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Sexual assault is a major concern on the U.S. college campus. Engaging students as pro-social bystanders has become more common as a potentially effective mechanism for reducing the incidence of sexual assault and mitigating the harm of assaults that have already occurred. Understanding the influences of pro-social bystander behavior is imperative to developing effective programs, and the use of an evidence-based theoretical framework can help identify the differences between students who intervene and those who do not when presented with the opportunity. A sample of 815 undergraduate university students completed the Sexual Assault Bystander Behavior Questionnaire, a survey based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) that investigates students’ perceived behavioral control to intervene, subjective norms that support intervening, attitudes toward intervening, and intent to intervene in the future. Two-tailed t tests revealed interveners reported significantly greater perceived behavioral control than non-interveners for eight of the 12 intervention behaviors, more supportive subjective norms than non-interveners for seven of the 12 intervention behaviors, more positive attitudes than non-interveners for only one of the 12 intervention behaviors, and greater intent to intervene in the future for six of the 12 intervention behaviors. Differences in the four TPB variables were not consistent for the 12 intervention behaviors. The use of a theoretical framework found to be effective in explaining—and changing—other health-related behaviors, and the inquiry into students’ opportunities to intervene to compare against their reported intervention behaviors, is new to this body of literature and contributes to the understanding of the influences of pro-social bystander behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a definite need for effective intervention programmes that address the social–emotional, character and healthy development of preschool children. Strong social-emotional skills are necessary for successful transitions to formal schooling and for healthy developmental trajectories. ThePositive Action(PA) programme has a long history of effectiveness in schools (K-12) and communities, but has only recently developed lessons for preschool settings. The current study reports the results of the first evaluation of these lessons. Children were randomly assigned to classrooms/instructors who had previously decided to offerPAlessons or not. Instructors in bothPAand control classrooms rated children's behaviour at pretest and immediate post-test. Results suggest that thePAprekindergarten lessons are effective at improving children's skills and behaviours across all of the domains that the programme addresses. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Objective: To test a theory-driven model of health behavior to predict the illicit use of prescription stimulants (IUPS) among college students. Participants: A probability sample of 554 students from one university located in California (response rate=90.52%). Methods: Students completed a paper-based survey developed with guidance from the Theory of Triadic Influence. We first assessed normality of measures and checked for multicollinearity. A single structural equation model of frequency of IUPS in college was then tested using constructs from the theory's three streams of influence (i.e., intrapersonal, social situation/context, and sociocultural environment) and four levels of causation (i.e., ultimate causes, distal influences, proximal predictors, and immediate precursors). Results: Approximately 18% of students reported engaging in IUPS during college, with frequency of use ranging from never to 40 or more times per academic term. The model tested had strong fit and the majority of paths specified within and across streams were significant at the p <0.01 level. Additionally, 46% of the variance in IUPS frequency was explained by the tested model. Conclusions: Results suggest the utility of the TTI as an integrative model of health behavior, specifically in predicting IUPS, and provide insight on the need for multifaceted prevention and intervention efforts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Nonprescription stimulant use is a high-risk behavior prevalent in the college population. To date, research on this substance use behavior lacks a comprehensive theoretical lens as well as geographical diversity. Guided by the Theory of Triadic Influence (TTI), multilevel (i.e., students within schools) modeling was used to analyze survey data from the Spring 2009 American College Health Association–National College Health Assessment II. We hypothesized that the behavior would be associated with ultimate underlying causes, distal predisposing influences, proximal immediate predictors, and immediate precursors found in the TTI’s three streams of influence (i.e., intrapersonal, social situation/context, and sociocultural environment). In our sample (N = 10,220 students; 18 schools), the mean prevalence of past-year use of prescription stimulants without a prescription was 10.70% (range across schools, 0.33%-20.04%). Our hypothesis regarding the multifaceted nature of the predictors of the behavior was supported. Implications for prevention efforts, limitations, and future research directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Background: The illicit use of prescription stimulants (IUPS) has emerged as a high-risk behavior of the 21st century college student. As the study of IUPS is relatively new, we aimed to understand (1) characteristics of IUPS (i.e., initiation, administration routes, drug sources, motives, experiences), and (2) theory-guided intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental correlates associated with use. Methods: Using one-stage cluster sampling, 520 students (96.3% response rate) at one Pacific Northwest University completed a paper-based, in-classroom survey on IUPS behaviors and expected correlates. Aim 1 was addressed using descriptive statistics and aim 2 was addressed via three nested logistic regression analyses guided by the Theory of Triadic Influence. Results: The prevalence of ever engaging in IUPS during college was 25.6%. The majority (>50.0%) of users reported initiation during college, oral use, friends as the drug source, academic motives, and experiencing desired outcomes. Intrapersonal correlates associated with use included identifying as White, lower grade point average, diagnoses of attention deficit disorder, and lower avoidance self-efficacy. Interpersonal correlates of use included off-campus residence, varsity sports participation, IUPS perceptions by socializing agents, and greater behavioral norms. Exposure to prescription drug print media, greater prescription stimulant knowledge, and positive attitudes towards prescription stimulants were environmental correlates associated with use. In all models, IUPS intentions were strongly associated with use. Conclusions: IUPS was prevalent on the campus under investigation and factors from the intrapersonal, interpersonal and environmental domains were associated with the behavior. Implications for prevention and future research are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A theory-guided instrument for examining prescription stimulant misuse in the college population was developed and its psychometric properties were evaluated from 2011 to 2012 at one Pacific Northwest (United States) university. Study methods included instrument development, assessment by five health and measurement professionals, group interviews with six college students, a test-retest pilot study, and a paper-based, in-classroom, campus study using one-stage cluster sampling ( N = 520 students, 20 classrooms, eligible student response rate = 96.30%). The instrument demonstrated reliability (i.e., internal consistency and stability) and validity (i.e., face, content, and predictive). Limitations and implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent