Behavior In Female Adolescents Research Articles

Factors influencing self-harm behavior in female adolescents

Objetivo: descrever os fatores que influenciam o comportamento de automutilação na perspectiva de adolescentes do sexo feminino. Métodos: estudo qualitativo, realizado com cinco adolescentes atendidas em Centro de Atenção Psicossocial de modalidade I. Utilizou-se a triangulação dos dados a partir das técnicas de entrevista individual semiestruturada, observação e análise documental. Os dados empíricos oriundos da análise documental, as transcrições das entrevistas com as narrativas na íntegra e os registros de observação foram organizados no Diário de Pesquisa e submetidos à análise de conteúdo. Resultados: constatou-se que situações vivenciadas na infância no âmbito familiar, como rejeição, abandono, violências e distanciamento paterno, juntamente com o sofrimento mental manifestado na adolescência, foram evidenciados como fatores que influenciam a automutilação. Conclusão: observou-se aumento da preocupação com o desenvolvimento emocional da criança e os reflexos manifestados na adolescência, bem como com a contribuição do contexto familiar neste processo. Contribuições para a prática: os fatores influenciadores da automutilação devem ser considerados e abordados pela equipe de enfermagem, a fim de proporcionar uma assistência de qualidade e efetiva. Isso inclui a implementação de ações de promoção da saúde mental, prevenção de transtornos psicossomáticos e redução do sofrimento mental observado neste público-alvo.

Effectiveness of a media literacy-based smoking prevention program in female adolescents.

To examine the effectiveness of a media literacy-based smoking prevention program based on Ajzen's theory of planned behavior in female adolescents. This quasi-experimental study was conducted with female high school students aged 16-17 years in Seoul, Republic of Korea. The program provided eight sessions over 4 weeks. Quantitative data were collected before and after online surveys in an intervention (n=21) and control (n=21) groups, and analyzed using mixed analysis of variance. Qualitative data on participation experiences was collected by requesting the participants to answer open-ended questions once a week during the intervention and performing co-occurrence analysis of specific terms in the responses was conducted through text mining. Although the program decreased smoking intention and increased smoking media literacy in the intervention group, there were no significant differences between the groups. Qualitative results obtained from the intervention group showed cognitive and behavioral changes in the perception of the harmfulness of e-cigarettes in the media and the expression of a willingness to overcome the temptation to smoke. Our findings show that the enhancement of smoking media literacy, specifically by correcting misconceptions regarding e-cigarettes promoted by the new media, contributes smoking prevention in female adolescents. It supports calls for an expanded role of public health professionals in health education at the school level.

Effectiveness of online integrative trans-diagnostic treatment on internet addiction and high-risk behaviors in female adolescents with borderline personality disorder with comorbid depressive disorder.

Based on research, borderline personality disorder is associated with many behavioral and emotional problems, including Internet addiction and high-risk behaviors. On the other hand, integrative trans-diagnostic treatment, by targeting trans-diagnostic factors in emotional pathology, is considered a suitable treatment for comorbid psychological pathologies. Also, since in adolescence, the opinion of others about oneself is more important, online therapy has the advantage of protecting them from the fear of stigma and shame in the face of others' judgments. Therefore, the aim of the current research was to investigate the effectiveness of online integrative trans-diagnostic treatment on the internet addiction and high-risk behaviors in adolescents with borderline personality disorder. The current research was applied and quasi-experimental in a pre-test-post-test manner with a control group. The research sample included 40 female adolescents with borderline personality disorder who were randomly divided into two groups of 20 people, experimental and control groups. The criteria for entering the research included the age range of 12 to 18 years, female, confirmation of the disease by a psychologist, not receiving other psychological treatments in the last 3 months, and having a smartphone to participate in the online group. Substance abuse, any serious mental and physical illness/disorder that interferes with treatment, and failure to attend more than two sessions in therapy sessions were some of the exclusion criteria.The participants were tested on the scales of internet addiction and high-risk behaviors. Then, the treatment plan based on online integrative trans-diagnostic group therapy was presented to the participants of the experimental group online in 9 two-hour sessions. The control group was placed on the waiting list until the completion of the treatment sessions and the post-test implementation, and after the post-test implementation, they received the treatment. Then, their scores were measured, after completing the treatment, and a three-month follow-up period. Descriptive statistics and covariance test were used to analyze the data. Patients showed a clear improvement in the severity of internet addiction and high-risk behavior symptoms. So that the scores of internet addiction and high-risk behaviors in the experimental group after receiving the treatment, as well as after a three-month follow-up period, were significantly reduced (p < 0.001). These results show that online integrative trans-diagnostic therapy can be an effective treatment option for reducing some symptoms of risky behaviors and internet addiction in adolescents with borderline personality disorder and should be studied further. It is noteworthy that the limitations of this study were the available sampling method, the use of a unisex sample of female patients, and the short-term follow-up period, which makes it difficult to generalize the results.

