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PubMed2006

Risk-taking among adolescents: associations with social and affective factors.

The research investigated the associations of social and affective factors with risk-taking in male and female adolescents. A sample of 269 Israeli adolescents completed questionnaires measuring frequency of involvement in risk-taking behaviours, relationships with parents, orientation towards peer group, depressive mood, and aggressive behaviour. Correlations and multiple regression analyses showed that risk behaviour among male adolescents was mainly related to orientation towards peer group, while for female adolescents relationships with parents was the prominent factor in risk behaviour. The parental factor also contributed to the depressive mood of both genders in the sample. However, depressive mood showed only a weak association with risk taking. These results underscore the differential associations of relationships with parents vs. peers among adolescent boys and girls, respectively, in regard to risk taking.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

Children's understanding of their emotionally disturbed peers. I. The concept of emotional disturbance.

Study of the interpersonal relations of emotionally disturbed children has focused largely on relationships within the family. Theories of childhood psychopathology focus almost exclusively on the parent-child triad as the etiological core of childhood emotional disturbance (Frank, 1965). Far less attention has been paid to the role of extra-familial attitudes and relationships in childhood psychopathology. In a general way, the increasing importance of the peer group during childhood has been recognized, but researchers have hardly begun to consider whether and how the manifold aspects of relationships between the emotionally disturbed and their normal peers might bear on the course of the disturbance or its refractoriness to treatment (e.g., Solomon and Wahler, 1973). Nor have they considered peer group influences on the development of the emotionally disturbed child's perception of the world and his place within it. Despite increasing recognition of the early importance of peer relations, virtually no systematic information exists on the ways in which normal children view their emotionally disturbed peers. Our purpose in this paper is to report the first of several analyses of data from an initial investigation of children's understanding of their emotionally disturbed peers. Specifically, we wish to examine whether there is evidence that normal children do, in fact, perceive as emotionally disturbed the symptomatic and distressing behavior of peers that mental health professionals would recognize as indicative of psychopathology. Further, we wish to study these issues with respect to grade and sex differences.

Affective Symptoms↗
PubMed1998

The use of oral contraceptives by adolescents for contraception, menstrual cycle problems or acne.

BACKGROUND: Oral contraceptives are prescribed as contraception but also as therapy for menstrual cycle disturbances and acne. We studied the prevalence of oral contraceptive (OC) use and the indications to start OC use among adolescents. METHODS: A cohort consisting of ninth grade secondary school girls (mean age 15.3+/-0.6 (s.d.) years) answered a questionnaire on their menstrual cycle. OC users were asked about duration and reasons for OC-use and the name of the preparation they used. The influence of calendar age, gynecological age and level of education on the prevalence of OC was studied by multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The response on the questionnaire was 92%. Of 2248 responders 248 (11%) used oral contraceptives: 74% used low dose 'sub 50' preparations, 3% pills with 50 microg estrogen, 3% tri-phase preparations and 17% pills with antiandrogens. Of girls aged 14, 15 and 16 years 4%, 12% and 28% respectively, used OC. Of the 15-year-olds 31% mentioned contraception as most important reason for OC use, 18% menstrual cycle irregularity, 26% dysmenorrhea, 10% acne and 5% other reasons. Calendar age, gynecological age and level of education were independent variables for OC use in general and for OC use for contraception or dysmenorrhea, but less so for OC use for menstrual cycle irregularity or acne. CONCLUSIONS: During adolescence low dose OC's were frequently used. In The Netherlands OC use among girls aged 15 and 16 years doubled in comparison with 1982. One third of the adolescent OC-users mentioned contraception as most important reason to start OC. Gynecological age (a determinant of biological maturation), calendar age (a determinant of biological maturation and lifestyle in peer groups), and level of education (a determinant of lifestyle in peer groups) were associated with OC use.

Acne Vulgaris↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Peer education project on breast self-examination in Izmir, Turkey.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this research was to assess undergraduate female student knowledge related to the Peer Education Method and Breast Self-Examination (BSE), to encourage them to refer for screening with certain intervals and to teach them the means of utilizing the health services. DESIGN: The subjects comprised 160 undergraduate female students who were selected by simple random sampling and who accepted to participate. METHODS: A survey form, which was prepared under the direction of relative literature by the researcher four 3rd graders of Ege University School of Nursing, was applied to female students. The data collected were assessed after being coded. FINDINGS: The numbers of undergraduate female students performing BSE regularly and their information levels related to the symptoms of breast cancer were found to be very low, but their mean scores for performing BSE after training given by peer guides were increased and the peer group training was found to be effective. CONCLUSIONS: From the results we conclude that the training guide was appropriate for transmitting information to university students for peer group education purposes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

A path analysis of an adolescent drinking behavior model derived from problem behavior theory.