Institute of Medicine report on prevention (National Research Council & Institute of Medicine, 2009) noted the substantial interrelationship among mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders and pointed out that, to a great extent, these problems stem from a set of common conditions. However, despite the evidence, current research and practice continue to deal with the prevention of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders as if they are unrelated and each stems from different conditions. This article proposes a framework that could accelerate progress in preventing these problems. Environments that foster successful development and prevent the development of psychological and behavioral problems are usefully characterized as nurturing environments. First, these environments minimize biologically and psychologically toxic events. Second, they teach, promote, and richly reinforce prosocial behavior, including self-regulatory behaviors and all of the skills needed to become productive adult members of society. Third, they monitor and limit opportunities for problem behavior. Fourth, they foster psychological flexibility-the ability to be mindful of one's thoughts and feelings and to act in the service of one's values even when one's thoughts and feelings discourage taking valued action. We review evidence to support this synthesis and describe the kind of public health movement that could increase the prevalence of nurturing environments and thereby contribute to the prevention of most mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. This article is one of three in a special section (see also Muñoz Beardslee, & Leykin, 2012; Yoshikawa, Aber, & Beardslee, 2012) representing an elaboration on a theme for prevention science developed by the 2009 report of the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Living in poverty and living in areas of concentrated poverty pose multiple risks for child development and for overall health and wellbeing. Poverty is a major risk factor for several mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders, as well as for other developmental challenges and physical health problems. In this paper, the Promise Neighborhoods Research Consortium describes a science-based framework for the promotion of child health and development within distressed high-poverty neighborhoods. We lay out a model of child and adolescent developmental outcomes and integrate knowledge of potent and malleable influences to define a comprehensive intervention framework to bring about a significant increase in the proportion of young people in high-poverty neighborhoods who will develop successfully. Based on a synthesis of research from diverse fields, we designed the Creating Nurturing Environments framework to guide community-wide efforts to improve child outcomes and reduce health and educational inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study illustrates a method to evaluate mediational mechanisms in a longitudinal prevention trial, the Aban Aya Youth Project (AAYP). In previous studies, interventions of AAYP were found to be effective in reducing the growth of violence, substance use and unsafe sex among African American adolescents. In this article, we hypothesized that the effects of the interventions in reducing the growth of substance use behavior were achieved through their effects in changing intermediate processes such as behavioral intentions, attitudes toward the behavior, estimates of peers’ behaviors, best friends’ behaviors, and peer group pressure. In evaluating these mediational mechanisms, difficulties arise because the growth trajectories of the substance use outcome variable and some of the mediating variables were curvilinear. In addition, all of the multivariate mediational measures had planned missing data so that a score from the multiple items for a mediator could not be formed easily. In this article, we introduce a latent growth modeling (LGM) approach; namely, a two-domain LGM mediation model, in which the growth curves of the outcome and the mediator are simultaneously modeled and the mediation effects are evaluated. Results showed that the AAYP intervention effects on adolescent drug use were mediated by normative beliefs of prevalence estimates, friends’ drug use behavior, perceived friends’ encouragement to use, and attitudes toward the behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. We assessed the effectiveness of a 5-year trial of a comprehensive school-based program designed to prevent substance use, violent behaviors, and sexual activity among elementary-school students. Methods. We used a matched-pair, cluster-randomized, controlled design, with 10 intervention schools and 10 control schools. Fifth-graders (N = 1714) self-reported on lifetime substance use, violence, and voluntary sexual activity. Teachers of participant students reported on student (N-1225) substance use and violence. Results. Two-level random-effects count models (with students nested within schools) indicated that student-reported substance use (rate ratio [RR] = 0.41; 90% confidence interval [CI] = 0.25. 0.66) and violence (RR-0.42; 90% CI = 0.24, 0,73) were significantly lower for students attending intervention schools. A 2-level random-effects binary model indicated that sexual activity was lower (odds ratio=0.24; 90% CI = 0.08, 0.66) for intervention students. Teacher reports substantiated the effects seen for student-reported data. Dose-response analyses indicated that students exposed to the program for at least 3 years had significantly lower rates of all negative behaviors. Conclusions. Risk-related behaviors were substantially reduced for students who participated in the program, providing evidence that a comprehensive school-based program can have a strong beneficial effect on student behavior. (Am J Public Health. 2009;99:1438-1445. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2008.142919) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Underage heavy episodic drinking is a major contributor to alcohol-related morbidity/mortality. Reports indicate underage binge drinking among college students is widespread and has remained stable over the past decade. This study describes individual characteristics and calendar-specific events associated with binge drinking episodes over the course of freshman college academic year (2002–2003). Methods: Students (N =827, age 18 years), with a prior history of tobacco use, attending a large Midwest university completed weekly web-based surveys on the number of drinks consumed for each of the past 7 days over the duration of 35 consecutive weeks (avg. number of weeks reported 16.0±10.5). Results: Average prevalence of binge episodes across the academic year was 17.2±14.4%, 23.6±8.3%, and 66.3±11.2% for weekdays, Thursdays, and weekend days, respectively. Two-level random effects logit survival models for repeated events indicated the prevalence of weekday and Thursday binge drinking was associated with specific university/community events (Local festival odds ratio [OR] 6.03, 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.34–8.36), holidays (New Year''s Eve OR 18.48, CI 12.83–26.63), and academic breaks (Spring Break OR 6.45, CI 4.57–9.08). Expected associations of younger age of first heavy drinking, past 12-month drinking, and experiencing negative consequences from heavy drinking were observed. Conclusions: Although individual characteristics were related to engaging in a binge episode, binge episodes were strongly associated with time-specific calendar events. Effective interventions to prevent immediate and long-term health consequences associated with binge drinking should consider environmental and institutional policy-level controls to reduce high levels of binge drinking on college campuses connected with holidays and university/community events. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

