Using group-based trajectory modeling, this study examined 5156 adolescents from the child sample of the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to identify developmental trajectories of obesity from ages 6-18 and evaluate associations of such trajectories with risk behaviors and psychosocial health in adolescence. Four distinctive obesity…

We examined substance use onset and associations with pregnancy by age 15 years. Participants were girls ages 15 years or younger (weighted n = 8319) from the 1999-2003 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBS). Multivariable logistic regression examined pregnancy as a function of substance use onset (i.e., age 10 years or younger, 11-12,…

The present study examined whether parenting and parental smoking can prevent children from selecting smoking friends during adolescence. 254 Adolescents of one Belgian secondary school participated. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed among 2nd-4th graders (mean ages = 14.2-16.2 years) during spring 2006. Follow-up was conducted 12…

Research has demonstrated that adolescent peer group affiliations are consistent predictors of substance use initiation and maintenance; it is less clear how adolescent "romantic" relationships influence substance use behavior. Data were drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Participants in the final dataset…

This paper examined the relative influence of selection and socialization on alcohol and tobacco use in adolescent peer networks and peer groups. The sample included 1419 Finnish secondary education students (690 males and 729 females, mean age 16 years at the outset) from nine schools. Participants identified three school friends and described…

Research has shown a positive relationship between substance use and delinquent-type behaviours among adolescents. The aim of this study is to explore the temporal relationships between these outcomes through secondary data analysis of a longitudinal study of high-school students' risk behaviours. Two regression models were compared and gender,…

Using academic achievement as the key outcome variable, 7377 Icelandic adolescents were surveyed for cigarette smoking, alcohol use, daytime sleepiness, caffeine use, and potential confounders. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine direct and indirect effects of measured and latent variables in two models: the first with caffeine…

There is a strong empirical connection between individual and peer substance use during adolescence. The determination of whether this level of covariation reflects influence or selection is obscured by both the design and measurement strategies used. This present study utilizes a short-term longitudinal design with bi-monthly assessments to…

Engagement in excessive sedentary behaviour represents a health risk for adolescents. The current study aimed to investigate patterns of sedentary behaviour amongst Irish female adolescents aged between 15 and 19 years old. 314 adolescents completed a questionnaire on their sedentary behaviour habits, health behaviours (physical activity, smoking,…

This study investigated the relationships among sleep problems, learning difficulties and substance use in adolescence. Previous research suggests that these variables share an association with executive functioning deficits, and are intertwined. The sample comprised 427 adolescents (M age = 16 years) attending remedial schools and 276 adolescents…

Affective influences may play a key role in adolescent risk taking, but have rarely been studied. Using an audiovisual method of affect induction, two experimental studies examined the effect of positive affect on risk perceptions in adolescence and young adulthood. Outcomes were risk perceptions regarding drinking alcohol, smoking a cigarette,…

A multilevel analysis of cross-sectional data from a survey involving 1941 pupils (in grades 10 and 11) and policy indicators developed from interviews with staff from 45 secondary schools in Wales examined the hypotheses that pupil smoking prevalence would be associated with: restrictive staff and pupil smoking policies; dissemination of school…

Both music preferences and the substance use behavior of peers are important elements in explaining adolescent substance use. The extent to which music preference and peer use overlap in explaining adolescent substance use remains to be determined. A nationally representative sample of 7324 Dutch school-going adolescents (aged 12-16) provided data…

Nicotine addiction is the most common preventable cause of premature death presenting during adolescence. No prior study has described the onset of this condition based on case histories. We used trained personnel to conduct individual semi-structured interviews to obtain case histories from 50 adolescent and young adult current and former…

Previous studies from a wide variety of European countries have demonstrated that low educated adolescents engage more frequently in health risk behaviors compared to high educated adolescents. The present study investigates the mediating roles of parental knowledge and time spent with peers in this relationship. Data were retrieved from a…