Diet behavior and consumption of iron inhibitors: Incidence anemia in adolescent girls.

One of the strategies to prevent adolescent girls anemia through efforts to identify the factors that cause anemia. Adolescent girls are are prospective mothers who must prepare physically, mentally, with good knowledge so that they do not experience anemia during pregnancy. The aim of the study was to analyze the risk factors for the incidence of anemia in adolescent girls in Banyumas Regency, Indonesia. Quantitative approach used to identify factors that influence anemia in adolescent girls. Research variables are menstrual period, knowledge, diet attitudes and behavior, perception of body image, role of friends in prevention of anemia, role, exposure to information, consumption of iron, consumption of inhibitors and iron enhancers. The population of this research is young women aged 12-19 years. The taking technique by simple random sampling was amount 100, Data analysis was univariate, bivariate (chi square) and multivariate (linear regression). The results showed that the prevalence of anemia was 20%. Based on the results of statistical tests, it was obtained a P-value of 0.005 (<0.05) meaning that there was an influence on adolescent dietary behavior, the role of adolescents in preventing anemia and the consumption of iron inhibitors on the incidence of anemia. Anemia in young girls. There is an influence of eating behavior in female adolescents, the role of female adolescents in preventing anemia and consumption of iron inhibitors on the occurrence of anemia in female adolescents.

Brain Networks and Adolescent Alcohol Use

Alcohol misuse in adolescence is a leading cause of disability and mortality in youth and is associated with higher risk for alcohol use disorder. Brain mechanisms underlying risk of alcohol misuse may inform prevention and intervention efforts. To identify neuromarkers of alcohol misuse using a data-driven approach, with specific consideration of neurodevelopmental sex differences. Longitudinal multisite functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data collected at ages 14 and 19 years were used to assess whole-brain patterns of functional organization associated with current and future alcohol use risk as measured by the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT). Primary data were collected by the IMAGEN consortium, a European multisite study of adolescent neurodevelopment. Model generalizability was further tested using data acquired in a single-site study of college alcohol consumption conducted in the US. The primary sample was a developmental cohort of 1359 adolescents with neuroimaging, phenotyping, and alcohol use data. Model generalizability was further assessed in a separate cohort of 114 individuals. Brain-behavior model accuracy, as defined by the correspondence between model-predicted and actual AUDIT scores in held-out testing data, Bonferroni corrected across the number of models run at each time point, 2-tailed α < .008, as determined via permutation testing. Among 1359 individuals in the study, the mean (SD) age was 14.42 (0.40) years, and 729 individuals (54%) were female. The data-driven, whole-brain connectivity approach identified networks associated with vulnerability for future and current AUDIT-defined alcohol use risk (primary outcome, as specified above, future: ρ, 0.22; P < .001 and present: ρ, 0.27; P < .001). Results further indicated sex divergence in the accuracies of brain-behavior models, such that female-only models consistently outperformed male-only models. Specifically, female-only models identified networks conferring vulnerability for future and current severity using data acquired during both reward and inhibitory fMRI tasks. In contrast, male-only models were successful in accurately identifying networks using data acquired during the inhibitory control-but not reward-task, indicating domain specificity of alcohol use risk networks in male adolescents only. These data suggest that interventions focusing on inhibitory control processes may be effective in combating alcohol use risk in male adolescents but that both inhibitory and reward-related processes are likely of relevance to alcohol use behaviors in female adolescents. They further identify novel networks of alcohol use risk in youth, which may be used to identify adolescents who are at risk and inform intervention efforts.