I provide a review and critique of meta-analyses and systematic reviews of school-based smoking prevention programs that focus on long-term effects. Several of these reviews conclude that the effects of school-based smoking prevention programs are small and find no evidence that they have significant long-term effects. I find that these reviews all have methodological problems limiting their conclusions. These include severe limiting of the studies included because of performance bias, student attrition, non-reporting of ICCs, inappropriate classification of intervention approach, and inclusion of programs that had no short-term effects. The more-inclusive meta-analyses suggest that school-based smoking prevention programs can have significant and practical effects in both the short- and the long-term. Findings suggest that school-based smoking prevention programs can have significant long-term effects if they: 1) are interactive social influences or social skills programs; that 2) involve 15 or more sessions, including some up to at least ninth grade; that 3) produce substantial short-term effects. The effects do decay over time if the interventions are stopped or withdrawn, but this is true of any kind of intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I provide a systematic review of trials of school-based smoking prevention programs that had at least 15 sessions, preferably with some in high school, that reported significant short-term effects, and that included long-term follow-up. This is supplemented with a description of some other programs that produce short-term effects that portend large long-term effects. I conclude that school-based programs can have long-term effects of practical importance it they: include 15 or more sessions over multiple years, including some in high school; use the social influence model and interactive delivery methods; include components on norms, commitment not to use, intentions not to use, and training and practice in the use of refusal and other life skills; and use peer leaders in some role. School-based programs of this type can reduce smoking onset by 25- 30%, and school plus community programs can reduce smoking onset by 35-40% by the end of high school. Some early childhood programs that do not have smoking prevention as their main aim, including home nursing, the Good Behavior Game, the Positive Action program and others, seem to change the developmental trajectories of children so that they are less likely to engage in multiple problem behaviors, including smoking, as adolescents. This review makes it clear that effective school-based smoking prevention programs exist and can be adopted, adapted and deployed with success - and should be. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teacher- and school-level factors influence the fidelity of implementation of school-based prevention and social character and development (SACD) programs. Using a diffusion of innovations framework, the relationships among teacher beliefs and attitudes towards a prevention/SACD program and the influence of a school’s administrative support and perceptions of school connectedness, characteristics of a school’s climate, were specified in two cross-sectional mediation models of program implementation. Implementation was defined as the amount of the programs’ curriculum delivered (e.g., lessons taught), and use of program-specific materials in the classroom (e.g., ICU boxes and notes) and in relation to school-wide activities (e.g., participation in assemblies). Teachers from 10 elementary schools completed year-end process evaluation reports for year 2 ( N = 171) and 3 ( N = 191) of a multi-year trial. Classroom and school-wide material usage were each favorably associated with the amount of the curriculum delivered, which were associated with teachers’ attitudes toward the program which, in turn, were related to teachers’ beliefs about SACD. These, in turn, were associated with teachers’ perceptions of school climate. Perceptions of school climate were indirectly related to classroom material usage and both indirectly and directly related to the use of school-wide activities. Program developers need to consider the importance of a supportive environment on program implementation and attempt to incorporate models of successful school leadership and collaboration among teachers that foster a climate promoting cohesiveness, shared visions, and support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims Little is known about smoking during the transition to college. The current study examined trajectories of smoking among college freshmen, how trajectories predicted later smoking and the social context of smoking. Design Weekly assessments of daily smoking were collected via the web during the first year of college for a large cohort with a previous history of smoking. Participants and setting A total of 193 college freshmen from a large public university with a previous history of smoking who smoked frequently enough to be included in trajectory analysis. Measurements Measures included weekly reports of daily smoking, family smoking, perceived peer attitudes and smoking, social norms and social smoking environment. Findings Seven trajectories were identified: one of low-level sporadic smoking, one of low-level smoking with a small increase during the year, two classes with a substantial decrease during the year, two classes with relatively small decreases and one class with a substantial increase in smoking. Trajectories of smoking in the freshman year predicted levels of sophomore year smoking, and some social context variables tended to change as smoking increased or decreased for a given trajectory class. Conclusions The transition into college is marked by changes in smoking, with smoking escalating for some students and continuing into the sophomore year. Shifts in social context that support smoking were associated with trajectories of smoking. Despite the focus of developmental models on smoking in early adolescence, the transition into college warrants further investigation as a dynamic period for smoking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To maximize active parent consent form return rates for third-grade minority, urban students enrolled in predominantly low-income elementary schools in Chicago, Ill. Methods: Research staff used a class incentive and class visits to retrieve consent forms from students. Results: Of the 811 third-grade students, 98% returned a form and 79% (n = 627) of those students' parents provided an affirmative response. Return rates did not vary by students' ethnicity or by the schools' demographic variables. Conclusion: Incentives and class visits can yield a high return rate of active parent consent forms for third-grade minority, urban, low-income students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Very few studies have defined trajectories of smoking. In the present study, we modeled growth in adolescent smoking and empirically identified prototypical trajectories. We conceptualized escalation of smoking as a growth process and modeled rates of change and heterogeneity of these patterns using latent growth mixture modeling. The analysis identified six trajectories with low ambiguity about group membership (early rapid escalators, late rapid escalators, late moderate escalators, late slow escalators-smokers, stable puffers, and late slow escalators-puffers). A trajectory of quitters was not identified. We also examined predictors of the smoking trajectories. The predictors were assessed across the adolescent years and included variables related to smoking and other substance use, as well as a range of variables related to sociodemographic factors and mental health. Observed change in the pattern of predictors across age has implications for the mechanism of effect of these variables in relation to smoking trajectories, including predictors that differentiated among daily smokers, variables that may determine the trajectory (e.g., friends smoking), and variables that may result from the trajectory (e.g., marijuana use, less attachment to friends). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