The interrelationships between composite variables comprised of demographics, socialization, personality, perceived environment, conventional and problem behaviors, and their combined mediational influences on adolescent drinking behavior are examined. Students randomly sampled from four suburban, metropolitan-area high schools (N = 499) were administered the 250-question Survey of Underage Drinking Styles. All 12 composite variables, derived from the survey, were arranged in a causal model and submitted to a confirmatory path analysis. Data were analyzed by multiple regression procedures. According to the present model, a powerful pathway through to drinking may begin with family interaction problems, which may lead to a reduction in the adolescent's social coping skills. A reduction in the adolescent's coping skills may lead to a compensatory belief that alcohol improves mental and physical functions and an increased affiliation with and acceptance of the peer group's attitude and behavior toward consuming alcohol as a replacement coping skill. The adolescent's drinking may then increase as a result of the affiliative need to conform to peer group pressure.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Fairness or stereotypes? Young children's priorities when evaluating group exclusion and inclusion.

Seventy-two children (35 4 1/2-year-olds and 37 5 1/2-year-olds), nearly evenly divided by gender, from European American (71%), Asian American (17%), and African American (12%) middle-class backgrounds, were individually interviewed about straightforward exclusion and inclusion for two gender-stereotypic peer-group contexts: activities (doll and truck play) and role-play (teacher and firefighter). All children evaluated straightforward exclusion based on gender (e.g., girls excluding a boy from doll play) as wrong and used moral reasons. Preliminary inclusion decisions in the activity contexts (choosing a boy or a girl to join the group) were based on stereotypic expectations, particularly for younger children. Given the opportunity to weigh alternative considerations, however, all children gave priority to fairness over stereotypic expectations in both multifaceted inclusion peer-group contexts.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Vulnerability to drug abuse among opioid addicts' siblings: individual, familial, and peer influences.

Vulnerability to drug abuse was explored among 132 siblings of opioid-addicted probands. Multiple risk factors at the levels of the individual, family, and peer group were examined, including sensation-seeking, teenage experimentation with drugs, ordinal position in the family relative to the addicted proband, birth order, and the extent to which peers used drugs and offered drugs to the individual during adolescence. Risk factors were assessed via questionnaire and interview data, while diagnoses of adult drug abuse were derived from structured interviews. Early experimentation with drugs was found to be a powerful risk variable: siblings who had tried drugs as teenagers were almost five times as likely as others to be drug abusers as adults. Other significant correlates of adult drug abuse included sensation-seeking and drug use among the adolescent peer group. Results of the study are discussed in terms of implications for preventive intervention in the field of substance abuse.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Risk factor control in coronary heart disease. Who needs it?

Most patients seen in the offices of primary care physicians in the United States have habits that put them at needlessly high risk of coronary heart disease. These patients usually report that they would like help from their physician in changing their habits. Peer group pressure, however, tends to discourage change. In comparison with making large changes in selected individuals, making small changes in the expectations and behaviors of an entire peer group is easier and will lead to greater changes in disease rates. All patients seen by a physician should have a periodic nutritional assessment, smoking assessment, and blood pressure measurement. Those patients who do not smoke, are normotensive, and have optimal dietary patterns should be vigorously praised. Those who have less than optimal risk factor behaviors should receive further intervention.

Cholesterol↗
PubMed1979

Prescribing patterns in a family medicine residency program.

The methodology and results of a concurrent review of prescribing practices in a family practice residency are discussed. A clinical pharmacist reviewed copies of prescriptions returned to him during a six-month period, and he tabulated information to allow comparisons of clinic prescribing patterns with national patterns. Additionally, peer group comparisons within the residency were made. It was found that tricyclic antidepressants were prescribed more frequently than anxiolytic drugs, a distinct difference when compared to national prescribing reports. Peer group comparisons showed apparent autonomy in prescribing habits among residents and faculty, and the drug "repertoire" and number of prescriptions written increased as the number of years in the residency progressed.

Ambulatory Care Facilities↗
PubMed1996

Utility of a verbal reasoning test in indicating vocational readiness following traumatic brain injury.

Present tests are often inadequate to assess subtle aspects of cognitive-communicative functioning following traumatic brain injury (TBI), making it difficult to predict vocational readiness, particularly for those in professional occupations. This study examined the viability of the Ross Test of Higher Cognitive Processes (RTHCP) as a measure of verbal reasoning deficits following TBI. The verbal reasoning performance of a 43-year-old lawyer with TBI was compared, at two stages in his rehabilitation, to that of a peer group of lawyers (n = 43). The RTHCP detected noticeable differences in speed and accuracy of performance at different stages of recovery. The RTHCP also revealed individual differences among the peer group, who presumably were competent in verbal reasoning. Thus, the RTHCP may be an effective tool to measure subtle deficits in verbal reasoning post-TBI. Some cautions in using this test for the TBI population are presented, as well as suggestions for further test development and validation.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Stresses associated with career success for women.

In recent years, more women have pursued careers in business and the traditionally male professions. Those that have succeeded live with a high degree of environmental stress. Since some of them are now consulting psychiatrists it is important that the psychiatrist be able to differentiate difficulties which have a cultural basis from those stemming from individual psychodynamics. Cultural stresses have been reviewed under three headings: inaccurate stereotypes; inadequate cultural supports; and role overload. It has been suggested that contact with her peer group is extremely important for this type of woman patient. The peer group provides both support and a frame of reference within which individual problems may be understood.

