Adolescents now have greater access to digital resources and spaces and are more likely to engage in risky online behaviors for which they are unprepared. The study's purpose was to examine the little-understood online behaviors of adolescents to better educate and prepare them for safe online interactions. The study was framed by two theories:…

Approximately 11 million women and five million men in the United States report experiencing interpersonal violence (e.g., sexual violence, physical violence, psychological harassment, or stalking) before the age of 18 (CDC, n.d. -a). Victims may face a decline in grades, depression, anxiety, unwanted pregnancy, substance abuse, sexually…

This exploratory qualitative study examines teacher candidate and student interactions in response to verbal threats of harm. This study uses existing data: a single set of 16 clinical simulations and four post-simulation debriefing sessions. Participants include eight female and eight male teacher candidates (n = 16) who interact with one of six…

Youth violence in both the juvenile justice system and in juveniles with intellectual disabilities is a significant and costly problem in the United States. An increasingly large number of youth with intellectual disabilities are being placed in secure juvenile justice facilities without specialized resources. In addition, these facilities are…

Adolescent risk-taking can potentially result in serious individual and societal consequences. Previous research demonstrates that emotional and behavioral problems, particularly externalizing behaviors, are significantly associated with an array of risky behaviors such as substance use, sexual behavior, injury, and violence. However, the…

The purpose of this doctoral project is to better understand the complicated dynamics that appear to exist between adolescent social media use and offline interpersonal relationships, particularly as it relates to online provocation and real world aggressive behavior. This is an exploratory study aimed at obtaining first-hand accounts of how…

The purpose of the present study was to increase our understanding of the relations among embarrassment, Theory of Mind (ToM), and emotion dysregulation in adolescents with Asperger's Syndrome and High Functioning Autism (AS/HFA), topics that have not previously been the foci of research in this population. The research sample consisted of 42…

This study explores the relationship between negative school climate factors (i.e., teacher neglect, peer rejection, discrimination) and academic outcomes amongst a sample of adolescent African American males. Specifically, this study directly examines a) the influence of negative school climate perceptions on the students' academic…

Youth suicide is a public health issue and the second leading cause of death for young Iowans ages 15 to 24 years, with young males six times more likely to die than their female peers (Iowa Department of Public Health, 2009). Suicide among adolescents is a complex issue, but there are patterns of individual, family, school, and community…

Physical fighting in school is a concern for school administrators, juvenile justice professionals, and students. This quantitative study examined the involvement of physical fights at school among 5,674 adolescents across the United States via a casual comparative design with a correlational subcomponent. Differences were discovered between…

Using two waves of data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), I investigated the relationships among bullying behaviors, internet use, and academic achievement for Black, Hispanic, and White boys and girls. I assessed three measures of academic achievement, including scores on mathematics, reading comprehension, and vocabulary.…