In relation to health promotion and education, the use of post-positivist and constructivist approaches has been gathering strength in recent years. Despite this emerging tradition, little has been done to explore what this sort of approach actually represents, particularly in terms of health promotion in schools, professional organizations and…

This article reports on research funded as a "Best Practice" project by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) designed to use action research to progress the government agenda for healthy schools. The project involved teachers working with university researcher. The outcome is five small research reports consisting of two…

The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of a range of strategies to engage and to enhance secondary school nurse involvement in teenage smoking prevention and cessation. School nurses were willing to assist students to quit smoking, but they felt unprepared. Information provided by nurses involved in a three-stage review,…

This study examined parental perceptions of the benefits and barriers to bicycle helmet use and their level of knowledge about bicycle safety issues. A school-based bicycle safety education program was taught to first- and second-grade students in a rural/suburban school district by a graduate nursing student. Pender's Health Promotion Model was…

A program of research related to school-based models for urban children's mental health is described, with a particular focus on improving access to services, promoting children's functioning, and providing for program sustainability. The first study in this series responded to the urgent need to engage more families in mental health services, and…

Purpose: This article reports on the interest within the religious community in a medical-religious partnership model designed to address some of the health challenges communities face as the population continues to age and become more diverse. Design and Methods: A geographically and religiously diverse group of 183 clergy who were attending a…

Obesity prevalence has increased dramatically in the United States. Rural areas have been especially affected, yet few weight management studies have been conducted in these populations. This study was designed to assess weight management attitudes and strategies used when rural adults in particular attempt to lose weight, employing measures that…

Purpose: Drawing on literature and the evaluation of a UK community Arts in Health project, this article aims first to demonstrate that, in spite of the common association in mental health practice between art and the use of psychotherapeutic techniques, involvement in art creation can, in itself, have a sustained and positive impact on the mental…

This article describes how a rural community in Colorado developed the infrastructure to provide a family-centered, culturally competent array of early childhood mental health services that are integrated into existing community-based programs. The Early Childhood Health/Education Outreach (ECHO) and Family Center Early Childhood Council's…

In the wake of the 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act, localities across the United States initiated public information campaigns both to raise awareness of threats to air quality and to change behavior related to air pollution by recommending specific behavioral changes in the campaign messages. These campaigns are designed to reduce the health…

This paper focuses on the tangled web of obesity and exercise as it relates to subjective well-being. Many overweight individuals have low levels of subjective well-being as a reflection of "anti-fat" biases and sociocultural considerations. Since exercise helps balance the energy intake-output equation and is associated with mood benefits,…

National statistics estimate that 1.2 million newborn males are circumcised annually in the United States (70% to 80%). Such values as sanctity, equity, fraternity, paternity and liberty affect circumcision rates in America. The value of sanctity allows freedom of religious beliefs and traditions that often overcome medical impetus in…

Against the background of the social and economic transformations in the country, physical education in the schools is undergoing a serious crisis. The level of health of the rising generation is low, and the quality of the instruction is failing to foster adolescents' and young adults' desire to learn the values of physical culture and get…

The Doorways training program was designed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Safe Schools Program (Safe Schools) to enable teachers, community members and students to prevent and respond to school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV). "Doorways I: Student Training Manual on School-Related Gender-Based Violence…

Are students aware of the link between environmental hazards and disease? What are the parameters of individual and social responsibility as they relate to environmental protection? What are the attitudes that inhibit or support the development of environmental protection behavior? Answers to these questions may help teachers to develop effective…