Adolescent Behavior Research Articles

Development and Initial Evaluation of a Digital Phenotype Collection System for Adolescents: Proof-of-Concept Study.

The growing concern on adolescent mental health calls for proactive early detection and intervention strategies. There is a recognition of the link between digital phenotypes and mental health, drawing attention to their potential use. However, the process of collecting digital phenotype data presents challenges despite its promising prospects. This study aims to develop and validate system concepts for collecting adolescent digital phenotypes that effectively manage inherent challenges in the process. In a formative investigation (N=34), we observed adolescent self-recording behaviors and conducted interviews to develop design goals. These goals were then translated into system concepts, which included planners resembling interfaces, simplified data input with tags, visual reports on behaviors and moods, and supportive ecological momentary assessment (EMA) prompts. A proof-of-concept study was conducted over 2 weeks (n=16), using tools that simulated the concepts to record daily activities and complete EMA surveys. The effectiveness of the system was evaluated through semistructured interviews, supplemented by an analysis of the frequency of records and responses. The interview findings revealed overall satisfaction with the system concepts, emphasizing strong support for self-recording. Participants consistently maintained daily records throughout the study period, with no missing data. They particularly valued the recording procedures that aligned well with their self-recording goal of time management, facilitated by the interface design and simplified recording procedures. Visualizations during recording and subsequent report viewing further enhanced engagement by identifying missing data and encouraging deeper self-reflection. The average EMA compliance reached 72%, attributed to a design that faithfully reflected adolescents' lives, with surveys scheduled at convenient times and supportive messages tailored to their daily routines. The high compliance rates observed and positive feedback from participants underscore the potential of our approach in addressing the challenges of collecting digital phenotypes among adolescents. Integrating observations of adolescents' recording behavior into the design process proved to be beneficial for developing an effective and highly compliant digital phenotype collection system.

Barriers to healthy behaviors: perspectives from teens with comorbid Type 1 diabetes and overweight/obesity, caregivers, and pediatric endocrinologists.

This study aimed to understand barriers to engagement in healthy lifestyle behaviors among adolescents with comorbid Type 1 diabetes (T1D) and overweight/obesity (n = 12), their caregivers (n = 12), and pediatric endocrinologists (n = 9). Participants (n = 33) completed individual, semi-structured interviews. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, and applied thematic analysis was used to analyze the interview data. Results from adolescents, caregivers, and pediatric endocrinologists revealed three thematic barriers to healthy lifestyle behaviors for adolescents with T1D and overweight/obesity: (1) discomfort with aspects of T1D that draw attention to the self; (2) T1D as a barrier to engagement in healthy lifestyle behaviors; and (3) physiological dysregulation due to T1D impacting health behaviors. Results identify perceived limitations to engaging in recommended healthy lifestyle behaviors and diabetes management concurrently. Results may assist research and clinical care in identifying supports and guidance needed to support adolescents in meeting behavioral recommendations for their health.

Associations of fetal and infant growth patterns with behavior and cognitive outcomes in early adolescence

AbstractBackgroundFetal life and infancy might be critical periods for brain development leading to increased risks of neurocognitive disorders and psychopathology later in life. We examined the associations of fetal and infant weight growth patterns and birth characteristics with behavior and cognitive outcomes at the age of 13 years.MethodsPopulation‐based prospective cohort study from fetal life until adolescence. Pregnant women with a delivery date between April 2002 and January 2006 were eligible. Follow‐up measurements were available for 4716 children. Fetal weight was estimated in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy by ultrasonography. Infant weight was measured at birth and at 6, 12, and 24 months. Fetal and infant weight acceleration or deceleration were defined as a change in SD greater than 0.67 between time points. Total, internalizing and externalizing problems and attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms were measured using Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL/6–18), autistic traits by the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) and intelligence quotient (IQ) by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children‐Fifth Edition (WISC‐V).ResultsOne week longer gestational age at birth was associated with a −0.03 SDS (95% Confidence Interval (CI): −0.04, −0.01) lower total behavior problems score, a −0.02 SDS (95% CI: −0.04, −0.01) lower ADHD symptoms score. Also an increase in birth weight of 500 g was associated with a lower odds of having high externalizing problems (OR 0.92 (95% CI: 0.86, 0.98) and of having a low IQ score (OR 0.79 (95% CI: 0.71, 0.88). Compared to children with normal fetal and infant growth, those with accelerated fetal and infant growth had a 0.27 SDS higher IQ (95% Confidence Interval 0.11, 0.44).ConclusionsBoth fetal and infant weight development are associated with behavioral and cognitive outcomes in early adolescence. Follow‐up studies are needed to assess whether these associations link to later life mental health outcomes.