Optimizing Stunting Prevention through Anemia Education in Female Adolescent

The decrease in hemoglobin levels which is commonly known as anemia is still a very serious problem, especially in developing countries. In 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that more than 40% or 2 billion people in the world have anemia status. As a developing country, the incidence of anemia in Indonesia is quite high. In female adolescents, the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia was found to be 22.8%. One of the factors causing anemia is knowledge. Handling anemia problems in adolescents can be done by providing education about anemia properly to increase their knowledge. The purpose of this study is to increase knowledge about anemia in female adolescents in Ngadiwinatan. The method used in this study was counseling through lectures and discussions. The partners involved included twenty-one female adolescents at junior high, high school, and university levels in the Ngadiwinatan area. The material provided related to trends in the incidence of anemia in female adolescents, causes, risk factors, effects of anemia, and prevention of anemia in female adolescents. The results of this service activity contributed to the knowledge of female adolescents with an increase in knowledge of 65%. The level of knowledge about anemia is expected to improve the attitudes and behavior of female adolescents about anemia. They are expected to be able to adopt a balanced nutritional diet in their daily food consumption to increase their hemoglobin level

Gains and Losses: Resilience to Social Defeat Stress in Adolescent Female Mice

BackgroundAdolescence is a unique period of psychosocial growth during which social adversity can negatively influence mental health trajectories. Understanding how adolescent social stress impacts males and females and why some individuals are particularly affected is becoming increasingly urgent. Social defeat stress models for adolescent male mice have been effective in reproducing some physical/psychological aspects of bullying. Designing a model suitable for females has proven challenging. MethodsWe report a version of the adolescent male accelerated social defeat stress (AcSD) paradigm adapted for females. Early adolescent C57BL/6J female mice (N = 107) were exposed to our modified AcSD procedure twice a day for 4 days and categorized as resilient or susceptible based on a social interaction test 24 hours later. Mice were then assessed for changes in Netrin-1/DCC guidance cue expression in dopamine systems, for inhibitory control in adulthood using the Go/No-Go task, or for alterations in dopamine connectivity organization in the matured prefrontal cortex. ResultsMost adolescent females showed protection against stress-induced social avoidance, but in adulthood, these resilient females developed inhibitory control deficits and showed diminution of prefrontal cortex presynaptic dopamine sites. Female mice classified as susceptible were protected against cognitive and dopaminergic alterations. AcSD did not alter Netrin-1/DCC in early adolescent females, contrary to previous findings with males. ConclusionsPreserving prosocial behavior in adolescent females may be important for survival advantage but seems to come at the price of developing persistent cognitive and dopamine deficiencies. The female AcSD paradigm produced findings comparable to those found in males, allowing mechanistic investigation in both sexes.

Immune characterization of suicidal behavior in female adolescents

BackgroundTo address the need to identify potential markers of suicide behavior for adolescents (ages 12–18 years), mass cytometry was used to explore the cellular mechanisms that may underpin immune dysregulation in adolescents with recent suicidal behavior. MethodsPeripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) samples from 10 female adolescents with a recent suicide attempt and 4 healthy female adolescents were used. A panel of 30 antibodies was analyzed using mass cytometry. We used two complementary approaches to 1) identify the cell types that significantly differed between the two groups, and 2) explore differences in the expression profile of markers on the surface of these cells. Mass cytometry data were investigated using (Center for Disease Control, 2021) Opt-SNE for dimension reduced (Curtin and Heron, 2019), FlowSOM for clustering, and (Bridge et al., 2006) EgdeR and SAM for statistical analyses. ResultsOpt-SNE (a data driven clustering analysis) identified 15 clusters of distinct cell types. From these 15 clusters, cluster 5 (classical monocytes) had statistically lower abundance in suicidal adolescents as compared to healthy controls, whereas cluster 7 (gamma-delta T cells) had statistically higher abundance in suicidal adolescents compared to healthy control. Furthermore, across the 15 cell types, chemokine receptors, CXCR3 (cluster 5) and CXCR5 (clusters 4, 5, 7, and 9), had an elevated expression profile in those with a recent suicide attempt versus healthy controls. ConclusionThis report demonstrates the utility of high dimensional cell phenotyping in psychiatric disorders and provides preliminary evidence for distinct immune dysfunctions in adolescents with recent suicide attempts as compared to healthy controls.

The Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation Strategies in the Relationship Between Emotional Abuse and Self-Harm Behaviors in Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: It is important to pay attention to the self-injury behaviors in adolescence as one of the high-risk behaviors with adverse consequences for the individual and society. Objective: This study aims to investigate the mediating role of emotion regulation strategies in the relationship between emotional abuse in childhood and self-injury behaviors in female adolescents. Methods: This is an analytical cross-sectional study. Participants were 200 female high school students in Rasht, Iran in the academic year 2020-2021 who were selected using a convenience sampling method. Data collection tools included the self-harm inventory (SHI), childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ), and emotion regulation questionnaire (ERQ). The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) and path analysis in SPSS Software v. 23 and Amos v. 26. Results: There was a significant relationship between emotional abuse and self-injury behaviors (P&lt;0.001). The reappraisal domain had a significant negative relationship with emotional abuse and self-injury behaviors, and the suppression domain had a significant positive relationship with emotional abuse and self-injury behaviors. Emotion regulation strategies had partial mediating role in the relationship between emotional abuse and self-injury behaviors (P&lt;0.001). Conclusion: Considering the mediating role of emotion regulation strategies, more attention to the use of these strategies should be paid to reduce the occurrence of self-injury behaviors in female adolescents.

Relationship to physical and psychological pain as factors of deviant behavior in Russian female adolescents

IntroductionBorderline personality manifests in female adolescence and youth by higher frequency of deviant behaviors and suicidal ideations. Psychological models suggests that both perception and relationship to physical pain (Joiner, 2005, O’Connor, Kirtley, 2018, Galynker, 2017) as well as psychological pain (Eisenberger et al., 2003) could increase the risk.ObjectivesThis study concentrates on the relationship between relationship to physical and psychological pain and reported deviant behavior in female adolescents.Methods204 female adolescents (13-21 years old) filled checklist appraising alcohol use, drug use, aggressive behavior, suicidal ideations and emotional difficulties (Cronbach’s alphas .67-.89), Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (Van Orden et al., 2012), Discomfort Intolerance Scale (Schmidt et al., 2006), The Pain Catastrophizing Scale (Sullivan et al., 1995).ResultsElder females more frequently reported substance use (r=.23-.28) and less frequently aggressive behavior (r=-.19) while suicidal ideations were unrelated to age. Females reporting higher perceived burdensomeness and emotional difficulties also reported higher alcohol use (r=.25-.29), aggressive behavior (r=.37-.42) and suicidal ideations (r=.64-.84). Thwarted belongingness correlated with suicidal ideations (r=.50) and aggressive behavior (r=.26). Higher alcohol use was associated with catastrophizing of pain in the form of magnification and helplessness (r=.17) while suicidal ideations and aggressive behavior were related to ruminations, magnification and helplessness (r=.23-.33). Only correlations between aggression and pain catastrophizing remained significant after statistical control of psychological pain (r=.15-.22).ConclusionsAfter control for psychological pain, only aggressive behavior is related to catastrophizing of physical pain. Study is supported by Russian science Foundation, project 22-28-01524.DisclosureStudy is supported by Russian Science Foundation, project 22-28-01524.

