Adolescent Protective Factors Research Articles

An analysis of hope as a psychological strength

Psychologists have placed an increased emphasis on identifying psychological strengths that foster healthy development. Hope, as operationalized in Snyder's hope theory Snyder, C. R., Hoza, B., Pelham, W. E., Rapoff, M., Ware, L., & Danovsky, M., et al. (1997). The development and validation of the children’s hope scale. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 22, 399–421], is one such cognitive-motivational construct that has received recent attention as a potential psychological strength that may serve as a protective factor for adolescents in the face of adverse life events. This longitudinal study, involving middle and high school students, provided evidence of (1) stability of hope reports of adolescents over a 1-year period, (2) predictive validity of adolescent hope reports, and (3) hope's functional role as a moderator in the relationship between stressful life events and adolescent well-being. Taken together, the results provide support for consideration of hope as a key psychological strength in youth. The findings are consistent with theories of motivation in which individual differences in hopeful thinking are conceptualized to play a functional role in linking life events and psychological well being.

Risk and Protective Factors Mediating Psychological Symptoms and Ideological Commitment of Adolescents Facing Continuous Terrorism

This study evaluated symptoms, risk, and protective factors of adolescents from six Israeli schools exposed to continuous terrorism. All children in the grades selected at each school (7, 9, and 11) were administered anonymous assessment materials measuring posttraumatic, grief, and dissociative symptoms, as well as traumatic exposure, personal resilience, and family factors. A high number of risk factors increased the likelihood of negative symptoms. Perceived personal resilience served as a protective factor against symptom development, perhaps enforced by ideology. Girls living on the West Bank had less severe posttrauma and were more willing to make personal sacrifices for their country. Proactive interventions aimed at enhancing a child's personal resilience and ability to cope with continuous stress may help protect against later symptomatology following traumatic events. Facing terrorism, political ideology may serve a double edge sword: protecting against symptom development as well as contributing to the toxic cycle of violence.

Club Drug Use in Germany

In this paper the epidemiology of club drug use in Germany, including the use of 3,4-methylendioxy-N-methamphetamine (MDMA) known as ‘ecstasy’ and related substances such as speed, amphetamines, hallucinogens, and cannabis is described on the basis of five different surveys. Two of them are representative household surveys to monitor the licit and illicit drug use behavior of the German population. The third one is a longitudinal study aimed at exploring comorbidity and posited risk and protective factors in adolescents and young adults with specific emphasis on substance use-related disorders. Since ecstasy seemed to be associated with a new music culture of the ‘90s called “techno,” two studies investigating the relationship of using ecstasy and related substances in the techno party scene are additionally presented. The question of the clinical impact of using ecstasy and related substances is raised in terms of substance use-related and mental disorders associated with the use of ecstasy. Finally, the motivation for using and stopping the use of ecstasy is addressed. It is shown that ecstasy has reached the second place (after cannabis) in illegal drug preferences of adolescents and young adults in Germany. Evidence is found that ecstasy use as well as ecstasy use-related disorders such as “abuse” and “dependence” are of a transient, “youth-limited” nature.

Validation of the Perkins Adolescent Risk Screen (PARS)

Purpose To examine the initial psychometric properties for the PARS, a brief interview used to screen for 16 items of adolescent risk and protective factors. Methods Participants included 193 adolescents, attending public middle and high schools or a university-based Adolescent Clinic. Participants completed a PARS interview, as well as a battery of questionnaires. Approximately 31% of participants received a second PARS interview from an independent rater to assess inter-rater consistency. Results Descriptive statistics revealed that participants, on average, were rated as low to moderate risk for health-related difficulties across all PARS items. Descriptive statistics also showed important risk patterns in this sample of adolescents (e.g., 1/5 of sample not exercising at all). Factor analysis yielded a total of five factors (Risk Factors, Protection Factors, Relationships/Mood, Motivation Issues, Weight Issues), accounting for 58% of the variance in PARS item scores. Satisfactory levels of internal consistency and inter-rater agreement for the PARS score were found. Convergent and divergent validity of PARS scores were supported by correlations obtained with similar and dissimilar measures, respectively. A significant age group difference was obtained in the total PARS score, with adolescents aged 17–19 years obtaining higher scores than did adolescents aged 14–16 years. No significant gender differences were found. Conclusions Our results support the initial psychometric properties (i.e., reliability, validity) of the PARS as a measure of health risk and protective factors in adolescents. The PARS is a brief, efficient means of obtaining important health risk information from adolescents throughout periodic routine health care visits.

Dimensions of adolescent health behavior.