Social Anxiety in Adolescents: An Analysis of the Psychological Influence Mechanism of Social Media Use

With the rapid progress of Internet technology, social media has become an indispensable part of the daily life of contemporary teenagers, which has a profound impact on their social habits, information acquisition methods and psychological development tracks. This paper explores the psychological mechanism of social anxiety in adolescents using social media, aiming to reveal how social media exerts a profound influence on social behavior, psychological cognition and emotional state of adolescents through various complex ways.The features of social media, such as convenience, interaction, anonymity and visualization, together constitute the basic environment for teenagers to use social media. They have many impacts on teenagers, including positive aspects such as the expansion of social circle, the convenience of information acquisition and the realization of self-expression, and may also bring negative impacts, especially social anxiety. This paper makes an in-depth analysis from multiple dimensions. On the one hand, the phenomenon of social comparison on social media is widespread, and teenagers are prone to inappropriate self-evaluation and feelings of inferiority when browsing the life fragments carefully selected and displayed by others, which will trigger social anxiety. On the other hand, there is also the ever-present threat of cyberbullying and harassment, and these negative experiences pose a serious threat to adolescents' mental health and exacerbate their symptoms of social anxiety. In addition, the increase of information overload and cognitive burden, addiction and dependence on social media are also important factors leading to social anxiety among adolescents. From the family, school and social level, it is necessary to strengthen the education and guidance of young people, help them establish the correct concept of social media use, set a reasonable time to use, encourage physical social activities, and cultivate self-esteem and self-confidence. At the same time, for adolescents with social anxiety symptoms, professional psychological help should be sought in time to alleviate their anxiety and promote their mental health development.

The Influence of Loneliness and Absence of Father's Role on Aggressive Behavior in Adolescents

Purpose: Negative behavior is a picture of individual development experiencing problems, adolescents who develop will certainly show positive behavior. In fact, today many teenagers show negative behavior, one of which is aggressive behavior. This study aims to determine the effect of loneliness and the absence of father's role on aggressive behavior. Method: This type of research is quantitative research, researchers use an aggressive behavior scale, a loneliness scale, and a father's role absence scale. The sampling technique used Non-probability sampling with accindental sampling technique. The samples in this study were male and female adolescents throughout Indonesia, aged 10-24 years, unmarried, had complete parents, divorced parents, and the father died. The data analysis technique in this study used product moment for hypothesis analysis. Result: The first hypothesis of Loneliness with Aggressive Behavior in adolescents obtained a product moment correlation value of 0.734 (p <0.01). Second hypothesis, the relationship between the Absence of Father's Role with Aggressive Behavior in adolescents obtained a product moment correlation value of 0.729 (p <0.01). The effective contribution of the Absence of Father's Role with aggressive behavior in adolescents is 53.2%. The results of multiple linear regression analysis data to prove the third hypothesis, have an influence between Loneliness and Absence of Father's Role together with Aggressive Behavior obtained F of 162.637 (p <0.05), the effective contribution of Loneliness and Absence of Father's Role with Aggressive Behavior is 62.3% while 37.7% is determined by other variables not measured in this study. Conclusion: This study proves that there is a positive and significant influence between loneliness and aggressive behavior, stating that the first hypothesis is accepted, the higher the loneliness obtained by adolescents, the higher the aggressive behavior, and vice versa. The existence of a positive and significant influence between loneliness and the absence of father's role with aggressive behavior simultaneously, states the third hypothesis is accepted.

