Biomedical subjects

K A Urberg

Publications and source records attributed to K A Urberg.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1997

Close friend and group influence on adolescent cigarette smoking and alcohol use.

The relative influence of adolescents closest friends and their friendship group on their cigarette smoking and alcohol use was investigated in a short-term, longitudinal study of 1,028 students in the 6th, 8th, and 10th grades in 2 school systems. The amount of influence over the school year was modest in magnitude and came from the closest friend for initiation of cigarette and alcohol use. Only the friendship group use predicted transition into current cigarette use, whereas only the close friend use predicted transition into current alcohol use. Both group and close friends independently contributed to the prediction of adolescents' drinking to intoxication. No difference in the amount of influence, was found between stable and unstable close friendships or friendship groups; neither grade nor gender of the adolescents related to the amount of influence.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Grade changes in peer influence on adolescent cigarette smoking: a comparison of two measures.

The effects of peer influence on adolescent cigarette smoking were investigated in longitudinal study of 309 white, middle-class subjects in the 8th and 11th grades. Subjects provided data on their smoking behavior, the proportion of their friends who smoked, and the identity of their best friend. Data from the person named as best friend was used to measure peer smoking, rather than the adolescent's perceptions of the friend's smoking. Peer influence was defined as the difference between the subject's smoking behavior and that of their best friend. This definition (PI1) minimized the confounding of peer influence with selective association. The effects of peer influence on change in smoking behavior were found to be stronger for 8th than 11th graders and for boys than girls. When the proportion of friends who smoke (PI2) was used as the measure of peer influence, the effects of peer influence were stronger for 11th than 8th graders. The relative merits of the two measures are discussed, and the argument is made that the difference between friend and adolescent smoking is a more appropriate measure of peer influence than the proportion of friends who smoke.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

Peer influence in adolescent cigarette smoking.

A structural model relating actual and perceived peer smoking to perceived peer pressure and to adolescent cigarette smoking was developed and replicated in two independent subsamples of the data. Data was gathered from 2334 suburban adolescents in grades 8 and 11 in a large metropolitan area. Four dimensions of peer pressure were discovered and were found to relate differentially to adolescent smoking. The major findings were that pathways representing modeling and normative pressure to smoke had roughly equal impact on adolescent smoking. Direct pressure to smoke cigarettes did not have a significant path to adolescent smoking. Adolescents reported low levels of both normative and direct pressure to smoke cigarettes. Smoking adolescents appear to see the peer group, not as encouraging them to smoke, but as not providing any discouragement for smoking. Finally, adolescents who were experimenting with smoking or were smokers overestimated the amount of smoking by their best friends.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1982

A theoretical framework for studying adolescent contraceptive use.

This paper presents a theoretical framework for viewing adolescent contraceptive usage. Young adolescents are beginning to come to terms with their changed bodies, with their increased interest in members of the opposite sex and with their new reproductive capacity. At the same time, their cognitive and social skills are far from fully developed. Further, they may have limited access to the information they need for informed decision making. These immaturities may make the young, sexually active, adolescent, male or female, particularly likely to experience an unintended conception. The problem-solving process is used as a framework for examining developmentally the competencies that must be present for effective contraceptive use. The five major aspects of problems in this area are: problem recognition, motivation, generation of alternatives, decision making and implementation. Each of the aspects is seen as necessary but not sufficient for effective contraceptive use. Each aspect is discussed with respect to developmental changes, male/female differences and previous research.

Adolescent↗