J. Crocker and L. F. Park (2004) proposed both (a) that the importance of self-esteem lies more in how people strive for it rather than whether it is high or low and (b) that the benefits of pursuing self-esteem are of a limited, short-term nature and are outweighed by the significant costs that entail for functioning in multiple areas. The authors review research that raises questions about the validity of each of these assumptions. They conclude that findings are more consistent with a view in which (a) high self-esteem, or at least the avoidance of low self-esteem, is an important factor contributing to overall health and well-being and (b) the pursuit of self-esteem, when directed toward adaptive ends, can be instrumental in promoting long-term outcomes that are of value to both individuals and society. They also describe an integrative theoretical framework that encompasses both of these possibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To test psychosocial mediators of the effects of an intervention in reducing the rate of growth of violence among adolescents. Method Five hunted and seventy-one African American adolescent males participated in this randomized trial. Multilevel modeling techniques were used to ascertain both intervention and mediated effects. Results: Intervention significantly reduced rate of growth of violence and 5 social and psychological factors in the treatment group relative to the control group. Pour of these social and psychological factors were found to be complete mediators between the intervention and its preventive effects. Conclusion: Changing psychological mediating variables is central to reducing youth violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To report long-term effectiveness of the Positive Action program. Methods: Used matched-schools design and schoollevel achievement and disciplinary data to evaluate program effects on student performance and behavior in elementary schools. Results: Participation in the Positive Action program improved student behavior, school involvement, and academic achievement at all 3 levels of schools, with the results showing a clear dose-response relationship. Conclusion: Results provide clear evidence that a coherent, comprehensive, and integrated program can have enduring effects in multiple domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To explore relationships among problem and positive youth behaviors, commonalities among their predictors, and implications for prevention. Methods: Review etiology and prevention literatures. Results: Risky/unhealthy/antisocial behaviors, poor mental health, and poor academic achievement are highly prevalent and pose critical dilemmas for parents and educators. All behaviors are highly correlated with, and predict, each other; have many of the same risk and protective factors; and strongly influence success and happiness in life. Some examples of comprehensive programs with positive results in multiple domains are provided. Conclusion: We need to prevent problem behaviors and promote positive behaviors with comprehensive, coherent, and integrated approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives : This study attempted to provide further insight into the roles of parents and peers as they influence youth involvement with violence. Specifically, this paper considers whether parents who are close to their children have children who affiliate with prosocial friends who may in turn serve as a buffer against violence. This study also considers how parent and peer influences may change as youth transition to adolescence. Methods : A cross-sectional health behavior survey was administered to 384 low-income, African-American youth aged 10–15 from three Chicago area schools. Structural equation models (SEM) were developed to assess the impact of youth reported prosocial friends and parental closeness on violence involvement. The overall model was tested to examine equivalence across preadolescent and adolescent age-groupings. Results : Results from the overall model indicated that parental closeness did not have a direct influence on youth violence involvement, but having a close parent–child relationship improved the youth's ability to select prosocial friends, which was directly related to decreased involvement with violence. Differences in the model by age-grouping suggested the presence of prosocial friends was a stronger factor for adolescent violence avoidance when compared to preadolescents. Conclusions : Parents can make a difference in the way in which their children choose their friends and therefore get involved with violence by maintaining a closely bonded relationship throughout preadolescence and adolescence. The importance of this closely bonded relationship has even greater effects for decreasing violence involvement for adolescents than preadolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Theory of Triadic Influence provides a unified and parsimonious integration of (a) the many empirical findings regarding correlates of, or influences on, youth tobacco use, (b) the many sociological and psychological theoretical explanations of youth tobacco use, and (c) the various tested approaches to addressing the supply-side and demand-side factors that influence youth initiation of tobacco use. Findings reported in this section by Drs Chaloupka, Emery, Choi, Pierce, and Rigotti support the important role of socio-cultural factors, particularly price, advertising/promotion and access policies, in influencing youth tobacco use. The TTI reminds us that these factors are fairly distal, so that their mechanisms of action may be multiple, and other approaches to prevention might multiply the effects of changes in any one of these factors. For example, a counteradvertising message might increase the overall effects of pricing by emphasizing the social unacceptability of smoking that might be implied by higher prices (and associated lower levels of use by adults). Findings reviewed by Dr Pentz, together with those reported in other sessions (particularly those by Drs Mermelstein, McMahon, and Shiffman) support the role of all of the other social and intrapersonal factors suggested in the TTI. Much further research is needed, however, on causal processes, that is, on understanding how the various factors have their effects. Factors may have their influences through various mechanisms (e.g., mediation, moderation, feedback), and knowledge of these mechanisms may lead to improved approaches to prevention. Prevention programs designed for whole populations of students (that is, universal programs) may need to be supplemented by special programs tailored for students at higher risk than most (e.g., children with conduct disorder) (that is, selective intervention). Students who become heavy experimenters may require special prevention programs (i.e., indicated interventions)—such programs are yet to be designed and evaluated. Finally, youth who use enough tobacco, or use on enough occasions, to become dependent or addicted will need cessation programs to help them quit—these will be reviewed in Section VI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of risk and protective factors for adolescent tobacco use will lead to the development of improved intervention strategies to reduce/prevent tobacco use. Theory and empirical findings demonstrate the multivariate complexity of the etiology of tobacco use. Sociocultural, social/interpersonal, and intrapersonal factors act through mediated chains of ultimate, distal, and proximal influences. Some influences moderate the effects of others. Once tobacco is used, feedback mechanisms modify prior causes that in turn alter subsequent tobacco use behavior. Most theories and cross-sectional, prospective, and causal process studies have contained major limitations: (a) most addressed only small portions of the total picture; (b) most mediational studies did not test for interactions and most moderation studies are based on limited