The Effect of Authoritative Parenting and Self-Esteem on Prosocial Behavior in Adolescents in Palopo City

This research is motivated by the phenomenon of low prosocial behavior among high school teenagers in Palopo City. Authoritative parenting by parents and self-esteem are supporting factors for adolescents to increase prosocial behavior. Therefore, this study aims to prove the influence of authoritative parenting and self-esteem on prosocial behavior in high school teenagers in Palopo City. This research employed quantitative research with an ex-post facto type of research with a sample of 335 teenagers. The data collection technique used an accidental sampling technique with research instruments in the form of psychological scales, namely the prosocial behavior scale, authoritative parenting scale, and self-esteem scale. The validity test used the results of factor loading, and the reliability test used Cronbach's Alpha, with a reliability coefficient value for the prosocial behavior scale = 0.910, the self- esteem parenting scale = 0.885, and the self-esteem scale = 0.890. Data were analyzed using multiple regression analysis techniques. The study's results show that authoritative parenting and self-esteem influence prosocial behavior in adolescents (p=0.000). Therefore, it can be concluded that authoritative research and self-esteem influence prosocial behavior in adolescents. The regression line equation is 14.204 + 0.326 X1 + 0.539 X2. The effective contribution of authoritative parenting and self-esteem to prosocial behavior was 44.8%, consisting of authoritative parenting at 17.2% and self-esteem at 27.6%.

Identifying Social-Cognitive Factors Influencing Aggression in Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Indian Study

Adolescence is a critical period during which the likelihood of experiencing self-regulation failures like aggressive outbursts is increased. Recent Indian studies on adolescents have reported an increasing incidence of aggressive acts during this time of transition, which is a threat to the adolescent, the victim and society in general. This study focuses on the social-cognitive perspective, implying that aggression is a social behaviour that is largely affected by one’s beliefs about the acceptability of aggression and the degree of cognitive and effortful control they have over their emotions. Such beliefs are likely to be influenced by emotion socialisation, wherein parents and peers act as key agents. With this perspective, the current study, through a mediational model, explains the social-cognitive factors predicting aggressive behaviour in adolescents. This is a cross-sectional, descriptive study carried out on a sample of 475 adolescent students from the Delhi-NCR region recruited through purposive sampling. The data were collected through self-report questionnaires from schools and colleges. The model was tested using SPSS AMOS and was found to be a good fit for the data. The findings of this study are crucial from a risk and intervention perspective. It emphasises the need to build socially and emotionally competent students who not only have the skills needed to succeed but also nurture healthy social relationships and maintain positive mental health through adaptive emotion regulation skills.

Effects of decision making and impulsivity on the addictive features of non-suicidal self-injury behaviors in adolescents with depressive disorder

BackgroundNon-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) behaviors pose a significant threat to the physical and psychological well-being of adolescents. Recent research suggests that persistent, uncontrollable and repetitive NSSI can be conceptualized as a behavioral addiction. The addictive feature of NSSI behavior can be assessed using Ottawa self-injury inventory (OSI), the higher addiction score indicates the more serious NSSI behavior. This study aims to explore the relationship of impulsivity and decision-making on the addictive features of NSSI in adolescents with depressive disorder, to explore the influencing factors of behavioral addictive features of NSSI and to predict the addictive features of NSSI.MethodsUsing a cross-sectional design, a total of 126 adolescent outpatients and inpatients with a mean age of 15.49 years old (M = 15.49, SD = 1.56), male students (n = 28, 22.2%) and female students (n = 98, 77.8%) diagnosed with depressive disorders were recruited according to the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), and clinical interviews were completed by two psychiatrists. NSSI addictive features according to the OSI’s addictive features items. The final group was categorized into three groups: depression without NSSI (n = 42), depression with NSSI without addictive features (n = 44), and depression with NSSI and addictive features (n = 40). The present study employed the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD-24), Chinese Revised Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11 (BIS-11), OSI, and the Adolescent Non-Suicidal Self-Injury Questionnaire (ANSSIQ). Cognitive decision-making abilities were assessed using the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT).ResultsThe depression with NSSI addictive features group had significantly lower total net scores and net scores of block3, block4, and block5 in the IGT than the depression without NSSI group, whereas there was no statistically significant difference between the two in net scores of block1 and block2. Lower scores mean more unfavorable decisions and strategy adjustments. The addictive features of NSSI behaviors were significantly and positively correlated with the severity of NSSI behaviors, depression, and cognitive impulsiveness, and significantly and negatively correlated with the total net score of the IGT. The severity of NSSI behaviors, severity of depression, cognitive impulsiveness positively predicts the addictive features of NSSI behaviors, the total net score of the IGT negatively predicted the addictive features of NSSI behaviors.ConclusionAdolescents with depressive disorders with NSSI behavioral addictive features had higher severity of depression, exhibited higher cognitive impulsivity, and made more unfavorable decisions when making choices.

