This study aimed at testing a model in which cognitive, dispositional, and social factors were integrated into a single perspective as predictors of gambling behavior. We also aimed at providing further evidence of gender differences related to adolescent gambling. Participants were 994 Italian adolescents (64% Males; Mean age = 16.57).…

Although drinking motives have been largely studied, research taking into account the Mediterranean drinking culture and focusing on motives specifically associated to adolescents' developmental tasks is lacking. For these reasons the study investigates drinking motives in a group of Italian adolescents and their relationships with drunkenness and…

The global development community has focused in recent decades on closing the gender gap in education, but has given insufficient attention to the specific needs of pre- and post-pubescent girls as they transition to young womanhood within the educational institution. This study explored the social context of girls' experiences of menses and…

This paper examines the relationship between low empathy and bullying while also controlling for the impact of a number of other individual and social background variables linked with bullying. This included the relationship to the prevalence of bullying, but also to the frequency and type of bullying. Questionnaires were completed by 720…

Cross-national analyses explore the consistency of the relationship between negative school experiences and involvement in bullying across 40 European and North American countries, using the 2006 (40 countries n = 197,502) and 2002 (12 countries, n = 57,007) WHO-HBSC surveys. Measures include two Cumulative Negative School Perception (CNSP)…

This paper investigates the extent to which social support can have a buffering effect against the potentially adverse consequences of bullying on school achievement and mental health. It uses a representative multiethnic sample of adolescents attending East London secondary schools in three boroughs. Bullied adolescents were less likely to…

The goal of the present study was to investigate meanings of sexual intercourse in adolescence, and the relationships between meanings, gender, age, and sexual behaviors. Subjects were 201 Italian adolescents (107 boys and 94 girls), aged 14-19 (M=17.44, SD=1.65). Participants completed a battery of questionnaires on meanings of sex, sexual…

This study aimed to describe the social, behavioural and offence characteristics of all convicted perpetrators of homicide aged 17 and under; to examine their previous contact with mental health services, and to discuss strategies for homicide prevention. An eight-year (1996-2004) sample of 363 juvenile homicide perpetrators in England and Wales…

The current study examines the contextual effects of community structural characteristics, as well as the mediating role of key social mechanisms, on youth suicidal behavior in Iceland. We argue that the contextual influence of community structural instability on youth suicidal behavior should be mediated by weak attachment to social norms and…

A year into the 2003 US-Iraq war, how were adolescents in Baghdad faring? Conflict-related events typically lower psychological well-being; in contrast, investment in and protection of threatened identities should lead to self-esteem striving and, presumably, better well-being. How threatened do Iraqi adolescents feel? Is their self-esteem related…

Investigates explanations of health and illness among adolescents from three socio-economic backgrounds in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The findings showed that adolescents from different socio-economic conditions draw upon similar explanatory models to make sense of health and illness. The findings suggest a need for health professionals to be sensitive to…

Administered Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) to 11,315 Norwegian adolescents. Scores showed only minor variations according to social class and none according to urbanization and region. Adolescent girls involved in aesthetic sports dieted marginally more than other sporting girls. Non-Western immigrant adolescents had higher EAT scores as compared to…

Previous research has shown increased vulnerability to teenage parenthood for young people with experience of local authority care. This study explored factors contributing to early pregnancy and parenthood among young people in and leaving care; the types of support available; and the extent to which services are perceived as accessible.…

This study examines a group of 21 imprisoned males, convicted of murder whilst aged 18 years or less, and compares them on a range of psychosocial variables to 21 convicted non-violent burglars. Results showed that lower socio-economic status, harsh parenting, and exclusion from school were significantly more common for murderers. Confirms that…

Provides operational framework for defining and interpreting peer interventions. Recommends that consideration be given to what constitutes "peerness," the aims and methods of an intervention, and the ways in which peer educators are involved. Explains the distinction between "peer development" and "peer delivery,"…