Achievement↗
PubMed2005

[Domestic and international trends concerning allowable limits of error in external quality assessment scheme].

Many external quality assessment schemes (EQAS) are performed to support quality improvement of the services provided by participating laboratories for the benefits of patients. The EQAS organizer shall be responsible for ensuring that the method of evaluation is appropriate for maintenance of the credibility of the schemes. Procedures to evaluate each participating laboratory are gradually being standardized. In most cases of EQAS, the peer group mean is used as a target of accuracy, and the peer group standard deviation is used as a criterion for inter-laboratory variation. On the other hand, Fraser CG, et al. proposed desirable quality specifications for any imprecision and inaccuracies, which were derived from inter- and intra-biologic variations. We also proposed allowable limits of analytical error, being less than one-half of the average intra-individual variation for evaluation of imprecision, and less than one-quarter of the inter- plus intra-individual variation for evaluation of inaccuracy. When expressed in coefficient of variation terms, these allowable limits may be applied at a wide range of levels of quantity.

Accreditation↗
PubMed1991

Friendship among adults who have developmental disabilities.

The difference between people with developmental disabilities who did and did not have peer-group friends was investigated by interviewing 36 adults attending day centers. Those with a friend were significantly more likely to describe themselves positively on all dimensions. Results showed that people without a peer-group friend were similar to lonely people without disabilities on two of the three factors explored. Qualitative analysis of subjects' descriptions of their friends suggested that most of the people interviewed had relatively shallow relationships.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Similarity of clients and treatment outcome in outpatient drug-free programs.

Client peer groups in drug abuse treatment programs can be expected to impact on the treatment of drug abusers. This ex post facto study explored whether similarity in demographic characteristics and drug use history within client peer groups influences treatment outcome. Subjects were 455 clients in outpatient drug-free treatment. Four aspects of similarity were assessed-age, drug use history, race/ethnicity, and sex. Follow-up data on levels of criminality, nonopiate drug use, and opiate drug use during the first year posttreatment were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. Client similarity was found to influence treatment outcome. While the findings do not warrant substantial changes in the delivery of drug abuse treatment, they suggest that peer relationships and the influence of similarity among clients should be considered in the formulation of treatment plans for individual clients.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

A pilot study evaluating a peer led and professional led physical activity intervention with blue-collar employees.

OBJECTIVE: To measure the effect of a physical activity intervention, based on social cognitive theory, delivered by a peer and a professional leader. DESIGN: Quasi-experimental. SETTING: Three locations at a large Mid-Western railroad. SUBJECTS: One hundred and forty-eight skilled labor employees participated: one hundred and twenty completed the study. MEASURES: Self-reported energy expenditure, self-efficacy and stages of change. RESULTS: ANOVA and categorical analysis using rates and proportions were used for evaluation. The peer group had a non-significant short-term increase in energy expenditure of 3%, which returned to baseline post intervention. The professional and control groups showed a non-significant decrease in energy expenditure of 5% and 9%, respectively. The peer (p < 0.002) and professional groups (p < 0.004) showed significant increases in average stages scores. The peer group maintained increases over time (p < 0.001). The peer and professional led groups showed a 54% and 24% increase in the number of employees reporting regular physical activity over time, respectively. The peer group also showed positive trends in self-efficacy. CONCLUSIONS: The peer intervention enhanced self-efficacy and self-reported physical activity. A job layoff at the professional led site confounded comparisons between locations. Employees reported high energy expenditure and high BMI values, suggesting that a weight management intervention may be more appropriate and appealing in this population.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Young children who commit crime: epidemiology, developmental origins, risk factors, early interventions, and policy implications.

An early onset of delinquency prior to age 13 years increases the risk of later serious, violent, and chronic offending by a factor of 2-3. Also child delinquents, compared to juveniles who start offending at a later age, tend to have longer delinquent careers. This article summarizes the report of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's Study Group on Very Young Offenders, chaired by Rolf Loeber and David P. Farrington. The Study Group, consisting of 16 scholars and 23 coauthors, worked for 2 years on preparing a report, undertaking extensive secondary data analyses, and writing chapters in different speciality areas. The report consists of a state of the art review of the developmental background of child delinquents. The report also summarizes risk and protective factors in the individual, family, peer group, school, and neighborhood that affect that development. Lastly, the report renews relevant preventive and remedial interventions in the juvenile justice system, families, peer groups, schools. and neighborhoods, and makes a case for improvement in the integration of services for child delinquents. Policy recommendations are presented to improve methods of dealing with child delinquents by juvenile justice, child welfare, and mental health agencies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

The influence of social class, gender, and peers on the uptake of orthodontic treatment.

The accurate prediction of the future demand for orthodontic treatment requires an understanding of the factors which influence the uptake of orthodontic treatment. This paper examines the influence of social class, gender, and peer group on the uptake of orthodontic treatment. A representative random sample comprising five-hundred-and-forty 15- and 16-year-old adolescents were interviewed in school. The results indicate that familiarity with orthodontic appliances among a subject's peer group has a greater influence on the uptake of orthodontic treatment than the subject's social class or gender.

Adolescent↗