Too Many Males or Too Many Females? Classroom Sex Ratio, Life History Strategies and Risk-Taking Behaviors

Prior research finds that sex ratio, defined as the proportion of males and females in a given context, is related to engagement in risk-taking behaviors. However, most research operationalizes sex ratio at a local context (e.g., regional or county), which fails to reflect with precision the sex ratios contexts of individuals at a closer level. Furthermore, the relationship between sex ratio and risk-taking behaviors may be affected by individuals’ life history strategy, with previous studies showing fast life history strategies linked to risk-taking behaviors, compared to slow life history strategies. The present study analyzes the relationship between classroom sex ratio and risk-taking behaviors and the interaction between classroom sex ratio and life history strategy in adolescents. The sample comprised 1214 participants nested in 57 classrooms, 49.75% females, 91.5% Spanish and a mean age of 16.15 years (SD = 1.23, range 14–21). Results from multilevel modeling showed a negative relation between classroom sex ratio and risk-taking behaviors in female adolescents with faster life history strategy. By contrast, classroom sex ratio in male adolescents related positively to risk-taking behaviors but did not interact with life history strategy. These findings underscore the importance of studying proximate sex ratio on risk-taking behaviors in adolescents and underline its potential influence in the development and expression of life history strategies.

Anemia prevention behavior in female adolescents and related factors based on Theory of Planned Behavior: A cross-sectional study

Introduction: Female adolescent is a group prone to iron deficiency anemia due to various factors such as having monthly menstruation and poor diet. Therefore, anemia prevention behavior needs to be done from an early age to avoid prolonged health problems. The purpose of this study was to analyze the factors that correlated with anemia prevention behavior in female adolescents based on the Theory of Planned Behavior. Methods: This study used a descriptive correlational design with a cross-sectional approach. The population of this study is female adolescents in Madiun City. Purposive sampling was used to obtain 105 respondents. The instrument used was a questionnaire to measure the variables attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, intention, and anemia prevention behavior. Data analysis was performed using the Spearman Rho Test with a level of significance ≤ 0.05. Results: There is a relationship between attitudes (p = 0.003; r = 0.292), subjective norms (p = 0.006; r = 0.266), and perceived behavioral control (p= 0.002; r = 0.299) with the intention to prevent anemia and also perceived behavioral control (p = 0.003; r = 0.292) and intention (p = 0.000; r =0.392) with anemia prevention behavior. Conclusions: Better attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and intention possessed by a female adolescent will make better anemia prevention behavior too. Therefore, support from various parties is needed to intensify the promotion of anemia prevention, education on early detection of anemia, especially for female adolescents, and further research to determine effective health promotion methods.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NUTRITION AND EXERCISE BEHAVIOR WITH SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION IN ADOLESCENT FEMALES

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of social media addiction on nutrition/exercise behavior in adolescent females. The questionnaire study consisted 450 adolescent females as population and 295 adolescent females as sample. In this study, Short Form of the Social Media Addiction Scale for Adolescents and the Nutrition Exercise Behavior Scale (NEBS) were used. NEBS had four sub-dimensions (psychological/addicted eating behavior, healthy eating/exercise behavior, unhealthy eating-exercise behavior and meal pattern). The adolescent females' average age and Body Mass Index were 16.4±1.17 years and 21.3±3.46 kg/m2, respectively. As a result, 84.7% of adolescents do not exercise regularly. Social media addiction was found in 63.4% of adolescents. While there was a positive correlation between social media scale score and psychological/addicted eating behavior (r:0.430, p&amp;lt;0.001) and unhealthy diet-exercise behavior (r:0.353, p&amp;lt;0.001); A negative correlation was found between social media score and healthy eating/exercise behavior (r:-0.165, p&amp;lt;0.05) and eating pattern (r:-0.399, p&amp;lt;0.05). In this study, it was prominently revealed the effect of social media addiction on nutrition-exercise behavior. It is thought that this study will raise awareness about the prevention of the negative effects of social media on nutrition-exercise behaviors and can be a source of data for other studies.