To determine dimensions of healthy and unhealthy behaviors of young people aged 12 to 21 years to better inform measures of adolescent health behavior and assist in targeting appropriate strategies to promote health. The study sample (N = 8730), derived from a U.S. national probability sample; 52.3% were female, 67% white, 15% African-American, 18% Hispanic, 22.2% aged 12-13 years, 38.4% aged 14-17 years, and 39.4% aged 18-21 years. Principal components analysis was done to examine the covariance structure of 42 healthy and unhealthy behaviors selected from the behavioral questions of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). A four-factor oblique rotation, comprised of 18 variables with factor loadings of.50 or greater, resulted in interpretable and meaningful health behavior factors. Sexual activity, substance use (e.g., alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs), smoking, and exercise factors accounted for 74% of the variance in the composite of healthy and unhealthy behaviors. These four factors were subsequently reproduced on random samples as well as on samples defined by age (12-13 years [excluding sexual activity variables], 14-17 years, 18-21 years), gender, and race (white, African-American, Hispanic). These results provide new information about the consistent structure of sexual activities and exercise behaviors across subgroups defined by age, gender, and racial/ethnic origins, and about differences in clusters of substance use behaviors across ethnic groups. Further study of diverse population-based samples and multiple health-promoting and health-negating behaviors should profile developmental variations and health protective factors in adolescents.

Behavioural Risk Factors and Protective Factors in Adolescents: A Comparison of Latinos and Non-Latino Whites

Objectives: This study investigated differences in behavioural health protective and risk factors in US Latino and non-Latino White adolescents as well as differences among Latinos with different levels of acculturation using a bicultural acculturation model. The bicultural model is consistent with current understanding of cultural change processes; however it has infrequently been applied to understand adolescent health outcomes. The outcomes included risk and health behaviours as well as mental health factors consistent with Jessor's framework for describing adolescents' health status. Design: Participants included 1119 students randomly selected from all middle schools of a Northern California district. Respondents completed project staff administered self-reports surveys in their schools that included assessments of health behaviours, mental health, and socio-cultural variables--including acculturation level. Results: Latinos were at higher risk than non-Latino Whites in the following areas: academic orientation, physical activity, and sunscreen use. Boys and those of lower social class were more likely to report use of various substances and violence. Among Latinos, those in the marginalised acculturation group--those with less attachments and adaptations to Latino and other cultures, showed less desirable mental health outcomes than the bicultural group. Conclusion: These results extend prior research by assessing the health needs of early adolescent youth. The study found important differences within Latinos using a bicultural acculturation model. The use of a bicultural acculturation model, or cultural orientation approach more generally, may have especial utility for addressing health issues wherever minority populations interact with a dominant society.

Adolescent Protective Factors Promoting Resilience in Young Adults at Risk for Depression

In a longitudinal, community-based study, adolescent protective factors for those at risk for depression were identified that were associated with resilient outcomes in young adulthood. For those with childhood risk factors for major depression, significant protective factors included family cohesion, positive self appraisals, and good interpersonal relations. Findings may help inform the development of prevention and treatment programs for adolescents vulnerable to depression. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.

History of sexual abuse and parental alcohol misuse: Risk, outcomes and protective factors in adolescents

This study examined the school performance, suicidal involvement, disordered eating behaviors, pregnancy risk and chemical use of teenagers with a history of sexual abuse or parental alcohol misuse and found that they had higher rates of these adverse outcomes than among a comparison group of teenagers without such background risk factors. Adolescents with dual-risk background reported higher levels of suicide risk, disordered eating, sexual behaviors and chemical abuse than teenagers with only one background risk factor. Among index group members, protective factors against these adverse outcomes included a high degree of religiosity and the ability to discuss problems with family or friends. Risk factors that increased the likelihood of adverse outcomes included depression, perceived substance use in school and worries about family financial security.

How West German Adolescents Experience the Nuclear Threat

Psychosocial and health-related effects of living under the nuclear threat were investigated based on data from two studies of West German adolescents aged 8 to 20 (N = 3499) and 8 to 14 (N = 540), respectively. Structural analyses were conducted to generate hypotheses on the interrelatedness of political anxieties, factual knowledge on nuclear issues, coping strategies, and political action (Study A), as well as on the relationship of political anxieties with manifest anxiety and mental health (Study B). Main results were that (a) factual knowledge had no effect on the amount of political anxieties, (b) active coping with the nuclear threat may lead to less personal but more political anxieties, and (c) high political anxieties may even serve as a protective factor for adolescents' mental health. Furthermore, strong gender differences were found, girls always expressing more anxieties, be they personal or political.