Developmental Period Of Adolescence Research Articles

Subjective Indicators of Overtraining and Their Relationship to Sport Fitness: A 1-year Observation of Elite Athletes

This study explores the relationships among indicators of overtraining in adolescent athletes. The research employed widely-accepted tools for subjective overtraining indicator detection, as identified through a systematic review. Two groups of athletes were observed, comprising 13 athletes with bi-weekly assessments and 66 athletes with assessments every 3 months over a one-year period. The study analyzed relationships between variables using repeated measures correlations. A correlation matrix was subjected to principal component analysis. Three fundamental groups of indicators, reflecting negative emotionality (accompanied by sleep problems), self-concept characteristics, and core symptoms of overtraining syndrome captured through subjective sport fitness and vigor. This research emphasizes the intrinsic link between emotional and physical aspects in the lives of elite athletes, shedding light on the complex interplay of overtraining indicators in the context of adolescent developmental period.

Promoting mental wellbeing among youth Australian Rules footballers through a model of continuous improvement.

The developmental period of adolescence is a known transitional life phase with unique risk and protective factors that can affect mental wellbeing outcomes. This, in combination with the pressures and demand of elite sport, make young elite athletes an important population in which positive mental wellbeing can be explored. This study aimed to examine the state of wellbeing, informed by positive psychology and the Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Accomplishment (PERMA) model of wellbeing, in a cohort of young athletes aged 16-19 years in the Australian setting as part of a model of continuous improvement. The objectives of these aims were to inform the development of a wellbeing curriculum for implementation in the Australian Rules Football talent pathway and to assess whether wellbeing presents differently in young athletes relative to the general school-attending population of that same age. Participants were 608 young Australian footballers participating in the developmental talent pathway during 2020 and 2021. There were 299 young male footballers, and 309 young women footballers who completed data collection. Wellbeing was assessed using the Engagement, Perseverance, Optimism, Connectedness, Happiness Measure of Adolescent Wellbeing (EPOCH) which corresponds to the PERMA model of wellbeing, and total mean scores were reported. Engagement and connectedness were similar for the young men and women athletes. Young men reported higher perseverance, optimism, happiness, and overall wellbeing relative to young women. Wellbeing among young athletes appears similar to the general population, however perseverance may be higher among young athletes. These findings form an important component of the continuous improvement model adopted in the football program in that the results informed the development of a tailored wellbeing curriculum program that is reflective of the wellbeing needs of the young athletes.

Adolescent siblings of children with cancer: Resource-based profiles, normalization, and search for meaning in life.

Adolescent siblings of children with cancer jointly face the experience of having a brother or sister with cancer and being in the developmental period of adolescence themselves. Based on Hobfoll's conservation of resources theory, we aimed to identify profiles based on two distinct resources: sense of hope (personal resource) and perceived social support (social resource). Both have been found to be vital for optimal functioning during adolescence. Further, we examined differences in these profiles with regard to two distal outcomes: normalization (a coping strategy) and search for meaning in life (a commonly assumed adolescent developmental task). One hundred and elevenIsraeli adolescent siblings (aged 13-17) completed self-report measures. Two distinct resource-based profiles were identified: "high resources" and "low resources." Participants with "high resources" had a higher sense of hope and higher social support; were significantly more likely to live with married parents than with unmarried parents; had marginally fewer siblings; and scored higher on normalization and search for meaning in life than did participants with "low resources." The study outcomes highlight the essential role of resources for this population. Such resources seem to be helpful for normalization, a coping strategy whose focus is on facilitating regular family routines, and for the siblings' search for meaning in life. Practitioners who work with families in the context of childhood cancer should aim to help these siblings obtain key resources, such as social support, and to actively pursue their goals.

The Ideal Age For Marriage in The Compilation of Islamic Law (KHI) and Psychology

This article discusses the ideal age for marriage which is examined from the perspective of Islamic law and psychology. The aim is to gain a broader understanding that can be used as material in drafting a better statutory provision. This research is library research which is descriptive in nature, using secondary data in the form of primary and secondary legal materials. The results showed that the age of marriage stated in Article 15 paragraph 1 of the Compilation of Islamic Law (KHI), namely the prospective husband is 19 years and the prospective wife is 16 years. is the result of the ijtihad of Indonesian scholars based on considerations for the benefit of the family and household. Such an age limit is deemed sufficient as the age of maturity to enter into a marriage. However, when viewed from the perspective of psychology, this age limit is still in the developmental period of adolescence and is still far from being of a mature age category. According to psychology, the ideal age for marriage is 21 to 25 years for women and 25 to 30 years for men. In this age range, the prospective bride and groom are considered ready to settle down, because they have full maturity, both physically and mentally, and can accept responsibility for managing the household

Predictors of suicide coping self-efficacy among youth presenting to a psychiatric emergency department.

