This study examined multiple risk behaviors (violence, delinquency, and substance use) among 240 African American and 262 Hispanic preadolescent boys from urban schools in the Midwest United States. Latent transition analysis allowed patterns of multivariate risk to emerge uniquely within and across these ethnic groups, highlighting patterns for…

The crisis of public spaces implies a closure to the private sphere and, as a consequence, the inanity of the education processes. Space privatization involves the supremacy of the "?????" (house) on the "a???a" (public space), so that the house assumes the role of an enclosed community. The effect of this closure is a…

This study examines whether the instability of self-esteem (i.e., a high intraindividual variability in self-esteem) is differentially associated with different types of aggressive behavior by using a sample of 235 preadolescent children. Self-esteem was measured four times for four consecutive days, and proactive and reactive aggressive behaviors…

Understanding of preadolescent sexuality is limited. To help fill this gap, we calculated frequencies, percentages, and confidence intervals for 1,096 preadolescents' reports of sexual thoughts, intentions, and sexual behavior. Cochran-Armitage trend tests accounted for age effects. Findings show that 9-year-olds are readying for sexual activity,…

This study examined to what extent motives for behavior differentiated between popular, accepted, and rejected adolescents. Based on goal-framing theory, three types of motives were distinguished: hedonic (aimed at short-term gratification), instrumental (aimed at improvement of one's situation), and normative (aimed at acting in accordance with…

The goal of this study was to examine links between observed social participation in the schoolyard and indices of socio-emotional functioning in early adolescence. Participants were children (N = 290) aged 9 to 12 years. Social participation (e.g., solitary play, dyadic interaction, group interaction) was assessed in the schoolyard during recess…

The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between media exposure and body image concerns in preteenage girls, with a particular focus on the Internet. A sample of 189 girls (aged 10-12 years) completed questionnaire measures of media consumption and body image concerns. Nearly all girls (97.5%) had access to the Internet in their home.…

The present study investigates the association of parenting and family factors with nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) in preadolescents. A sample of 1,439 preadolescents and their parents were assessed by means of (a) adolescent-reported parenting behaviors (support and behavioral/psychological control), (b) parent-reported parenting behaviors…

Children with low socioeconomic status and ethnic minorities experience disproportionate risk of elevated depressive symptoms. This study examines the effects of risk/protective factors for depressive symptoms among multiethnic urban preadolescents. Eighth graders (N = 463; 34% African American, 29% Hispanic, 17% White, and 20% Other/Mixed; 23%…

The same stressor can evoke different emotions across individuals, and emotions can prompt certain coping responses. Responding to four videotaped interpersonal stressors, adolescents ("N" = 230, the average values of "X"[subscript age] = 10 years) reported their sadness, fear "and" anger, and 12 coping strategies.…

This study aims to investigate the association between the mental state talk of mothers and their preadolescent children, with the hypothesis that an intergenerational transmission of mentalizing abilities may extend beyond early childhood. The participants were 41 mother-preadolescent child nonclinical dyads. The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI)…

The purpose of this study was to examine adolescent's hostile attributions of mother's intent and emotional self-expectancies as contributors to expression of emotion between mothers and adolescents. Data were collected from 268 10- to 12-year-olds (133 girls, 135 boys) and their mothers. Each dyad was observed in a conversational activity that…

This study examined interactive relationships among ethnic identity, gender, time in the US, and changes in substance use outcomes among a school-based sample of 1,731 Mexican-heritage preadolescents (ages 9-13). Residual change multilevel models adjusting for school clustering and using multiply imputed data assessed changes from beginning to end…

The present article examined relationships between maternal knowledge, maternal behavior control, and preadolescent behavioral competence over time. Four years of self-report data were collected from 133 mothers and their preadolescents, beginning when the preadolescents were in 4th grade. Knowledge, behavior control, and behavioral competence…

This study tests the predictive associations between externalizing behaviors and internalizing symptoms and examines the mediating roles of social competence, parent-child conflicts, and academic achievement. Using youth-, parent-, and teacher-reported longitudinal data on a sample of 523 boys and 460 girls from late childhood to early…