The association between dietary knowledge based on the Chinese Dietary Guidelines and adherence to healthy dietary habits: a large-scale cross-sectional study

IntroductionPrevious systematic review has shown that individuals with more comprehensive dietary knowledge tend to engage in healthier eating patterns among American or European population. However, research on the association between dietary knowledge based on the Chinese Dietary Guidelines and healthy dietary behaviors, particularly among adolescents and college students in China, is lacking. This study aimed to examine the association between dietary knowledge based on the Chinese Dietary Guidelines and adherence to healthy dietary behaviors among adolescents and college students in China.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in China in August and October 2023. The study involved 527 adolescents and 11,856 college students. A convenience and cluster sampling methodology was employed to select one or two grades from 33 different university majors. The dietary behaviors of college students were evaluated by assessing their consumption of nine food groups: water, eggs, milk and milk products, vegetables, fruit, red meat, soy and soy products, seafood, and sugar-sweetened beverages. The dietary behaviors of adolescents were evaluated by assessing their consumption of five food groups: fast food, salty snack foods, fruits, vegetables, and soft drinks and sugared fruit beverages. The participants’ dietary knowledge was assessed using the Chinese Dietary Guidelines. The relationship between dietary knowledge and behaviors was examined using a multivariate logistic regression analysis.ResultsThe questionnaire response rate was 100.0%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed a significant positive association between dietary knowledge and the likelihood of exhibiting diverse dietary behaviors among college students. After adjusting for gender, age, family income, place of residence, and parents’ education levels, the results demonstrated a positive association between dietary knowledge and adherence to 4–8 eating habits among college students. In contrast, similar association was not observed among adolescent.ConclusionThis study revealed a significant association between dietary knowledge based on the Guidelines and adherence to healthy dietary behaviors among college students in China. That is to say, the higher the level of dietary knowledge based on the Guidelines among college students, the healthier the dietary behaviors they tend to adopt in their daily lives. These findings indicate the necessity of developing educational interventions based on the Guidelines to enhance dietary knowledge among individuals with limited dietary knowledge. Such interventions could facilitate the acquisition of essential health-related knowledge and strengthen motivation to engage in healthy dietary behaviors. Future studies should employ longitudinal prospective designs or randomized controlled trials in order to establish a causal association between dietary knowledge based on the Guidelines and healthy dietary behaviors.

Improving Identification of At-Risk Behaviors in Adolescents with Rheumatic Disease.

Many adolescent patients view their rheumatologist as their primary physician and therefore it is important to screen youth for sexual activity and substance use as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. We implemented an electronic social history questionnaire (SHQ) and alert system to identify at-risk behaviors in adolescents with rheumatic disease. The SHQ was administered to adolescents 14 years and older with a goal to survey patients' sexual activity, and alcohol, tobacco, and drug use. The SHQ was given via tablet at each rheumatology outpatient visit. A positive response triggered a best practice advisory (BPA) alert when the chart was opened to remind the clinician to discuss these results privately. A total of 877 unique patients were surveyed. Ninety patients (12%) reported being sexually active, and sexually active patients were significantly older than those who were not (17.2 vs 15 years, p<0.001). Seventy-two percent of patients were female, and the mean age was 15.8 years. Sexually active patients were more likely to be smokers, drink alcohol, and use other drugs (p<0.001).Strong associations were observed between alcohol use and male sex (p = 0.0227), White race (p = 0.0052), and public insurance (p = 0.0021). Overall, 12% of patients reported being sexually active, underscoring the need to screen adolescents for sexual activity given many rheumatology patients take teratogenic medication. A smaller proportion used substances. Implementing an EMR-based SHQ can help identify patients most at-risk, and the BPA served as a useful tool to remind clinicians to discuss the SHQ privately.

