A sample of high school students revealed that 43% had drunk regularly; 32% had smoked; and 11% had experienced sexual intercourse. Going to school in Seoul, not having two parents in the family, and living away from immediate family were associated with a higher likelihood of experiencing these behaviors. (BF)

Men who have sex with men (MSM) are a priority population for HIV care and prevention programs. This report describes HIV and other sexually transmitted disease (STD) trends among MSM in metropolitan Atlanta by analyzing nine databases. We describe the use of the male-to-female (M:F) ratio, a surrogate marker for MSM in databases without…

Losses to the workforce and drains on the national economy posed by illnesses, injuries, and environmental hazards dictate that schools operate to prevent, intervene, and help resolve these social and personal health issues. The costs to society for the medical care of children born to addicted and abusive parents, exposure to smoke and pollution,…

Dr. James E.K. Hildreth is a prominent HIV/AIDS researcher. He has just been the director of Meharry Medical College's new Comprehensive Center for Health Disparities Research in HIV since July, and he is already feeling a sense of accomplishment. Hildreth says he's happy to be at Meharry, an institution with a storied tradition of producing many…

Positive touch is an application of the ancient practice of infant massage. Positive touch provides families and caregivers with simple and positive ways to touch their child that contribute to the overall goal of providing a nurturing environment that supports the child's growth and development. This article describes infant massage techniques in…

Ongoing behavioral research has documented the growing prevalence of adolescent health risk behaviors, such as tobacco use, sexual activity, alcohol and other substance use, nutritional behavior, physical inactivity, and intentional injury. Newer youth risk behaviors, such as pathological gambling, are emerging as threats to public health. Risk,…

Cigarette smoking and smokeless tobacco (SLT) use are associated with numerous health hazards and economic costs, and rates of tobacco use have recently increased among young adults. In this study, the authors compared predictors of smoking and SLT use among college students (N = 21,410) from 13 Texas universities using a Web-based survey. Results…

In recent years, schools have been increasingly involved in youth's health-related behavior, particularly risky health behaviors (e.g., HIV/AIDS and pregnancy prevention programs). This study examined how acculturation processes among adolescent girls who are recent immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU) affect their practices of risky…

Objective: To explore 2 major components of health behavior research, etiologic research and action research. To argue that action research is both an artistic as well as scientific process. Methods: Review of the development process of effective health behavior programs with youth. Review of literature on art as part of the scientific process,…

Wellness scores of 1,249 traditional and 318 nontraditional undergraduate college students revealed low levels of wellness in multiple areas in comparison with non-student adults and within-group differences according to demographic variables. Profiles of wellness for traditional- and nontraditional-age students revealed significant differences on…

The relationship between acculturation and smoking behavior was examined in four Asian-American groups that included recent immigrants and US-born Koreans, Chinese, Vietnamese and Cambodians residing in the Delaware Valley of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The study was part of a community-based, comprehensive cross-sectional study designed to…

Personality is regarded as a distal determinant of health behavior and has been found to be associated with health behavior in young adults. Research investigating the association between personality and health behaviors in adolescents, however, is lacking. The present study explored the direct associations between Big Five personality dimensions…

Tobacco smoking is a very important preventable cause of mortality and morbidity, and this is also the case in immigrant populations. Therefore, smoking cessation interventions need to take these groups into account. Insight into the applicability of behavioral smoking cessation interventions for non-Western populations is necessary. The objective…

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is a newly identified respiratory disease that threatened Taiwan between April 14 and July 5, 2003. Chang Gung University experienced various SARS-related episodes, such as the postponement of classes for 7 days, the reporting of probable SARS cases, and the isolation of students under Level A and B…

This paper explores 16--19-year-old Scottish smokers' experiences and attitudes towards smoking and their understandings of the ways in which this transitional period impacts on their smoking behaviour. The study involved 49 qualitative interviews conducted mostly in friendship pairs. Interviewees also completed a brief smoking questionnaire. The…