Previous studies have well-documented that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with negative health outcomes, including suicidal thoughts and behaviors. As historically marginalized groups have long experienced poorer socio-emotional outcomes due to systemic and institutional racism, racial stress, and related factors, surprisingly…

From a developmental perspective, the increase in depressive symptoms among adolescents over the past decade is of great concern due to the risk of long-term mental health problems extending into adulthood. Informed by the Multicultural Social Justice Framework, we examined multi-level, ecological risk and protective factors of depressive symptoms…

College life is an exciting time for thousands of emerging adults on campuses across the nation. It is also an opportunity for students to engage in behaviors that can impede personal health. Numerous studies link personal health and wellness to academic achievement.1-3 The core mission of most institutions of higher education (IHEs) is academic…

The purpose of our study was to investigate the potential relationships in Hispanic adolescents (n = 575) between substance use and/or risky sexual behaviors and (a) physical activity (PA) and (b) sedentary time and (c) the moderating effect of gender. PA levels and sedentary behaviors were assessed using the PA Questionnaire for Adolescents,…

The opioid epidemic has led to a dramatic increase in the number of infants and toddlers being removed from their homes and placed in foster care. Doing so places these vulnerable young children at high risk for attachment issues, postnatal medical problems, and development delay. Early Childhood Courts have been found to be a very effective…

Objective: Public and private stakeholders of substance abuse treatment services require economic cost data to guide program evaluations and funding decisions. Background: Rigorous cost assessments have been conducted for several treatment programs across the United States, but a systematic and comprehensive evaluation of programs in a particular…

Background: While the prevalence of language and communication difficulties among young people in custody is well established, holistic understanding of the complexity and co-occurrence of additional vulnerabilities among this population are rare. Methods: Ninety-three young people in a young offenders institution in England were assessed using…

Truant youths are likely to engage in a number of problem behaviors, including sexual risky behaviors. As part of a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded, prospective intervention project, a sample of truant youths' sexual risk behavior was tracked over five time points. Analyses of the data was informed by four objectives: (a) determine…

School nurses are well positioned to address risk-taking behaviors for adolescents in their care. The purpose of this mixed-method exploratory study was to explore risk taking in Afro-Caribbean adolescents in South Florida, comparing first- to second-generation adolescents. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from an immigrant group…

The spread of zero tolerance policies for school-based scenarios flourished under President William J. Clinton who wanted to close a loophole in the Guns-Free School Zones Act of 1990. Expansion in the coverage of zero tolerance policy to offenses outside the initial scope of weapon and drug offenses has led to a disproportional ratio of African…

Substance use and sexual risk behaviors are common among adolescents, but research has focused attention on alcohol use. Much less is known about the relationship of marijuana use and sexual risk behavior among high-risk, especially truant, youths. We report interim findings from a NIDA-funded experimental, brief intervention (BI) study involving…

Increasing interest has been shown in brief interventions for troubled persons, including those with substance abuse problems. Most of the published literature on this topic has focused on adults, and on the efficacy of these interventions. Few of these studies have examined the critical issues of enrollment and engagement in brief intervention…

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the preliminary efficacy of a dating violence (DV) prevention program for Cuban American adolescents ("JOVEN"/YOUTH: "Juntos Opuestos a la Violence Entre Novios"/Together Against Dating Violence). A randomized-controlled experimental design with a delayed condition was used to evaluate…

Background: Self-injury has been described as a "silent school crisis," reflecting insufficient knowledge, confusion, lack of effective interventions, and the tendency for adults and youth to shy away from dealing directly with the issue. This purpose of this study was to identify distinct subgroups of youth who may be at increased risk…

The purpose of this study is to assess the relationships between county-level characteristics and adolescent use of alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana. The study consisted of a hierarchical generalized linear analysis of secondary data from the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey. Variables on the county level included the percent of adolescents…