Core Competencies in Family Therapy for Adolescent Behavior Problems: Systemic Stance and Systemic Skills

Core Competencies in Family Therapy for Adolescent Behavior Problems: Systemic Stance and Systemic Skills

Preclinical evidence of the effects of sweet flavors: Sweetness increases nicotine intake and seeking.

The influence of early exposure to sweet and fruit flavors on subsequent nicotine use behaviors during adolescence remains poorly understood. To address this gap, we utilized a rodent model to simulate childhood flavor exposure and examine its effects on later nicotine use behaviors. We employed a two-bottle choice paradigm in weanling rats to mimic human childhood flavor exposure. Subsequently, we investigated the impact of early exposure to sweet (saccharin) and cherry fruit (benzaldehyde) flavors on adolescent nicotine use behaviors. This included assessing subsequent nicotine acquisition, maintenance, and seeking behaviors using intraoral flavor and intravenous nicotine self-administration. Our findings reveal that rats exposed to saccharin during early development exhibited altered patterns of nicotine intake and seeking behaviors during adolescence. Specifically, rats demonstrated increased nicotine intake and seeking of saccharin flavored solutions when paired with nicotine, indicating a potential predisposition towards nicotine use following childhood flavor exposure. Intraoral benzaldehyde did not affect nicotine reinforcement in early sessions of self-administration, but significantly decreased nicotine reinforcement during later sessions. Both saccharin exposure alone or in combination with benzaldehyde promoted nicotine reinforcement. No significant sex differences in nicotine-related behaviors were observed. This study highlights the significance of early flavor exposure in shaping adolescent nicotine use behaviors. The findings suggest that childhood exposure to sweet flavors may contribute to heightened susceptibility to nicotine use and addiction later in life. Understanding these early influences is crucial for developing targeted interventions to prevent the onset of nicotine addiction during adolescence. Our study highlights the importance of how sweetness can contribute to and possibly even alter the effects of the flavor itself. The sweetness of a tobacco product does not solely stem from sweeteners, but it is also influenced by other components such as the PG/VG ratio (e.g., higher VG) and the inclusion of flavors associated with sweetness (e.g., vanillin and ethyl maltol). Therefore, sweet-associated constituents in tobacco products should be investigated further to inform regulatory policy. We believe that our findings can inform regulatory decisions on controlling sweet associated constituents in tobacco products.

“From Use for Good to Overuse for Bad”: Association Among Smartphone Use, Problem Behaviors and Well-Being in Adolescents

“From Use for Good to Overuse for Bad”: Association Among Smartphone Use, Problem Behaviors and Well-Being in Adolescents

Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors in American Indian and Alaska Native Adolescents.

American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) have consistently exhibited suicide rates that surpass all other racial and ethnic groups in the United States. However, not much has been published regarding the epidemiology of AI/AN youth suicides. The objectives of this study on AI/AN adolescents were to assess the prevalence of suicidal thoughts and behaviors by age and gender, assess the number of years of life lost to suicide before the age of 80, and assess the most common methods used to commit suicide by AI/AN adolescents. Data utilized for this study were from the national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys and the Web-Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System. We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive analysis of the suicide-related data from years 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2021. We found AI/AN adolescents averaged one in four contemplated suicides, one in five planned suicides, and one in six attempted suicides. A total of 257 adolescents committed suicide during the study period where the majority (62.5%) were observed in males and suicides were more common in older adolescents. AI/AN adolescents had the highest crude suicide death rate of any racial or ethnic group and the most common methods used to commit suicide were suffocation (57.5%) and firearms (35.5%). AI/ AN adolescents lost almost 16,000 years of potential life during the four years of the study and the majority were lost by males. Professionals and policymakers desiring to reduce suicidal thoughts and behaviors among AI/AN adolescents need to focus more of their efforts on providing youths with resilience factors to establish sufficient ego strength in them to deal with all types of stressors. Concurrently, federal, state, and tribal leaders need to work together to improve the social and economic circumstances faced by many AI/AN families and children.

