Background: In the USA, lower income minority ethnic children and teenagers report high consumption of sugar sweetened beverages, which cause dental erosion and dental carries, and play a significant role in overweight, obesity and diabetes. Objective: This study aimed to examine urban adolescents' beliefs about sports and energy drinks to…

Background: We examined associations between asthma and sleep in a sample of inner-city adolescents with asthma-like symptoms who are undiagnosed, and to assess the extent to which youth's report of perceived stress moderates this association. Methods: A total of 349 adolescents (83% girls), with a mean age of 15.8 years, and their primary…

This paper aims to address cultural education as a method for creating a cooperative learning environment for Latino youth participants of a school-based gang and violence intervention program (GVIP). The data for this paper was collected during a 5-year longitudinal ethnographic research study conducted between 2009-2015 in California. In the…

Young people today face a multitude of challenges, especially when growing up in an urban environment. Risk factors such as poverty, exposure to gangs, drugs, and community and family violence threaten healthy development. The positive youth development (PYD) approach attempts to combat these personal and environmental challenges by providing…

Given prevalence rates and negative consequences that adolescents' perpetration of dating violence may have on an individual's well-being and future relationships, it is imperative to explore factors that may increase or reduce its occurrence. Thus, we aimed to identify how multiple contextual risk factors (individual, family, schools, and…

Objective: To qualitatively explore how treatment-involved youth retrospectively contextualize relapse from substance use. Methods: Fourteen focus groups were conducted with 118 youth (78.3% male; 66.1% Latino) enrolled in participating substance abuse treatment programs (4 young adult and 10 adolescent) throughout Los Angeles County. Transcripts…

This study focuses on intergenerational continuity in violent partner relationships. We investigate whether exposure to caregiver intimate partner violence (IPV) during adolescence leads to increased involvement in IPV during early adulthood (age 21-23) and adulthood (age 29-31). We also investigate whether this relationship differs by gender.…

Background: Testing, refining, and tailoring theoretical approaches that are hypothesized to reduce sexual risk behaviors among adolescent subpopulations is an important task. Relatively little is known about the relationship between components of the information-motivation-behavior (IMB) model and sexual behaviors among underage minority youth.…

This paper describes Scratch, a visual, block-based programming language designed to facilitate media manipulation for novice programmers. We report on the Scratch programming experiences of urban youth ages 8-18 at a Computer Clubhouse--an after school center--over an 18-month period. Our analyses of 536 Scratch projects collected during this…

Links between living in a partner-violent home and subsequent aggressive and antisocial behavior are suggested by the "cycle of violence" hypothesis derived from social learning theory. Although there is some empirical support, to date, findings have been generally limited to cross-sectional studies predominantly of young children, or…

This resource guide brings together the latest available information on Latino adolescent violence prevention efforts and existing resources in Latino communities. It seeks to help maternal and child health (MCH) professionals better address the specific needs of Latino youth and their families by presenting ethnic-specific factors for…

Two analyses of New York City crime data--one for the entire city, and one for the Bronx--compare the crime rates of Hispanics, Whites, and Blacks. Analysis of crime rates for the city as a whole indicates that Hispanic crime patterns are different from those of Blacks and Whites. Hispanics have lower than expected crime rates, given their…

Compares Caucasian, Hispanic, and African-American urban adolescent non-athlete females for frequency of behavioral and psychological indices of eating disorders. Study suggests that Hispanic and Caucasian urban adolescent females are comparably more at-risk for eating disorders than African-American urban adolescent females. Athletes were no more…

Studied the relation between urban psychosocial stressors and intimacy achievement in a sample of 59 African American, Hispanic American, and White adolescent fathers-to-be. Those with higher cumulative psychosocial stressors had lower levels of intimacy, and low interpersonal empathy was significantly associated with intimacy levels. African…

Uses lifespan and ecological frameworks to investigate the factors associated with early adolescent sexual activity. Results from 803 African American and Hispanic adolescents suggest a high prevalence of early sexual activity, corresponding to higher rates of childbearing and risky sexual behavior when compared to sexual activity initiated in…