This study aimed to examine the effects of rater, age and gender on the relationship between theory of mind (ToM) and preschoolers' social competence with peers (SCP). A sample of 152 Chinese urban children aged 4 to 6 years (78 boys and 74 girls) were given ToM scale. Their SCP was measured by teacher report and parent report. There were three…

Community violence and its physical health consequences are well known among youth living in urban settings. However, less is known about the cumulative effect of contextual and demographic risk factors on posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) among vulnerable youth. Longitudinal data (baseline, 9-month, 21-month) were analyzed to investigate…

Although there is plethora of studies on goal setting skills, there is paucity of experimental studies on this field. This study examined the comparative effectiveness of Mental Contrasting Therapy (MCT) and Self-Regulation Strategies (SRS) on enhancing goal setting skills of students in urban Nigeria. A group of 120 students (male=52, female=68)…

To better understand STEM interest development during adolescence in an urban community, we examined how "STEM Interested" youth differed from disinterested youth and how interest changed over time from age 11/12 to 12/13. We surveyed youth to measure interest in four components of STEM, used cluster analysis to categorize youth based on…

For African American youth disproportionately exposed to community violence and the associated risk of externalizing behaviors, developmental assets that reduce the risk for externalizing behaviors and enhance adaptive coping should be explored. In a sample of 572 African American adolescents (M[subscript age] = 15.85; SD = 1.42), the current…

Community violence exposure is associated with increased depressive symptoms in adolescents. This study examined whether coping style moderates this relationship over time. Eighty-four low-income, urban adolescents (M[subscript age] = 13.36, 50% female, 95% African American) participated in two waves of a longitudinal study. Youth reported on…

This study explored adolescents' reasons for involving themselves, or not, in risktaking behavior, in two vulnerable areas of North Jakarta. The sample was purposively selected among households with adolescents ranging from 12 to 18 years old living in the two areas. The study involved 401 parents (8% female; 92% male; mean age 45.3 years) and 414…

In this article, we examine how a cohort of urban youth born under China's one-child policy have developed flexible gender identities through their childrearing aspirations and educational and occupational narratives, choices, and trajectories between 1999 and 2014. Drawing on surveys of 406 respondents conducted in 1999, 2012-2013, and 2013-2014,…

Urban youth participation in agricultural activities has been linked to positive educational outcomes. This article explores the gender and racial differences in perceived knowledge gain and intended behavior change among youths participating in a youth urban agriculture workshop in 2015. Participants were students from underserved areas in…

This study with 198 urban Chinese adolescents (M age = 16.0, SD = 1.46) and their parents investigated the impact of parental control over personal issues in the context of everyday conflicts and adolescent self-reports of internalizing disorders as measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). Adolescents and parents completed the Parental…

Prosociality, conceptualized as a willingness to help, to be fair, and to be friendly to others, is essential to the maintenance of a civil society and has been linked with multiple measures of individual well-being. This study examines how individual, family, and neighborhood factors affect adolescents' level of prosociality and tests for…

Background: Youth of color from low-income urban communities are crucial participants in research, as their involvement can shape effective, culturally responsive interventions and policy to promote youth health and well-being. These young people, however, are an often-neglected research population, due in part to perceived challenges associated…

This study examines the relationship between athletics, athletic leadership, and academic achievement. This is likely to be a tricky issue as athletes and athletic leaders are not likely to be a random group of students. To address this issue I control for school fixed effects and instrument the endogenous variables with height. I find that…

In the 21st century, adolescent girls use the power of the pen (and digital literacies) for the purpose of self-expression, personal enrichment, and academic requirements. This study examines in-depth the types of writing/literacies that girls participate in school and out-of-school. The results of this study indicate that, despite the extensive…

Background: Contraception non-use among sexually active adolescents is a major cause of unintended pregnancy (UP). Methods: In this cross-sectional study we sought to identify overall and sex-specific correlates of contraception non-use using the 2015 Philadelphia Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) (N = 9540). Multivariate regression models were…