Low levels of youth-reported self-efficacy to cope with suicidal urges have been shown to prospectively predict repeat emergency department (ED) visits and suicide attempts, yet little is known about how self-efficacy may change following receipt of crisis services or about factors that may strengthen self-efficacy. Protective factors (e.g., parent-reported youth competence, parent-family connectedness, and receipt of mental health services) were examined in relation to self-efficacy at the time of a psychiatric ED visit and 2 weeks later. Participants were 205 youth (ages 10-17), presenting to a psychiatric ED due to a suicide-related concern. Youth primarily identified as biological female (63%) and White (87%). Multivariate hierarchical linear regressions were used to examine candidate protective factors in relation to initial and follow-up suicide coping self-efficacy. Self-efficacy significantly improved in the 2 weeks following the ED visit. Parent-family connectedness was positively related to suicide coping self-efficacy at the time of the ED visit. Parent-family connectedness and receipt of inpatient psychiatric care following the ED visit were associated with higher follow-up suicide coping self-efficacy. During the adolescent developmental period when suicidal thoughts and behaviors notably increase, study findings highlight potential malleable intervention targets, including parent-family connectedness, that may strengthen suicide coping self-efficacy.

Serum irisin and caspase-9 levels in adolescents with substance use disorder: a case-control study

ABSTRACT Background During adolescence, individuals experience rapid changes in physical, cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and social aspects of their life. Due to certain risks which arise during the developmental period of adolescence, substance use and addiction are encountered as a public health problem. Studies on biochemical parameters and puberty are limited. In this study, adolescents with substance use disorder were compared to healthy individuals in terms of sociodemographic characteristics and serum irisin and caspase-9 levels. Methods The study group consisted of 32 adolescents with substance use disorder and the control group was comprised of 29 healthy adolescents. The sociodemographic characteristics and serum irisin and caspase-9 levels of the groups were compared. Results The study group performed lower than the control group in terms of duration of education and continuing education. Serum caspase-9 levels were found to be significantly higher in the study group compared to the control group. There was no difference in irisin levels of the groups. Conclusions It was determined that substance use negatively affects educational aspects and may also lead to certain destructive biological effects in adolescents. In order to reveal the effect of substance use on adolescents in more detail, studies with larger samples are needed.

The Differential Impact of Parenting on Adolescent Externalizing Behaviors in the Context of Maternal Stress.

The effectiveness of parenting on child outcomes may be dependent on other contextual factors. To date, few studies have focused on the potential moderating effect of maternal stress on the relationship between parenting and youth externalizing behaviors. This study extends prior work by assessing how the relationship between parenting and youth outcomes varies by the presence of maternal stress, while focusing on the developmental period of adolescence and two dimensions of parenting, parental knowledge and maternal warmth. Data were collected from 278 Mother-adolescent dyads (Madolescent age = 14.05; 53.2% females; 61.9% minority) on maternal stress, maternal warmth and parental knowledge, and youth aggression and delinquency. Multi-level regression models found significant two-way interactions between parental knowledge and maternal stress on aggression and between maternal warmth and maternal stress on both outcomes. Parental knowledge was associated with lower aggression in the context of high maternal stress, but warmth only attenuated the risk of youth outcomes among low maternal stress. This study highlights the importance of considering how contextual factors impact the relationship between parenting and youth externalizing behaviors.

Links Between Adolescents' Moral Mindsets and Narratives of their Inconsistent and Consistent Moral Value Experiences.

Past work on moral mindsets has largely overlooked the adolescent developmental period, a time when adolescents are navigating the complexities of moral life and experiencing tensions between important moral principles and their own actions. This study investigated how moral incrementalism and essentialism are linked to how adolescents construct meanings about their moral experiences. The sample included 96 Canadian adolescents (12-15-years of age; M = 13.5 years). Adolescents generated written narratives of times when they acted inconsistently and consistently with a moral value, and completed a vignette-based measure of moral mindsets. Moral incrementalism was associated with references to the psychological and emotional facets of experiences and engaging in meaning-making processes in narratives. Adolescents who endorsed incrementalism disengaged less only when narrating a self-discrepant experience, indicating some context-specificity across moral event types. Overall, results contribute to scholarship on moral mindset and narrative identity construction. Findings illuminate how individual differences in youth's views of moral traits and behavior may be associated with important aspects of moral identity development such as delving into the psychological and emotional aspects of their experiences and engaging in meaning-making processes.

