basis (AF) to a DM basis. A worksheet has been included at the end of this publication to facilitate that conversion

Bull Management and Nutrition

Proper management and nutrition of bulls is essential to ensure cow/calf producers maximize reproductive efficiency and genetic improvement of the calf crop. In addition, the herd bull influences overall herd fertility more than any other single animal, and loss of fertility by a bull can cause substantial loss to a potential calf crop. Each cow produces one calf per year; however, bulls should contribute to the calf crop by 25 to 60 times via siring 25 to 60 calves. Additionally, bulls influence their daughters’ production in the cow herd. Therefore, bull selection can be the most powerful method of genetic improvement in the herd, but bulls with low fertility, structural problems and low libido reduce the percent calf crop weaned

Bull Management and Nutrition

Proper management and nutrition of bulls is essential to ensure cow/calf producers maximize reproductive efficiency and genetic improvement of the calf crop. In addition, the herd bull influences overall herd fertility more than any other single animal, and loss of fertility by a bull can cause substantial loss to a potential calf crop. Each cow produces one calf per year; however, bulls should contribute to the calf crop by 25 to 60 times via siring 25 to 60 calves. Additionally, bulls influence their daughters’ production in the cow herd. Therefore, bull selection can be the most powerful method of genetic improvement in the herd, but bulls with low fertility, structural problems and low libido reduce the percent calf crop weaned

Factors contributing to the preponderance of males in learning disabilities: A follow-up study

The present study was designed to assess the utility of specific variables for differentiating LO males and LO females and LO students from RE students. Variables were selected based on previous research findings indicating their utility for differentiating the relevant samples and the availability of pertinent data in existing files. Data regarding the 21 pre-selected variables were obtained for all LO students (50 males and 30 females) and a control group of RE students matched with them by sex, grade, and age. Discriminant Analysis procedures were used to determine the intercorrelated grouping of variables which best differentiated sex within LO placement, LO placement from RE placement, and LD placement from placement for each sex. Results of the current study clearly indicate a preponderance of males within the LO sample. This finding, while consistent with male/female ratios generally reported in the literature, contradicts those of the study that served as an impetus for the present investigation, suggesting that the prior sample may not have been representative of the usual LD population. Factors not accounted for in the current study, teacher practices, teacher expectations, and referral and placement biases, may contribute to the usually found disproportion. Of the 16 variables contributing to the discrimination of males and females within the LO group, nine were associated with maleness and seven with femaleness . Those associated with maleness included SCAT Quantitative, SCAT Total, WISC-R Verbal IQ, STEP Math Computation, STEP Math Concepts, retention, SCAT Verbal, STEP Writing, and STEP Reading. Speech referral; both parents working; reading standard score; one or no natural parents residing in the home; divorced, separa:ed, or divorced and remarried parents; STEP Vocabulary; and health problem/injury were associated with femaleness. Of the 14 variables contributing to the discrimination of LO and RE, five were associated with LO and nine with RE. The variables associated with LD were speech referral; health problem/injury; divorced, separated, or divorced and remarried parents; retention; and one or no natural parents living in the home. All achievement measures were associated with RE, as well as both parents working. The results of analyses by sex suggest that females who receive LO services differ more from RE females than LO males from RE males. Overall males and females in LD are highly similar, with the female manifesting more symptoms of stress and health impairment. The major conclusions of this study were as follows: 1. The efficacy of pre-existing data to predict need for LD placement as suggested by Piwowarski (1981) was again demonstrated. 2. Inclusion of medical, familial, and group achievement and ability data may produce more effective and efficient early identification batteries than batteries relying solely on newly generated test results. 3. Males and females within LD possess similar characteristics-- early health problems/injury, familial stress, low ability and achievement scores, retention, and speech referral. 4. The high risk female is more deviant from RE females than the high risk male is from RE males. 5. An interactionary explanation, with its emphasis on male vulnerability, male slower rate of maturation, societal expectations, and possible biases in the referral and placement process probably best accounts for the preponderance of males in the current study

Gender and Health Behavior Clustering among U.S. Young Adults

U.S. trends in population health suggest alarming disparities among young adults who are less healthy across most measureable domains than their counterparts in other high-income countries; these international comparisons are particularly troubling for women. To deepen our understanding of gender disparities in health and underlying behavioral contributions, we document gender-specific clusters of health behavior among U.S. young adults using nationally representative data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. We find high levels of poor health behavior, but especially among men; 40 percent of men clustered into a group characterized by unhealthy behavior (e.g., poor diet, no exercise, substance use), compared to only 22 percent of women. Additionally, women tend to age out of unhealthy behaviors in young adulthood more than men. Further, we uncover gender differences in the extent to which sociodemographic position and adolescent contexts inform health behavior clustering. For example, college education was more protective for men, whereas marital status was equally protective across gender. Parental drinking mattered for health behavior clustering among men, whereas peer drinking mattered for clustering among women. We discuss these results in the context of declining female advantage in U.S. health and changing young adult social and health contexts