Brain structure associated with future suicide thoughts and behaviors in female adolescents with mood disorders

Brain structure associated with future suicide thoughts and behaviors in female adolescents with mood disorders

Interpersonal Relatedness and Non-suicidal Self-Injurious Behaviors in Female Adolescents With Borderline Personality Disorder.

Background: Psychopathological models of adolescent borderline personality disorder (BPD) suggest that non-suicidal self-injuring (NSSI)—a particularly frequent symptom in girls—may constitute a way of coping with distress resulting from interpersonal concerns they typically experience as a developmental psychopathological feature.Objectives: Our objective was to investigate the relationship in BPD female adolescents between NSSI and the Sidney Blatt two-polarities model of personality development, which focuses on the psychological processes of interpersonal relatedness and self-definition.Methods: The study was conducted within the European Research Network on Borderline Personality Disorder in Adolescence, using the Depressive Experience Questionnaire (DEQ).Results: BPD patients (n = 59; mean age = 16.6 ± 1.3) scored significantly higher than healthy controls on the two DEQ sub-factors assessing the more immature forms of Interpersonal Relatedness (Neediness) and Self-definition (Self-criticism) and significantly lower on the more mature form of Self-definition (Efficacy). BPD adolescents with NSSI showed significantly higher scores on both mature and immature forms of Interpersonal Relatedness (Neediness and Connectedness) compared to BPD adolescents without NSSI. A logistic regression analysis showed that the subfactor Neediness of the DEQ was the only significant predictor of the presence of NSSI among BPD adolescents.Conclusions: The preliminary results of this study suggests that NSSI in adolescents with BPD is developmentally linked to high developmental concerns in the domain of interpersonal relatedness, which may be taken into consideration in clinical practice. More studies are necessary to better understand the relationships between NSSI and developmental psychopathology in borderline adolescents.

Evaluation of the knowledge regarding vitamin D, and sunscreen use of female adolescents in Iran

BackgroundVitamin D (Vit D) deficiency/insufficiency is an important risk factor for several chronic conditions. We aimed to evaluate the knowledge and behavior of female adolescents with respect to the association between sunlight exposure, sunscreen use, and Vit D status.MethodsThis cross-sectional survey was performed in northeastern Iran, among 940 female adolescents in January 2015. Each subject completed a questionnaire containing items about demographic characteristics, knowledge about Vit D and their use of sunscreen. Serum Vit D levels were measured using an electrochemiluminescence method and dietary intake of Vit D was assessed using a Food Frequency Questionnaire. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS software. A P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsFew of the participants were aware of the biological functions of Vit D (8.8%), the causes of Vit D deficiency (16.7%), and the sources of Vit D (9.3%). Less than half of the participants used sunscreen during the day. The serum levels of Vit D in subjects who used sunscreen were significantly lower than those who did not (p = 0.004). However, there was no significant association between their knowledge about Vit D and serum Vit D, or dietary intake of Vit D.ConclusionThere appears to be a lack of coherence between lifestyle, behavior and knowledge that may affect the Vit D status of adolescent girls in northeastern Iran. This information provides a basis for developing public health planning (workshops or training at the college level) for the prevention of Vit D deficiency especially in adolescent girls.

An Exploratory Cohort Study of the Association between the Level of Testosterone and Suicidal Ideation in Hospitalized Adolescent Females with Depression in China.

Background To date, around 4 per 100,000 adolescents committed suicide within the 29 OECD countries. The suicidal behavior is related to psychological factors, genetics, neurobiology, and other biomarkers. The aim of this study was to examine risk factors for the development of suicidal ideation in adolescent females with depression, focusing on the relationship between different testosterone levels and suicidal ideation, in order to help develop strategies to intervene in suicidal behavior in female adolescents with depression. Method In this single-center prospective cohort study, we enrolled adolescent females with depression. We collected information on their baseline data, testosterone levels, symptom self-rating scale scores, suicidal ideation, non-suicidal self-injurious (NSSI) behaviours, and suicide attempts. We used multivariate logistic regression to identify risk factors for the development of suicidal ideation in adolescent females with depression. Results A total of 113 hospitalized adolescent females were enrolled with a mean age of 13.5 (1.20). Among these patients, there were 86 (76.11%) subjects who suffered from suicidal ideation, 59 (52.21%) had NSSI and 23 (20.35%) had suicide attempt behavior. In the final model, higher level of testosterone (p=0.04) and higher age (p=0.02) were associated with the higher odds of having suicidal ideation. Conclusion In this exploratory cohort study, the emergence of suicidal ideation was common among adolescent females with depression. This study is consistent with the other studies. It shows that the age is a potential predictor for suicidal ideation in hospitalized adolescent females with depression.