Patterned Adolescent Socially Deviant Behavior

Based on Moffit’s theory of Adolescence-Limited and Life-Course-Persistent Antisocial Behavior originally posited in 1993, the purpose of this study is to better understand how adolescent youth (AY) participation in socially deviant behavior (SDB) changes by severity across the adolescent development period. Using data from Waves 1–7 of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997, a series of latent transition analyses using twelve indicators measured at four timepoints were used for this study. The analytic sample (n = 3578) only included participants who were aged 12 & 13 in 1997 for the purpose of capturing the entire adolescent developmental period (ages 12–19 years old). Four latent statuses were identified in this study: Minimal SDB, Primarily Status Offense SDB, Moderate SDB, and Severe SBD. AY were most likely to remain within a given status between measurements except for Moderate SDB members. Transitions to more harmful statuses were most likely to occur from Moderate SDB to Severe SDB statuses. Overall, youth were most likely to transition to less harmful statuses. Membership of Moderate SDB declined continually across adolescence, while membership to Status Offense SDB continually increased across adolescence. Results suggest that most AY participate in some form of SDB while also changing their participation in SDB by type and severity throughout adolescence. When considering harm to self, others and communities, AY were most likely to participate in SDB that victimized others during early adolescence and the least likely by late adolescence.

Assessment and Treatment of Adolescents With Chronic Medical Conditions.

Chronic medical conditions persist for one year or more, require ongoing medical intervention, and impair functioning. Approximately 10-30% of youth are diagnosed with a chronic medical condition. Youth with chronic medical conditions are at heightened risk for psychiatric comorbidity and negative health outcomes across the lifespan. Managing a chronic medical condition becomes particularly difficult during the adolescent developmental period, which is marked by changes in biological, psychological, social, and cognitive development. Assessment and intervention with adolescents is often challenging, as this is a period of transition and risk. Given increasing rates of chronic medical conditions, health service psychologists are likely to encounter youth with medical conditions in their clinical practice. In this paper, an overview of chronic medical conditions and adolescent development is provided and fundamental assessment and treatment components, including multicultural considerations, are explored.

Parental education is associated with differential engagement of neural pathways during inhibitory control

Response inhibition and socioeconomic status (SES) are critical predictors of many important outcomes, including educational attainment and health. The current study extends our understanding of SES and cognition by examining brain activity associated with response inhibition, during the key developmental period of adolescence. Adolescent males (N = 81), aged 16–17, completed a response inhibition task while undergoing fMRI brain imaging and reported on their parents’ education, one component of socioeconomic status. A region of interest analysis showed that parental education was associated with brain activation differences in the classic response inhibition network (right inferior frontal gyrus + subthalamic nucleus + globus pallidus) despite the absence of consistent parental education-performance effects. Further, although activity in our main regions of interest was not associated with performance differences, several regions that were associated with better inhibitory performance (ventromedial prefrontal cortex, middle frontal gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, amygdala/hippocampus) also differed in their levels of activation according to parental education. Taken together, these results suggest that individuals from households with higher versus lower parental education engage key brain regions involved in response inhibition to differing degrees, though these differences may not translate into performance differences.

Randomized Clinical Trial of Primary Care Based Online Depression Prevention Intervention: Impact on Adolescent Modifiable Factors and Behaviors

The developmental period of adolescence can pose a risk for the onset of depressive disorders, but is also a time when potentially modifiable factors and behaviors related to depressive episode onset can develop. An online health intervention can provide an opportunity to reach at-risk adolescents in between primary care visits and could impact these modifiable factors and behaviors to support healthy development. We explore the Competent Adulthood Transition with Cognitive-Behavioral, Humanistic, and Interpersonal Therapy (CATCH-IT), a self-directed online cognitive behavioral therapy prevention intervention, and its impact on modifiable factors and behaviors related to: (1) program completion, (2) normative adolescent development, (3) coping, (4) family relations, (5) general health behaviors, and (6) externalizing behaviors, in a primary care sample of adolescents at intermediate to high risk of developing depression. Adolescents were enrolled into either CATCH-IT or Health Education (HE) control group and followed for 24 months. CATCH-IT improved some factors related to program completion (e.g., motivation, recommendation to peers for depression prevention, and physician positive relationship), coping (e.g., perceived behavior change), and family relations (e.g., parental psychological control, sibling relative status) as compared to HE. HE improved normative adolescent development (e.g., health and loss life events) as compared to CATCH-IT. CATCH-IT utilized in primary care may benefit some at-risk adolescents in selective factors and behaviors.