theory (if any); and (c) most theories do not discuss how the causal processes might be different for males and females or for different ethnic groups (special cases of moderation). Furthermore, few studies focused on more distal or ultimate influences or examined multi-stream patterns, and few theories or causal process studies have specified or tested feedback loops. Determining psychosocial risk factors and how they influence tobacco use faces several major challenges, including discovering complex mediating processes, moderating variables, and overcoming limitations of surveys and theory. We offer six recommendations to advance transdisciplinary tobacco-prevention research: (a) base future studies on strong theory and aim to test one or more theories or theoretically derived hypotheses; (b) collect four or more waves of data and adopt dynamic strategies of prediction and analysis, including interactions, indirect effects, feedback loops, and transitions from one level of tobacco use to another; (c) provide evidence of generalizability to sub-populations within the study sample, such as by gender, ethnic group, and socioeconomic status; (d) use high-quality measures and multiple methodologies, including non-panel longitudinal studies, intensive interview, ethnography, experimental intervention, and small exploratory studies as well as further prospective studies; (e) include variables from multiple streams of influence to investigate interrelationships among cultural, social, and intrapersonal factors; and (f) collect data from multiple nested units (e.g., children within families, within schools, within neighborhoods) and employ multi-level analysis methods to investigate interrelationships among ultimate, distal, and proximal variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We compared the relative effectiveness of four different conditions of self-help and social support provided to people attempting to quit smoking in conjunction with a televised cessation program: Smokers ready to quit were able to request written manuals from hardware stores to accompany a televised program. At worksites we provided the written manual to all workers. At a random half of the worksites, we also provided training to discussion leaden who subsequently led discussions among smokers attempting to quit with the program. At health maintenance organization sites we invited smokers who had requested program materials to participate in similar group discussions at health centers. In this paper we report one year follow-up results for the above four groups and compare them with previously reported results of a self-help manual alone. Results for the television plus manual condition were better than those of past studies (25 percent nonsmoking prevalence and 10 percent continuous cessation one year after the program) and considerably better than the manual alone. None of the other conditions designed to supplement the manual plus television produced better long-term outcomes; we explore the reasons for this. The program did encourage and help over 50,000 Chicago smokers to attempt quitting with the American Lung Association manual, 100 times as many as would have done so without the televised program. At least 15 other similar programs implemented since 1984 multiply this effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper reports six-year follow-up data from the first large-scale randomized trial of the social influences approach to smoking prevention. In 1979, 22 schools were randomly assigned to program or control conditions. Students in program schools received a social influences curriculum in six core and two maintenance sessions in grade 6, two booster sessions in grade 7, and one booster session in grade 8. All students were assessed at pretest (T1), immediate posttest (T2), end of grade 6 (T3), beginning and end of grade 7 (T4 and T5), end of grade 8 (T6), and grades 11 and 12 (T7 and T8). Ninety percent of study students were relocated and data obtained from over 80 percent of them at T8. Program effects on experimental smoking observed in grades 7 and 8 had completely decayed by T8, six years after the beginning of the program. Grade 6 smoking experience and social risk were each strong predictors of T8 smoking behavior. Subjects who had left school were smoking at more than twice the rate of subjects still in high school (grade 12) at T8. We discuss implications of the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluations of 40 mass media programs/campaigns designed to influence cigarette smoking were reviewed. Information/motivation programs/campaigns generally produced changes in awareness, knowledge, and attitudes. Extensive national campaigns also produced meaningful behavioral change. Programs/ campaigns designed to promote some specific smoking-related action produced mixed results, depending in large part on the type of promotion involved. Mass media cessation clinics were found to be effective, with media plus social support being more effective than viewing plus printed material, and either combination being more effective than viewing alone. It was concluded that mass media health promotion programs can be more effective than many academics may have thought, but that the knowledge necessary to ensure such success is seriously lacking. Research studies, rather than simple evaluations, are needed to improve our knowledge base and build a science of mass media health promotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proposes and describes methods for estimating the degree to which relations among variables vary at the individual level. Theory of reasoned action examined; Methods of estimating individual weights.

We review findings from 27 prospective studies of the onset of cigarette smoking conducted since 1980. Almost 300 measures of predictors of smoking onset were examined, and 74% of them provided multivariate support for predictors of onset derived from theory and previous empirical findings. Expected relationships were strongly supported for (a) socioeconomic status, with students with compromised status being more likely to try smoking; (b) social bonding variables, particularly peer and school bonding, with less support for family bonding; (c) social learning variables, especially peer smoking and approval, prevalence estimates, and offers/availability, with less consistent support for parent smoking and approval; (d) refusal skills self efficacy; (e) knowledge, attitudes and intentions, with the expected stronger predictions from intentions than from attitudes than from knowledge; and (f) broad indicators of self-esteem. The few investigators who analyzed their data separately by age, gender, or ethnicity found many differences by these factors, though there were too few of them to detect any pattern with confidence. Though the 27 studies are far from perfect, we believe that they confirm the importance of many well-accepted predictors and raise some questions about others. In particular, family smoking, bonding and approval each received unexpectedly low support. It is not clear whether this lack of support reflects reality as it has always been, is due to a changing reality, reflects developmental changes, either in the age of subjects or the stage of onset, or is due to poor measurement and too few tests. Future prospective studies need to be theory-driven, use measures of known reliability and validity, report analyses of scale properties, and use statistical methods appropriate to the hypotheses or theories under study. Finally, we encourage more investigations of the potentially different predictors of transitions to experimental or regular cigarette smokin [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reviews 14 multivariate theories of experimental substance use among adolescents, including those theories. Emphasis on substance-specific cognitions, social learning processes, commitment to conventional values and intrapersonal processes. Similarities and differences among the theories; Levels of influence.