International trends in male youth suicide and suicidal behaviour.

Suicide and suicidal behaviour strongly contribute to overall male youth mortality. An understanding of worldwide data contextualises suicide and suicidal behaviour in young men within any given country. Members and colleagues of the World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry's Task Force on Men's Mental Health review the relevant data from several regions of the world. The review identifies notable findings across regions of relevance to researchers, policymakers, and clinicians. Male suicide and suicidal behaviour in adolescence and emerging adulthood within North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East, Continental Africa, South Asia, East Asia, China, and Oceania share similarities as well as significant points of divergence. International data provide an opportunity to obtain a superior understanding of suicide and suicidal behaviour amongst young men.

Karakteristik Kesehatan Mental Remaja Dalam Perilaku Self Harm

Self-harm is known as self-harm is a mental health phenomenon in which a person uses physical pain to cope with emotional stress. The study aims to understand the characteristics of adolescent mental health with self-harm behavior, as well as to find out how adolescents can reduce self-harm behavior. This study applies a descriptive qualitative method. This study involved three informants with the initials DA, MAT, and FR. The informants in this study were adolescents aged 18-19 years who committed self-harm when facing problems. The determination of informants used a purposive sampling technique. Data collection techniques were obtained from observation, interviews, and documentation and were analyzed using the Miles and Huberman method. The characteristics of mental health possessed by adolescents with self-harm behavior in Village X tended more towards unhealthy mental characteristics. The results of the study showed adolescent behavior such as losing self-control in managing emotions, withdrawing from their environment, having feelings of shame and guilt, and difficulty concentrating in their social and school environments. In line with the opinions of experts regarding the characteristics of mental health which refer to an unhealthy mentality (ill mentality). However, even so, teenagers have tried to stop their self-harming behavior with other more positive activities such as exercising, writing and listening to music to please their hearts and minds.

Behavior Change Techniques to Reduce Sugars Intake by Adolescents: A Systematic Review.

