Background: Given the emerging information about the COVID-19 pandemic's detrimental impacts on youth well-being, it is paramount to consider interventions that may mitigate these consequences, especially those available in socially distanced, outdoor settings. Further, adolescents in rural settings are at a significant disadvantage for accessing…

Objective: To explore the relationship between loneliness, self-efficacy, and satisfaction with life of Left-behind middle school students in China. Methods: A cluster random sampling method was used to study students from Left-behind middle schools in Binhai County of Jiangsu Province. The loneliness scale, general self-efficacy scale, and…

The paper works with queer and feminist post-human materialist scholarship to understand the way young teen valleys' girls experienced ubiquitous feelings of fear, risk, vulnerability and violence. Longitudinal ethnographic research of girls (aged 12-15) living in an ex-mining semi-rural community suggests how girls are negotiating complex…

The primary aims of the present longitudinal study were to examine (a) patterns of early transition relatedness with teachers and peers in 6th grade, (b) whether pre-transition behavior in 5th grade predicted early transition relatedness in 6th grade, and (c) how unique indicators of early transition relatedness with teachers and peers and…

Objective:This report extends earlier accounts by addressing the effects of the Strong African American Families (SAAF) program across 65 months. Two hypotheses were tested: (a) Rural African American youths randomly assigned to participate in SAAF would demonstrate lower rates of alcohol use than would control youths more than 5 years later, and…

The adolescent years are often turbulent, for they signal a very important developmental period recognized across all known societies as one of transition or a rite of passage--a period that signals changes in status, responsibilities, and rights. In addition, this era is often marked by "biological, cognitive, and socioemotional…

Reports on the social relations of rural African American early adolescents and the initial impact of a multilevel intervention program aimed at enhancing the productive school engagement of at-risk youth. Students' school social relations and risk status were used in assessment. Four subgroups were identified: Model, Aggressive, Troubled, and…

Teacher assessments of interpersonal characteristics were used to identify subtypes of rural African American early adolescents (161 boys and 258 girls). Teacher ratings of interpersonal characteristics were used to identify popular and unpopular aggressive subtypes for both boys and girls. Unpopular aggressive youths did not have elevated levels…

This study examined the relationship between end-of-year grades and the academic, behavioral, and social characteristics of rural African American youth. Participants included 392 7th and 8th grade students from 2 rural middle schools in the south. Participants were African American and were from 2 communities that have child poverty rates…

Examined intraindividual and interindividual differences in self-esteem among 142 rural adolescents during a four-year period encompassing the transition to high school. Cluster analysis identified three distinct, divergent trajectories of self-esteem change from early to middle adolescence: (1) consistently high; (2) small increase; and (3)…

Draws on ethnographic fieldwork in southern Bolivia to explore how rural Bolivian youth negotiate structural constraints on choices of work versus secondary education, including local versus urban location, economic resources, parental attitudes, gender, family characteristics, social networks and support, and peer role models. Suggests the notion…

Examines the need to help rural youth become employable in today's changing circumstances, especially young adolescents in middle school programs. Discusses elements in effective School-to-Employment (STE) programs, basic job skills appropriate to middle-school exploratory STE programs, and the need for program articulation between middle and high…