The authors' purpose in this action study was to examine the effect of a 10-week intervention, using the Disconnected Values Model (DVM), on changes in selected measures of fitness, blood lipids, and exercise adherence among 51 university faculty (10 men and 41 women) from a school in the southeastern United States. The DVM is an intervention…

Purpose: This study was a two-year educational intervention and research project aimed at increasing the awareness of breast cancer and the utilization of Clinical Breast Examination (CBE) services and Self-Breast Examination (SBE) among elderly rural and urban African American women who are Medicare beneficiaries. Design: The study was…

Background: This study examined physical activity opportunities and barriers at 36 geographically diverse middle schools participating in the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls. Methods: Principals, physical education and health education department heads, and program leaders were interviewed to assess policies and instructional practices that…

Objectives: The purpose of this investigation was to complete a formal evaluation of Reading Across My Pyramid (RAMP), a literacy promoting nutrition and health education curriculum. Methods: To meet this need, a short survey, the "Child Survey," based on topics covered in RAMP lessons was developed and tested for clarity in a group of…

Experiential learning activities are often viewed as impractical, and potentially unfeasible, instructional tools to employ in a large enrollment course. Research has shown, though, that the metacognitive skills that students utilize while participating in experiential learning activities enable them to assess their true level of understanding and…

HIV/AIDS continues to spread among children, youth, and young adults across all racial, ethnic, and cultural populations, including those with disabilities. This article considers information on HIV/AIDS such as individuals' health-risk behaviors, environmental circumstances, and perceptions that may contribute to HIV-infection; how disability…

To examine young people's reactions to and understanding of HIV prevention messages developed for MTV's global HIV prevention campaign Staying Alive, videotaped campaign materials were shown to focus group discussion (FGD) participants living in urban areas of Brazil, Kenya, Nepal, and Senegal. Responses related to "personal involvement"…

Using data from Grades 5, 6, and 7 of the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development (PYD), the role of intentional self-regulation in the positive development of young adolescents was examined through use of the Selection, Optimization, and Compensation (SOC) measure. Consistent with Gestsdóttir and Lerner (2007), results of confirmatory factor…

Interest in the relationship between health behaviours and academic achievement has recently intensified in the face of an epidemic of childhood and adolescent obesity and converging school reforms in the United States and other nations with advanced economies. Epidemiologic research has demonstrated that poor diet and lack of adequate physical…

A total of 249 Japanese nationals--tourists (n = 107), students (n = 98), and temporary workers (n = 44)--were recruited at the targeted community venues in Honolulu, Hawaii, and completed a structured survey questionnaire. Reported lifetime sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs infection (10% male and 20% female participants), and HIV infection…

We investigated determinants of parental monitoring and the association between parental monitoring and preadolescent sexual risk situations among low-income, African American families living in urban public housing. Preadolescents and their parents or caregivers who participated in a longitudinal study of familial and contextual influences on…

UNICEF data indicates that Iraqi women have lower rates of breastfeeding than other Middle East countries and that breastfeeding rates are usually even lower among refugee women. This low rate of breastfeeding may be a result of refugee women's lack of public and social support and access to health professionals. This study identifies Iraqi…

Changing a health behavior and maintaining a positive change can be very difficult. This study examined attributions for health behavior change by using retrospective reports to elicit college students' (N=466) current views of successes and failures at adopting health promoting behaviors. In completing the Health Behavior Questionnaire, 229…

Substance use by American young people remains a major concern for the nation. Smoking, drinking, and illicit drug use are leading causes of morbidity and mortality, both during adolescence and across the life course. How vigorously the nation responds to teenage substance use, how accurately it identifies the substance abuse problems that are…

The 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) report is a continuation of the surveillance and reporting system for adolescent risk behaviors developed by the Division of Adolescent and School Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The purpose of the YRBS is…