The adolescent diet is high in sugars compared with other age groups. Effective approaches to support sugar reduction by adolescents are needed as part of caries prevention. To systematically review peer-reviewed evidence (1990 to 2023) to identify effective behavior change techniques (BCTs) for sugars reduction in adolescents aged 10 to 16 y. Nine databases (CINAHL, Cochrane, Dental and Oral Sciences Source, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science) were searched. Identified articles were screened independently in duplicate for eligibility. Interventions were eligible if they aimed to change adolescent dietary behavior(s) and reported pre- and postsugar-relevant outcome measures. Interventions from included studies were coded using a 93-item BCT Taxonomy (Michie Taxonomy v1). Risk of bias was assessed using the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies. Evidence synthesis by vote counting (number of studies showing positive versus null or negative effects) was applied to BCTs that were present in more than 5 interventions. Of 16,271 articles identified, 764 were screened in full, yielding 35 studies (in 43 papers), of which 3 were uncodeable. BCTs coded in interventions covered 11 of 16 BCT clusters and 25 of 93 individual BCTs in the BCT taxonomy. The median number of BCTs applied per study was 3 (interquartile range 2-6). Evidence synthesis indicated that the BCTs most positively associated with a positive reduction in sugars were (with the percentage of strong-/moderate-quality studies applying these techniques that successfully reduced sugars intake in brackets) feedback on behavior (100%), information on social and environmental consequences (100%), problem solving (75%), and social comparison (75%). Notwithstanding limitations in available data, the current evidence most strongly supports the use of BCTs relating to feedback on behavior, providing information on the social and environmental consequences, include problem solving and making social comparisons, to lower sugars intake in adolescents. The results of this study will enable clinicians to provide more effective dietary advice when supporting dietary behavior change to reduce sugars intake in adolescents. The results may also be used by researchers to guide future directions for research into effective sugars reduction in adolescents.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Health Conditions and Risk Behaviors Among High School Students - Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2023.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are preventable, potentially traumatic events occurring before age 18 years. Data on ACEs among adolescents in the United States have primarily been collected through parent report and have not included important violence-related ACEs, including physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. This report presents the first national prevalence of self-reported ACEs among U.S. high school students aged <18 years, estimates associations between ACEs and 16 health conditions and risk behaviors, and calculates population-attributable fractions of ACEs with these conditions and behaviors using cross-sectional, nationally representative 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data. Exposures were lifetime prevalence of individual (emotional, physical, and sexual abuse; physical neglect; witnessed intimate partner violence; household substance use; household poor mental health; and incarcerated or detained parent or guardian) ACEs and cumulative ACEs count (zero, one, two or three, or four or more). Health conditions and risk behaviors included violence risk factors, substance use, sexual behaviors, weight and weight perceptions, mental health, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Bivariate analyses assessed associations between individual and cumulative ACEs and demographics. Adjusted prevalence ratios assessed associations between cumulative ACEs and health conditions and risk behaviors, accounting for demographics. Population-attributable fractions were calculated to determine the potential reduction in health conditions and risk behaviors associated with preventing ACEs. ACEs were common, with approximately three in four students (76.1%) experiencing one or more ACEs and approximately one in five students (18.5%) experiencing four or more ACEs. The most common ACEs were emotional abuse (61.5%), physical abuse (31.8%), and household poor mental health (28.4%). Students who identified as female; American Indian or Alaska Native; multiracial; or gay or lesbian, bisexual, questioning, or who describe their sexual identity in some other way experienced the highest number of ACEs. Population-attributable fractions associated with experiencing ACEs were highest for suicide attempts (89.4%), seriously considering attempting suicide (85.4%), and prescription opioid misuse (84.3%). ACEs are prevalent among students and contribute substantially to numerous health conditions and risk behaviors in adolescence. Policymakers and public health professionals can use these findings to understand the potential public health impact of ACEs prevention to reduce adolescent suicidal behaviors, substance use, sexual risk behaviors, and other negative health conditions and risk behaviors and to understand current effects of ACEs among U.S. high school students.

Family function and adolescent altruistic behavior: the chain mediating role of extraversion personality and perceived social support.

This study aimed to explore the relationship between family function and altruistic behavior in adolescents, while also investigating the potential mediating roles of extraverted personality and perceived social support. Surveys were administered to high school students across various schools in Guangdong Province, utilizing the Family APGAR Questionnaire, Extraversion Personality Scale, Perceived Social Support Scale, and Altruistic Behavior Scale. A total of 972 valid questionnaires were collected for analysis. The findings revealed that family function did not directly predict altruistic behavior. However, extraverted personality and perceived social support were identified as mediators between family function and altruistic behavior. Furthermore, both extraverted personality and perceived social support acted as chain mediators in this relationship. These results emphasize the importance of considering family dynamics in understanding adolescent altruistic behavior and highlight the potential pathways through which family function influences altruistic tendencies. Promoting positive family environments and enhancing extraverted personality and perceived social support may facilitate the cultivation of altruistic behavior in adolescents.

The Relationship between the Subjective Feeling of Loneliness and Victim Behavior in Adolescence

The article examines the teenage period of development with its age-related crises and characteristics. Specific problems of adolescence are identified: the problem of loneliness and victimized behavior. The purpose of this study is to identify the relationship between the subjective feeling of loneliness and victim behavior in adolescence. The phenomenon of loneliness is characterized as a multifaceted complex construct, and the features of the experience of loneliness in adolescence are revealed. Analyzing the connection between the types of experiences of loneliness and personal characteristics and behavioral manifestations in adolescence. Particular attention is paid to victim behavior. To confirm the hypothesis about the relationship between the subjective feeling of loneliness and victim behavior in adolescence, an empirical study was conducted in which 40 adolescents aged 15–16 years, 8th–9th grade students, took part. The results of the study confirm that the phenomena of propensity to victimized behavior and loneliness in adolescence are interrelated.