Influence of beliefs about romantic love on the justification of abusive behaviors among early adolescents

IntroductionRomantic experiences during adolescence have an important influence on functioning later in life. Romantic love has been associated with the acceptance of abusive behaviors. This study examined the relationship between myths of romantic love and the perceived severity of different types of abusive behaviors, as well as the influence of gender. MethodsThe sample comprised 448 Spanish adolescents (M = 12.92 years old; SD = 0.85), of which 50.3% were male and 49.7% were female. Participants were evaluated in the school setting. The Perception of Abuse Scale and the Myths, Fallacies, and Misconceptions about Romantic Love Scale were administered. ResultsStatistically significant negative associations between the myths of romantic love and the perceived severity of abusive behaviors were found. Myths regarding possession, dedication, and exclusivity were associated with a lower perceived severity of abusive behaviors in adolescent males. Myths regarding the omnipotence of love were associated with a lower perceived severity of abusive behaviors in adolescent females. Believing in jealousy as a demonstration of love (myth of jealousy) and in the need to establish a steady union when you love someone (marriage myth) explained a lower perceived severity of abusive behaviors in regression models. However, being female and having these beliefs explained a higher perceived severity of abusive behaviors. ConclusionsThe myths of romantic love are already present during early adolescence. These beliefs are implicated in the construction of gender inequality and difficulties in the identification of dating abuse behavior severity. A gendered perspective is necessary to understand this issue. Early intervention strategies should address the cognitive and emotional components of intimate relationships.

Relationship between Conformity and Consumptive Behavior in Female Adolescents

The research aimed to investigate the relationship between conformity and consumptive behavior in female adolescents. It applied a quantitative method with ex-post facto design. The sample was 97 female adolescents in Yogyakarta and was determined using a convenience sampling technique. They completed two questionnaires of conformity and consumptive behavior. The instrument validation technique used content validity, and the validity of the instruments was measured by psychology measurement experts. The instruments' reliability was analyzed using Cronbach Alpha with coefficients of 0,914 (consumptive behavior) and 0,790 (conformity). Data analysis techniques used Pearson product-moment correlation analysis. The result of the research shows that there is a significant positive relationship between conformity and consumptive behavior in female adolescents. In other words, conformity can be a strong predictor of consumptive behavior in female adolescents.

A longitudinal examination of body-checking behaviors and eating disorder pathology in a community sample of adolescent males and females.

Related to the cognitive-behavioral theory of eating disorders, body checking has gained increasing recognition as both a maintaining factor for eating disorders and an important target for treatment. However, it is unclear whether body-checking behaviors contribute to the development of disordered eating, or if these behaviors develop as a response to experiencing eating disorder thoughts and behaviors. This study aims to examine the relationships between body-checking behaviors and eating disordered thoughts and behaviors in adolescent females and males in the community over time. Participants included 238 adolescents (n = 104 males, n = 134 females, Mage = 16.5 years) recruited from high schools in British Columbia, Canada, who completed the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire and Body Checking Questionnaire at baseline (T1) and again approximately 4 months later (T2). After controlling for baseline levels of eating pathology and body mass index (BMI), body checking at T1 predicted increases in eating pathology for both males and females. In contrast, after controlling for baseline levels of body checking and BMI, eating pathology at T1 did not predict changes in body checking for females, but it did for males. Findings suggest that, among adolescents, engaging in body-checking behaviors may increase risk for disordered eating. If supported by further research, targeting body-checking behaviors in prevention programs may be warranted.