Optimism and Mental Health in Adolescence: a Prospective Validation Study of the Dutch Life-Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R-A) for Adolescents.

The study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Dutch Life Orientation Test-Revised for Adolescents (LOT-R-A), a self-report questionnaire assessing dispositional optimism, and to evaluate the two-factor structure (optimism, pessimism). The LOT-R-A and the questionnaires measuring well-being (MHC-SF-A) and psychological problems (SDQ) were completed by 459 Dutch adolescents (178 boys and 281 girls) between the ages of 11 and 18 years at baseline and 281 adolescents at a four-week follow-up. The results confirmed the two-factor structure (optimism, pessimism) of the LOT-R-A. The findings provided evidence of internal consistency of scores ranging from low to good, and evidence of good test-retest reliability of scores. Further, scores of optimism were cross-sectionally positively associated with scores of positive emotions and well-being and negatively with scores of psychological problems and negative emotions, providing evidence of convergent and divergent validity of optimism scores with emotions, well-being, and psychological problems. Lastly, scores of optimism were prospectively positively associated with scores of well-being and negatively with scores of psychological problems, providing evidence of criterion validity of optimism scores with well-being and psychological problems. Based on these findings it can be concluded that the LOT-R-A is a valid instrument to examine optimism among adolescents. Future research can help to elucidate the role of optimism in mental health interventions and can gather knowledge on how these interventions can be refined to optimally cultivate optimism during the developmental period of adolescence.

Adolescent intermittent ethanol exposure induces sex-dependent divergent changes in ethanol drinking and motor activity in adulthood in C57BL/6J mice.

With alcohol readily accessible to adolescents, its consumption leads to many adverse effects, including impaired learning, attention, and behavior. Adolescents report higher rates of binge drinking compared to adults. They are also more prone to substance use disorder in adulthood due to physiological changes during the adolescent developmental period. We used C57BL/6J male and female mice to investigate the long-lasting impact of binge ethanol exposure during adolescence on voluntary ethanol intake and open field behavior during later adolescence (Experiment 1) and during emerging adulthood (Experiment 2). The present set of experiments were divided into four stages: (1) adolescent intermittent vapor inhalation exposure, (2) abstinence, (3) voluntary ethanol intake, and (4) open field behavioral testing. During adolescence, male and female mice were exposed to air or ethanol using intermittent vapor inhalation from postnatal day (PND) 28-42. Following this, mice underwent short-term abstinence from PND 43-49 (Experiment 1) or protracted abstinence from PND 43-69 (Experiment 2). Beginning on PND 50-76 or PND 70-97, mice were assessed for intermittent voluntary ethanol consumption using a two-bottle choice drinking procedure over 28days. Male adolescent ethanol-exposed mice showed increased ethanol consumption following short-term abstinence and following protracted abstinence. In contrast, female mice showed no changes in ethanol consumption following short-term abstinence and decreased ethanol consumption following protracted abstinence. There were modest changes in open field behavior following voluntary ethanol consumption in both experiments. These data demonstrate a sexually divergent shift in ethanol consumption following binge ethanol exposure during adolescence and differences in open field behavior. These results highlight sex-dependent vulnerability to developing substance use disorders in adulthood.

Teachers’ perceptions of middle schoolers’ social concerns: strategies and barriers to supporting students’ social success

Teachers are often at the forefront of efforts to help students struggling socially at school and their support may be particularly critical during the early adolescent developmental period after youth transition to middle school when social concerns become increasingly salient to students. Given their daily interactions with students, teachers have the unique opportunity to observe students’ day-to-day experiences and can provide insight into the social challenges their students face. Our main study aim was to learn teachers’ perspectives about the pressing social issues they see for students, the types of strategies they use to mitigate those struggles, and the barriers teachers face in supporting youth socially. To assess teachers’ perspectives, we employed a qualitative study design and collected data from 39 middle school teachers who participated in 6 focus groups. Results reveal that teachers see students as highly concerned with peer acceptance, often at the cost of their academic engagement. To support students socially, teachers reported strategies such as establishing classroom expectations, having positive teacher-student interactions, and managing peer social dynamics. Barriers to providing support included difficulty keeping track of peer relationship and lack of understanding about how best to manage peer dynamics. Implications for teacher training and students’ overall adjustment at school are discussed.

