Abstract
This study explored attributes of at-risk behaviors amongst Malaysian adolescents in secondary school and factors underpinning these behaviors. Clustered random sampling procedure was administered and approximately 738 respondents’ questionnaires were finally considered for the final analyses of the data collected. A survey form which comprised demographic variables, types of at-risk behaviors and factors affecting them was pilot-tested and administered. Descriptive statistics (namely mean scores and standard deviations) was employed to describe the demographic variables related to Malaysian adolescents and types of at-risk behaviors prevalent among Malaysian adolescents. Inferential statistics (Anova and t-tests) were administered for comparing gender, age, and location – urban versus rural, family SES differences as regard to the type of at-risk behaviors prevalent. Findings based on the descriptive statistic and inferential statistics indicated that incidences of at-risk behaviors such as substance abuse, alcohol consumptions, suicide ideations and attempts, pre-marital sex, teen pregnancy and abortion, runaways were minimal and not alarming. Findings from this study shed light on the importance of developing intervention strategies which involved all quarters namely; parents, school, society and positive portrayal of adolescents’ image and icons via media in our attempt to improve the life quality of adolescents. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n2s5p328
Highlights
IntroductionChild’s development is very much influenced by the elements of “nature versus nurture” i.e. developmental aspects which are very much influenced by his/her genetic makeup and as well as the environment he/she grew in
Every child develops at different rate and phase in his or her life
This section addressed the research questions formulated for this paper and the results were discussed and tabulated in several tables which were as follow: 1. What are the at-risk behaviors identified among the Malaysian lower secondary school students? Descriptive statistics namely frequency counts and percentages were employed to address this questions
Summary
Child’s development is very much influenced by the elements of “nature versus nurture” i.e. developmental aspects which are very much influenced by his/her genetic makeup and as well as the environment he/she grew in. Findings from research have indicated that children from the baby boomer’s period are different from the generation X and generation Y children. Children from generation X were said to be highlydependent and children from generation Y were known to be playful and least accountable for their own doings. Based on these observations, it is possible to deduce that the “nature versus nurture” debate truly has strong influence in shaping contemporary children’s behavior, attitude, perception and mentality
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