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Biomedical subjects

K Bosworth

Publications and source records attributed to K Bosworth.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Short-term stability and prospective correlates of bullying in middle-school students: an examination of potential demographic, psychosocial, and environmental influences.

Stability and change of bullying over a four-month interval was examined in 516 middle school students (grades 6-8). The stability coefficient was .65 for the entire sample. There was a significant increase in bullying behavior from Time 1 to Time 2 for 6th grade students; no significant change in bullying was found among 7th or 8th graders. For 6th graders, a greater confidence in using non-violent strategies was associated with less bullying at Time 2, while beliefs supportive of violence and misconduct, less positive adult influences, and more negative peer influences were associated with greater likelihood of bullying at Time 2. Higher levels of impulsivity, anger, and depression were also associated with greater levels of bullying over time. Several explanations for the increase in bullying behaviors among 6th graders are discussed and linked to intervention efforts.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Assessment of drug abuse prevention curricula developed at the local level.

Public schools are a critical site for drug abuse prevention and education. Although in recent years prevention curriculum developers have been able to identify successful strategies, it is not clear how well these findings have been transferred to local schools. This article reports on a study of schools that have developed their own drug abuse prevention curriculum. The process that these schools used is compared to a model of curriculum development. In general, the process that local schools use is characterized by high levels of involvement by a variety of personnel, low levels of training, little use of resources outside the school corporation, poor training of teachers who will be implementing the curriculum, and little evaluation. Availability of external funds for development from federal or state sources were powerful motivators for curriculum development. Recommendations for changes in professional development and curriculum materials availability are made.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1998

A computer-based violence prevention intervention for young adolescents: pilot study.

Technology must be explored as a means of teaching adolescents ways to resolve conflict without violence. This paper reports on the development and pilot testing of a multimedia tool (SMART Talk) that teaches anger management, perspective taking, and mediation skills using games, interactive assessment interviews, cartoons, and animation. Results indicate that SMART Talk is popular with both males and females, and its use increases knowledge and practice of prosocial behaviors.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Nine critical elements of promising violence prevention programs.

To identify approaches to school-based violence prevention that are most promising and those that may not be effective, a review of the literature was conducted. In addition, telephone interviews were conducted with 15 experts on topics related to school-based violence prevention. Nine critical ingredients of promising approaches to violence prevention were identified. Specifically, the approaches are comprehensive and multifaceted; begin in the primary grades and are reinforced across grade level; are developmentally tailored: and cover appropriate content area. Appropriate content areas include information; anger management; social perspective taking; decision making and social problem solving; peer negotiation and conflict management; social resistance skills; active listening and effective communication; and material on prejudice, sexism, racism and male-female relationship. In addition, promising programs use interactive teaching techniques, are culturally sensitive, and provide teacher training. They promote a positive school climate and foster norms against violence. Six violence prevention activities that appear not to be effective are also discussed. The authors conclude with a discussion of the need for more rigorous evaluation of violence prevention programs.

Female↗
PubMed1994

Drug abuse prevention curricula in public and private schools in Indiana.

Recent research on drug education has focused on public schools. This study compares public school drug education programs with such efforts in private schools in one midwestern state. All schools in the state were asked to respond to a survey on curricula and training. This study reports on the types of prevention curricula used and at what grades, as well as the number of schools with trained staff. For almost every grade a higher percentage of public schools was found to be implementing drug education programs than private schools. This was manifested in public schools developing their own programs and/or purchasing commercially available drug curricula. Although an equal number of private and public schools have trained staff, less than half of all schools report a trained staff at each grade level. Directions for future research based on these results are suggested.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Predicting adolescent problem use of marijuana: development and testing of a Bayesian model.

This paper reports on the development and testing of a risk assessment index for problem marijuana use designed to guide teenagers through an extensive computer-based support system intended to help them improve marijuana-related behaviors. Bayesian decision theory, used as the basis of the index development process, offers the advantage of building the index on subjective judgments of experts and does not require a large empirical data base. The index was found to predict an independent panel's ratings of teenager risk, and predict the marijuana use of 10th graders using self-reports of their profiles in the 7th grade. Implications for future risk assessment developments are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Content and teaching strategies in 10 selected drug abuse prevention curricula.