Investigates the use of log-linear models for multi-wave longitudinal data to test hypothesis relating to adolescent substance use. Involvement of an approach of square contingency tables in sociology; Presentation of stage theories and stage-like phenomena; Experimentation of substances by adolescent in a stage-like sequence.

Smoking-related behaviors and attitudes of significant others (especially friends and parents) are among the most consistent predictors of adolescent smoking. However, theorists remain divided on whether the behaviors of significant others influence adolescent smoking directly or indirectly, and the relative influence of parental, and peer smoking on adolescents' own smoking is still a matter of debate. In addition, little research has examined the role of significant others' behavior on different stages of smoking onset. In particular, not much information is available regarding gender and ethnic differences in social influences on smoking behavior. We use structural equation modeling to address these issues. Different theoretical perspectives from cognitive-affective theories (Ajzen 1985; Ajzen and Fishbein 1980) and social learning theories (Akers et al. 1979; Bandura 1969, 1982, 1986) have been integrated into a structural model of smoking influence. The results show that friends' smoking affects adolescent initiation into smoking both directly and indirectly, whereas parental smoking influences smoking initiation only indirectly. The data also show that friends' and parents' smoking affect smoking escalation only indirectly. In general, friends' smoking has a stronger effect on adolescents' smoking behavior, particularly on initiation. Multiple group comparisons of the structural models predicting smoking initiation among males and females reveal that parental approval of smoking plays a significant mediating role for females, but not for males. Comparisons of Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, and other ethnic groups reveal that there are some significant differences in the pathways of friends' influences among the four groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assess the role played by two types of self-selection in accounting for the influence of a television series on smoking cessation. De facto selection is based on respondents' regular channel viewing habits that can expose them to the series. Motivated self-selection takes place when viewers deliberately select to watch television programming because it meets their desire to quit smoking. Self-selection also can be viewed as a methodological artifact, spuriously accounting for the association between the airing of the series and smoking cessation among the target audience. Subjects were a probability sample of Chicago smokers who regularly watch the evening news on one of the network channels. The intervention was a televised self-help smoking cessation program broadcast on one of the network channels over 20 days. Using nested covariance structure models for the analysis, we conclude that 1) de facto selection had no influence on exposure to the program; 2) motivated selection had no influence on exposure to the program; 3) the program reduced smoking; and 4) this effect cannot be attributed solely to the methodological artifact of self-selection, although motivation to quit smoking did have the strongest influence on attempts to quit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examines the relative importance of parental and friends' influences on adolescents' smoking behavior and changes in the effects of social influences during adolescence. Data were collected at 4 times from 7th to 9th grades. Random-effects ordinal regression models were employed to predict the repeated classification of adolescent smoking status using time effects, prior smoking status, friends' smoking, and parental smoking. In general, the effects of friends' smoking are stronger than those of parental smoking, and these differences increase over time. In addition, friends' smoking has greater effects on nonsmokers than smokers. Separate models for males and females disclose some gender differences. In particular, the effects of friends' smoking are stronger for females than for males, and the increasing trend of friends' influences is more noticeable for females than for males. Models for 4 ethnic groups also suggest differential susceptibility to social influences in different cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexual assault is a major public health issue. Bystander engagement programs are becoming widely used to combat sexual assault on college campuses. The purpose of this study was to examine students' intervention norms, intentions, opportunities, and behaviors as bystanders to sexual assault. Undergraduate students (N = 779) completed the Sexual Assault Bystander Behavior Questionnaire in the fall of 2014. The t tests revealed differences in students' intervention norms, intentions, opportunities, and missed opportunities based on sex, race/ethnicity, athletic participation, and fraternity/sorority membership. The findings support the use of additional measures to assess bystander behavior and to identify student subpopulations that may benefit from programs aimed at increasing prosocial intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduces John P. Elder, American Academy of Health Behavior 2003 Research Laureate. Extensive work in Mexico; Consulting work in other developing countries; Work spanning tobacco use, sun exposure, diet and nutrition and physical activity; Academic and career highlights.

