This study examined personal, psychosocial, sociocultural, and environmental predictors in tobacco use for 1,671 Arab American adolescents. Cigarette smoking in the past 30 days was 6.9%. This increased from 1% at age 14 to 14% at age 18. Twenty-nine percent of the youths reported having ever smoked cigarettes. Experimentation with narghile was…

Objective: To study risk and protective factors for alcohol-related problems among high schools students in El Paso, Tex. Methods: A total of 1366 high school students from 16 different high schools in El Paso, Tex, participated in an anonymous questionnaire regarding alcohol use and alcohol-related behaviors. The sample was 70% Hispanic. Results:…

Background: Previous research on small-group learning has found that level of constructive activity (solving or explaining how to solve problems using ideas stated or implied in the explanation provided by a partner) was a better predictor of post-test achievement than either a student's prior achievement or the quality of help received (Webb,…

This research investigates low religiosity as a predictor of violent victimization. The theoretical framework the authors present here posits that religiosity should help structure daily activities in such a way as to (a) limit exposure to offenders by encouraging contact with peers who are less deviant, (b) lessen one's target suitability by…

While data on the onset of cigarette smoking among younger adolescents has been investigated extensively, it is less clear whether the same social factors influence older adolescents. To examine these social factors, as well as the influence of personality and beliefs, 1,977 high school participants in an anti-smoking study completed a…

A study investigated student participation in class discussion in a college psychology course. Findings indicated that the quality of participation is related to personality. Teachers are cautioned to avoid one-sided discussions by dividing students into discussion groups which include intuitive, extroverted, judging, thinking, and perceptive…

Surveyed 4,859 rural adolescents to examine the relationship of peer group influence and psychosocial identification with frequency of drug use. Results strongly supported the importance of peer influence and role models in predicting illegal drug use. (JAC)

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was an association between HIV sexual risk and substance use behaviors among a sample of inner-city African American youth. As part of a larger study, youth (n=193) competed questionnaires that measured sexual risk as well as substance use. Participants were separated in to high risk and low risk…

Examined the amount of support, encouragement, and discouragement 470 women received from others when considering enrolling in a male-traditional vocational course. Results revealed nontraditionals consistently received more support and encouragement than traditionals. Nontraditionals and those who considered the male-dominated program received…

Findings of t-tests on results from 1,247 adolescents in South Carolina indicate that, without adjustment, whites were higher than blacks on socioeconomic status, grade point average, and attitudes favoring drug use. Blacks were higher on positive peer influence, commitment to education, self-efficacy expectations, and reported conduct disorder…

This study prospectively evaluated perpetrator risk factors for sexual assault perpetration, including peer influences, beliefs and attitudes about sexuality, alcohol use, and token resistance. Perpetration of sexual assault was evaluated at three time periods: pretest, 3-month follow-up, and 7-month follow-up. Retrospective and prospective…

This multilevel investigation examined the effect of group interaction and its influence on individual-level membership variables and group assimilation. The study is based on a model of group socialization developed by Moreland and Levine (1982) and was modified in this study to investigate the development and maintenance of highly interdependent…

Objective: To examine the role of expectancies in adolescent smokeless tobacco (ST) use. Methods: Self-report measures of students' ST expectancies, cigarette and ST use, and peer and family tobacco use were collected from a sample of 978 rural high school students. Results: Student expectancy beliefs significantly predicted ST use and intention…

Previous research suggests that self-derogation/rejection and peer factors are strongly related to adolescent substance use. However, much less is known about the role and significance of these risk factors in the escalation of drug use over time. In the current study, we examined whether early reports of self-derogation and peer approval…

This 17-year longitudinal study tested whether low peer-perceived acceptance and association with aggressive-disruptive friends during preadolescence predicted students' failure to graduate from secondary school. Participants were 997 Caucasian, French-speaking boys from low-socioeconomic status, urban neighborhoods. The boys were recruited in…