This paper reports on content and teaching strategies in 10 drug abuse prevention curricula available to public and private schools. While similarities existed among the curricula, they employed a range of content as well as strategies. Interactive teaching strategies needed to implement the curricula include full class discussion, small group activities, brainstorm, and role play. Due to the complexity of the strategies, the curricula may not provide sufficient background information or training for teacher implementation in the classroom.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1992

CHESS: a computer-based system for providing information, referrals, decision support and social support to people facing medical and other health-related crises.

CHESS (the Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System) is an interactive, computer-based system to support people facing health-related crises or concerns. CHESS provides information, referral to service providers, support in making tough decisions and networking to experts and others facing the same concerns. CHESS will improve access to health and human services for people who would otherwise face psychological, social, economic or geographic barriers to receiving services. CHESS has developed programs in five specific topic areas: Academic Crisis, Adult Children of Alcoholics, AIDS/HIV Infection, Breast Cancer and Sexual Assault. The lessons learned, and the structures developed, will serve as a model for future implementation of CHESS programs in a broad range of other topic areas. CHESS is designed around three major desired outcomes: 1) improving the emotional health status of users; 2) increasing the cost-effective use of health and human services; and 3) reducing the incidence of risk-taking behaviors that can lead to injury or illness. Pilot-testing and initial analysis of controlled evaluation data has shown that CHESS is extensively used, is useful and easy-to-use, and produces positive emotional outcomes. Further evaluation in continuing.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1991

DIADS: computer-based system for development of school drug prevention programs.

The Drug Information, Assessment and Decisions for Schools (DIADS) is a computer-based information and decisions support system for the development of school drug abuse prevention programs. DIADS provides access to a cost-effective planning resource that has information to programs about alcohol, other drugs, and prevention. Also, DIADS helps the school assess the effectiveness of its current prevention efforts using an expert-generated school assessment model containing fourteen factors. Feedback from the assessment provides suggestions for improvements in current prevention programs. DIADS guides the selection of future activities and helps in program planning. Pilot test of DIADS at several sites indicates school personnel find the information on DIADS helpful, timely and easy to access.

Curriculum↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Using multimedia to teach conflict-resolution skills to young adolescents.

SMART Talk is a multimedia, computer-based violence-prevention intervention that employs games, simulations, graphics, cartoons, and interactive interviews to engage young adolescents in learning new skills to resolve conflicts without violence. Eight modules cover anger management, dispute resolution, and perspective taking. SMART Talk was pilot-tested in a small-city middle school during a three-week period. After the pilot testing, SMART Talk was implemented in a middle school (sixth, seventh, and eighth grades) with a diverse socioeconomic population, located within 10 miles of a major Midwestern metropolis. The 16-week intervention began in January. Students had access to SMART Talk during the school day and could use the computer alone or with a partner. Subjects for whom parental permission (n = 558) was granted were given a preintervention and postintervention survey. The survey measured demographic, psychosocial, and environmental factors as well as aggressive and other violence-related behaviors. After the pretest, two teams from each grade were randomly assigned to the intervention group and one team to the control group. Only students in the intervention group had access to SMART Talk during the 16-week intervention period. After the posttest, control subjects had access to SMART Talk. Additional data for the evaluation were collected through archival records of grades and school disciplinary actions. All variables indicated comparability between intervention and control groups. As a population, 84% of the students were Caucasian and 9% were African American. Psychosocial variables indicated 30-day frequently angry (64%), 30-day depression (15%), and impulsivity (28%). Environmental variables indicated that 68% reported they could get a gun easily, 59% feel unsafe in their neighborhood, and 24% were personally affected by violence. Violence-related variables indicated 30-day threatened to hit (45%), 30-day hit someone (56%), bullying behavior (29%), and fighting (38%). Overall, a significant percentage of the sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-graders in this study have engaged in aggressive or risky behaviors such as fighting and bullying other students. Because many of these students frequently are angry, feel unsafe in their neighborhood, and have been personally affected by violence, violence-prevention programs are warranted in this school. SMART Talk gave the students an avenue to explore anger-management strategies and conflict-resolution and perspective-taking skills.

Adolescent↗