PROTOCOL: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials evaluating the impact of parenting programmes for parents of adolescents (10-18 years) on adolescent mental health outcomes, positive development and the parent-adolescent relationship.

PROTOCOL: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials evaluating the impact of parenting programmes for parents of adolescents (10-18 years) on adolescent mental health outcomes, positive development and the parent-adolescent relationship.

A CONCEPTUAL PRACTICE AND EFFECTS IN RESILIENCE RISKS AMONG ADOLESCENCE

The aim of this study is to discuss the models of resilience protective, challenge and describe how resilience differs from related concepts. The key terms are discussed about methodological issues, and explore implications for the profession by focusing on adolescents to overcome the negative effects of risk exposure. However, to bridge the gaps in current understanding, involves facilitation of skill acquisition via strengthening processes. An overview of this resilience research related to adolescent substance use, violent behaviour, and social risk behaviour. Consider the findings specifically emphasis on the developmental period of adolescence and forms the basis of a framework that allows an individual variance in resilience, the identification of both neurobiological and psychosocial targets for prevention therapeutic interventions. This study enhances intervention protective factors in adolescent to offset these vulnerabilities and thus promote the health of adolescents. The objective of coping reactions is fundamental to the enduring effects of violence exposure on their psychosocial development and functioning. Finally, this study illustrates the manner in which coping efforts can support resilience among adolescent stage exposed to violence and suggest new directions for research and preventive intervention aimed at optimizing outcomes for adolescent at risk of exposure. KEYWORDS : Resilience Risk, Protective Factors, Social Practice, Attitude, Behaviour

Mental Health Literacy: A Strategy for Global Adolescent Mental Health Promotion

Background: Adolescence is defined by key transitional elements which are considered within a cross-cultural context. The importance of building mental health capacity for adolescents in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) as well as high-income countries (HICs) is reviewed. Objectives: To review the developmental period of adolescence, global needs for mental health promotion, the needs of LMICs while emphasizing building adolescent mental health capacity, and the importance of efforts to promote mental health literacy. Methods: Mental health literacy (MHL) is presented as a strategy that can increase public awareness regarding mental health issues among adolescents. Increased awareness through an MHL framework is discussed as a way to build adolescent mental health capacity; with this work ideally occurring through global communities of practice (COP), dialogue, collaboration, and mutual support that aim to build innovation in systems of mental health promotion. Results: The authors review structural components in research, practice, and policy that seek to build global adolescent mental health capacity, nested within COPs involving HICs and LMICs working together to advance mental health promotion for children, adolescents, and young people. Conclusion: The article concludes with a discussion of how the three structural components (i.e., research, practice, and policy) can address gaps in the provision of global mental health services for adolescents to meet adolescent mental health needs in LMICs and HICs. A multi-sectoral approach emphasizing a global COP is presented as a way to scale up capacity and maximize outcomes.

Demographic and developmental patterns in telomere length across adolescence

ABSTRACT Telomere length is often used in studies of adults as a biomarker of cellular aging and an indicator of stress exposure. However, we know little about how telomeres change over time, particularly over the course of the important developmental period of adolescence. We use data on telomere length collected at two points in time spanning adolescence (Years 9 and 15) from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine longitudinal patterns (n = 1,654) in telomere length. We find a quantitatively small but significant average lengthening in telomere length across adolescence and little evidence of associations between telomere length and pubertal development.

‘How much heroin is too much heroin?’ Youth inquiries regarding opioids

Primary prevention initiatives specifically designed for youth are an important strategy to combat the opioid crisis in the United States. The developmental period of adolescence is critical for impacting lifetime patterns of opioid misuse. Providing youth with relevant information to guide decisions around initiation of drug use may reduce the most serious opioid related harms. Prevention interventions have primarily been developed by experts in the field, with little emphasis on addressing the desires of youth. This study is a content analysis of opioid related questions posed by youth to substance use experts during the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s Chat Day program. Findings indicate youth could benefit from definitional information about opioids, the relative risk of opioid use, and the development and outcomes of dependence. Implications for addressing youth curiosity about the use of opioids and youth exposure to opioid use and related harms are discussed within conceptual categories for prevention curricula.