Background: The Theory of Triadic Influence (TTI) provides a comprehensive framework for understanding adolescent substance use. Objectives: We examined mechanisms by which a TTI-guided social-emotional and character development program, Positive Action (PA), influences adolescent substance use. Study data come from the PA-Chicago, longitudinal matched-pairs cluster-randomized control trial. A diverse, dynamic cohort of approximately 1,200 students from 14 low-performing schools were assessed at eight points of time, between grades 3-8, across a six-year period. Students completed scales related to substance use, self-control, deviant peer affiliation, and school attachment, adapted from the Risk Behavior Survey, Social-Emotional and Character Development Scale, Conventional Friends Scale, and People in My Life Scale. After testing the overall effect of PA on substance use, we used latent growth modeling to assess whether effects on each outcome were mediated by longitudinal changes in three composite measures aligning with the TTIs three streams. Results: Students in PA schools reported fewer experiences with drinking, getting drunk, and overall substance use. In the multiple mediator models, significant indirect effects of PA on substance use via changes in self-control were evident. Conclusions/Importance: Findings are consistent with theory and past research suggesting the influence of self-control on youth substance use. Future studies should include implementation in different settings and additional theory-based measures. Trial RegistrationThis trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01025674. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterogeneity often exists among behavioral growth trajectories in a study population. In the evaluation of intervention effects for longitudinal randomized trials, it is informative to examine the impact of an intervention on subgroups characterized by different types of growth trajectories. This paper presents an application of growth mixture modeling to an ordinal-scale substance-use behavior outcome from the Aban Aya Youth Project (AAYP), a longitudinal preventive intervention trial targeting health-compromising behaviors among adolescents. Results suggested two classes of adolescent substance use growth trajectories: Class 1 (44.7% of the sample) started at a higher level and had a relatively shallow increase over time; Class 2 had a lower baseline level and a rapid increase over time. The intervention effectively reduced the rapid increase of substance use for the adolescents in the second class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Recruiting schools into a matched-pair randomized control trial (MP-RCT) to evaluate the efficacy of a school-level prevention program presents challenges for researchers. We considered which of 2 procedures would be most effective for recruiting schools into the study and assigning them to conditions. In 1 procedure (recruit and match/randomize), we would recruit schools and match them prior to randomization, and in the other (match/randomize and recruitment), we would match schools and randomize them prior to recruitment. Method: We considered how each procedure impacted the randomization process and our ability to recruit schools into the study. After implementing the selected procedure, the equivalence of both treatment and control group schools and the participating and nonparticipating schools on school demographic variables was evaluated. Results: We decided on the recruit and match/randomize procedure because we thought it would provide the opportunity to build rapport with the schools and prepare them for the randomization process, thereby increasing the likelihood that they would accept their randomly assigned conditions. Neither the treatment and control group schools nor the participating and nonparticipating schools exhibited statistically significant differences from each other on any of the school demographic variables. Conclusions: Recruitment of schools prior to matching and randomization in an MP-RCT may facilitate the recruitment of schools and thus enhance both the statistical power and the representativeness of study findings. Future research would benefit from the consideration of a broader range of variables (eg, readiness to implement a comprehensive prevention program) both in matching schools and in evaluating their representativeness to nonparticipating schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study employs growth mixture modeling techniques to evaluate the preventive effects of the Aban Aya Youth Project in reducing the rate of growth of violence among African American adolescent males (N = 552). Results suggest three distinct classes of participants: high risk (34%), medium risk (54%), and low risk (12%) based on both the participants' initial violence scores and their growth of violence over time. Results further show significant effects (almost 3 times as large as the effect found in the regular one-class analysis)for the high-risk class but not for the medium- or low-risk classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To test psychosocial mediators of the effects of an intervention in reducing the rate of growth of violence among adolescents. Method: Five hundred and seventy-one African American adolescent males participated in this randomized trial. Multilevel modeling techniques were used to ascertain both intervention and mediated effects. Results: Intervention significantly reduced rate of growth of violence and 5 social and psychological factors in the treatment group relative to the control group. Four of these social and psychological factors were found to be complete mediators between the intervention and its preventive effects. Conclusion: Changing psychological mediating variables is central to reducing youth violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We examined the Social-Emotional and Character Development Scale (SECDS). • Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the second-order factor structure. • The validity was supported by correlates of social-emotional skills and character. • The SECDS is appropriate for assessing students in grades seven and eight. The Social-Emotional and Character Development Scale (SECDS) is intended as a measure of social-emotional skills and character for elementary and middle school-age children. Its psychometric properties were previously supported using data collected over five waves for a cohort of students followed from grades three to five in 14 urban elementary schools (Ji et al., 2013). The present study examined the psychometric properties of the SECDS for the same cohort of students when enrolled in grades seven and eight, and examined the mean scores from grades three to eight. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated good fit to the measure's hypothesized second-order factor structure for each grade. Scales (Prosocial Behavior, Honesty, Self-Control, Self-Development, Respect at School, Respect at Home) corresponding to the first-order portion of this factor structure demonstrated adequate internal consistency. A longitudinal analysis indicated that the means for these scales remained stable from grade seven to eight. The validity of the SECDS general and individual scales was supported via their patterns of association with measures of expected correlates of social-emotional skills and character. Overall, findings suggest the SECDS is appropriate for assessing different facets of social-emotional skills and character for students during early adolescence and that it could be useful for investigating their role in the developmental pathways for a range of important outcomes during this period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The national conversation about the importance of social-emotional competencies, such as prosocial behaviors, responsible decision-making, and problem-solving, has increased greatly in the last 2 decades. There is, however, less robust evidence for social and emotional learning programs' impact on social and emotional outcomes when implemented in low-income, minority populations. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based, universal program targeting social-emotional skills in late elementary school (grades 3–5) in a low-income, urban, minority population. Data were collected from 930 students over five waves. Growth curve analyses revealed evidence of favorable program effects on positive youth development, emotional health, self-esteem, problem behaviors, health behaviors, environmental climate, and academics. The study provides evidence for universal school-based interventions in low-income, urban, minority contexts in elementary school grades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black and Latinx youth are situated in a maladaptive discriminatory context in the United States; however, prosociality may be one way that youth can promote their own positive development in the face of these experiences. We examined the longitudinal associations between discrimination and prosociality among 380 Black and Latinx early adolescents (MW6age = 12.38 years, 52% female) and considered race/ethnicity and self-esteem control beliefs as potential moderators to this association. Discrimination predicted higher levels of prosociality among Black youth 6 months later, but not among Latinx youth. Discrimination also predicted higher prosociality among youth with very high self-esteem control beliefs 6 months later, but not among youth with lower levels of self-esteem control beliefs. None of these associations were significant when looking across a 1-year time frame. Our findings support the predictions of self-esteem enhancement theory and highlight the importance of considering how youth's unique racialized experiences can inform how they respond to discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Experiencing relational victimization (e.g., peer exclusion, untrue rumors) during adolescence can have negative social-emotional consequences, including increased antisocial behavior and substance use. The negative impact of relational victimization may be lessened by spending time with supportive, prosocial peers.Methods: This study examined the concurrent and predictive associations between relational victimization and peer affiliates' prosocial behaviors in 244 predominately African American adolescents (ages 13-14) living in U.S. urban neighborhoods. Questionnaires were collected every six months for two years. Overt victimization was controlled for in the analysis and the moderation of gender and antisocial behaviors were tested.Results: Peer affiliates' prosocial behavior was stable across the two years. Relational victimization was not associated with peers' prosocial behavior at baseline or across time. Gender did not moderate the association between relational victimization and peers' prosocial behavior. Moderating effects were found for antisocial behavior; relational victimization was positively associated with peer affiliates' prosocial behavior but only for adolescents who were low on antisocial behavior at baseline.Conclusions: For African American youth, efforts to reduce relational aggression and increase peer support in prosocial activities prior to adolescence may be useful for preventing social-emotional problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The school environment is extremely salient in young adolescents' lives. Adolescents who have unfavorable attitudes toward school and teachers are at elevated risk for dropping out of school and engaging in behavioral health risks. Peer network health-a summation of the positive and negative behaviors in which one's close friend group engages-may be one way by which attitudes toward school exert influence on youth substance use. Utilizing a sample of 248 primarily African-American young urban adolescents, we tested a moderated mediation model to determine if the indirect effect of attitude to school on cannabis involvement through peer network health was conditioned on gender. Attitude toward school measured at baseline was the predictor (X), peer network health measured at 6 months was the mediator (M), cannabis involvement (including use, offers to use, and refusals to use) measured at 24 months was the outcome (Y), and gender was the moderator (W). Results indicated that negative attitudes toward school were indirectly associated with increased cannabis involvement through peer network health. This relationship was not moderated by gender. Adolescents in our sample with negative attitudes toward school were more likely to receive more offers to use cannabis and to use cannabis more frequently through the perceived health behaviors of their close friends. Implications from these results point to opportunities to leverage the dynamic associations among school experiences, friends, and cannabis involvement, such as offers and use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We describe challenges in the 6-year longitudinal cluster randomized controlled trial (CRCT) of Positive Action (PA), a social-emotional and character development (SECD) program, conducted in 14 low-income, urban Chicago Public Schools. Challenges pertained to logistics of study planning (school recruitment, retention of schools during the trial, consent rates, assessment of student outcomes, and confidentiality), study design (randomization of a small number of schools), fidelity (implementation of PA and control condition activities), and evaluation (restricted range of outcomes, measurement invariance, statistical power, student mobility, and moderators of program effects). Strategies used to address the challenges within each of these areas are discussed. Incorporation of lessons learned from this study may help to improve future evaluations of longitudinal CRCTs, especially those that involve evaluation of school-based interventions for minority populations and urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The current study investigated the moderating effect of peer networks on neighborhood disorder's association with substance use in a sample of primarily African American urban adolescents.Methods: A convenience sample of 248 adolescents was recruited from urban health care settings and followed for two years, assessing psychological, social, and geographic risk and protective characteristics. A subset of 106 substance using participants were used for the analyses. A moderation model was tested to determine if the influence of neighborhood disorder (percent vacant housing, assault index, percent single parent headed households, percent home owner occupied, percent below poverty line) on substance use was moderated by peer network health (sum of peer risk and protective behaviors).Results: Evidence for hypothesized peer network moderation was supported. A latent growth model found that peer network health is most strongly associated with lower baseline substance use for young adolescents residing in more disordered neighborhoods. Over the course of two years (ages approximately 14-16) this protective effect declines, and the decline is stronger for more disordered neighborhoods.Conclusions: Understanding the longitudinal moderating effects of peer networks within high-risk urban settings is important to the development and testing of contextually sensitive peer-based interventions.Results: suggest that targeting the potential protective qualities of peer networks may be a promising approach for interventions seeking to reduce substance use, particularly among younger urban adolescents living in high-risk neighborhoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Behavioral trajectories during middle childhood are predictive of consequential outcomes later in life (e.g., substance abuse, violence). Social and emotional learning (SEL) programs are designed to promote trajectories that reflect both growth in positive behaviors and inhibited development of negative behaviors. The current study used growth mixture models to examine effects of the Positive Action (PA) program on behavioral trajectories of social-emotional and character development (SECD) and misconduct using data from a cluster-randomized trial that involved 14 schools and a sample of predominately low-income, urban youth followed from 3rd through 8th grade. For SECD, findings indicated that PA was similarly effective at improving trajectories within latent classes characterized as "high/declining" and "low/stable". Favorable program effects were likewise evident to a comparable degree for misconduct across observed latent classes that reflected "low/rising" and "high/rising" trajectories. These findings suggest that PA and perhaps other school-based universal SEL programs have the potential to yield comparable benefits across subgroups of youth with differing trajectories of positive and negative behaviors, making them promising strategies for achieving the intended goal of school-wide improvements in student outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youths' perceptions of their neighborhood are shaped by continued exposure to neighborhood influences. African-American boys in poor, urban contexts are more directly affected by their neighborhoods and are more likely to develop related difficulties such as victimization experiences, and exposure to violence. This study examines African-American boys' perceptions of safety in their neighborhood. Data were collected in 1994 from 553 African-American males at the baseline of an intervention study - the Aban Aya Youth Project (AAYP) - among inner city youth in 12 schools from poor, metropolitan Chicago neighborhoods. We found a significant influence for the interaction between collective efficacy and violent experiences on perception of neighborhood safety. The findings highlight how both neighborhood strengths and risks interact to influence the functioning of African-American boys in disadvantaged communities. More importantly the study demonstrates how neighborhood support or neighborhood collective efficacy can be especially protective to African-American boys in high-risk urban settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]