Urban African American Parents' Messages About Violence
This study examined the strategies that urban parents living in neighborhoods with high crime rates suggest to help their adolescent children avoid or deescalate conflict. Data came from 48 African American parent/adolescent dyads recruited through the youths’ middle school. Dyads responded to three video-taped scenarios depicting youth in potential conflict situations. Qualitative methods were used to identify 11 strategies parents suggested to help youth avoid or deescalate conflict. Although the majority of parents advocated for nonviolent solutions, these same parents described situations in which their child may...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - July 29, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Johnson, S. L., Finigan, N., Bradshaw, C., Haynie, D., Cheng, T. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Adolescent Girls' Experiences of Discrimination: An Examination of Coping Strategies, Social Support, and Self-Esteem
The research examined (a) girls’ responses to personal experiences of gender and/or ethnic/racial discrimination, (b) social support from parents and friends following the discrimination, and (c) the relationship between girls’ reported coping strategies to the discrimination and their self-esteem. Participants were 74 adolescent girls (M = 16.3 years) from diverse ethnic backgrounds in California. Each girl completed an online survey that included open-ended questions about a personal experience of discrimination and self-reported coping strategies, as well as a questionnaire measure of self-esteem. Results in...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - May 28, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Ayres, M. M., Leaper, C. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
"A Safe Way to Explore": Reframing Risk on the Internet Amidst Young Gay Men's Search for Identity
Internet use provides a vital opportunity for sexual-minority youth to learn about sexual desires and pursue partnerships otherwise publically stigmatized. Researchers, however, have portrayed the Internet as an inherently risky venue for HIV or sexually transmitted infection (STI) transmission among young gay men (YGM). We therefore investigated how YGM use the Internet during adolescence and emerging adulthood. In the course of 34 in-depth, semistructured interviews with a sample of self-identified YGM, 18 to 24 years of age, we inquired about initial experiences of online dating. We found that YGM benefit online through...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - May 28, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Pingel, E. S., Bauermeister, J. A., Johns, M. M., Eisenberg, A., Leslie-Santana, M. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Reflecting on a Difficult Life: Narrative Construction in Vulnerable Adolescents
We examined narrative processes of identity development as they related to desistance from delinquent behavior in a sample of vulnerable adolescents. Building on a robust theoretical and empirical foundation in the field of narrative identity, we examined processes of meaning-making and agency in relation to desistance. Thirty-one adolescents were interviewed to elicit commonly studied autobiographical memories (e.g., turning points, self-defining memories). Interviews were coded for meaning-making and agency. Results showed that desistance was related to agency, but not meaning-making, which was related to higher numbers ...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - May 28, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: McLean, K. C., Wood, B., Breen, A. V. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
"I'm Not Going to Become No Rapper": Stereotypes as a Context of Ethnic and Racial Identity Development
Few studies examine how the macro context shapes ethnic or racial identity development during early adolescence. This analysis draws on interview data from 40 African American, Chinese American, Dominican American, and European American middle school students (6th through 8th grade) to explore how stereotypes inform adolescents’ ethnic and racial identities. Findings revealed that stereotypes about race and ethnicity intersected with those about gender, sexuality, social class, and/or nationality and these intersecting stereotypes shaped adolescents’ ethnic and racial identities. In addition, adolescents used s...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - May 28, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Way, N., Hernandez, M. G., Rogers, L. O., Hughes, D. L. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Perceived Mental Illness Stigma, Intimate Relationships, and Sexual Risk Behavior in Youth With Mental Illness
The current study examines the role of mental illness–related stigma on romantic or sexual relationships and sexual behavior among youth with mental illness (MI), including youths’ experiences of stigma, the internalization of these experiences, and the behavior associated with managing stigma within romantic and sexual relationships. We conducted in-depth interviews with N = 20 youth with mental illness (MI) (55% male, 16-24 years, 75% Latino) from 4 psychiatric outpatient clinics in New York City. We conducted a thematic analysis to investigate shared experiences of MI stigma and its impact on youth’s s...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - April 9, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Elkington, K. S., Hackler, D., Walsh, T. A., Latack, J. A., McKinnon, K., Borges, C., Wright, E. R., Wainberg, M. L. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
How Supportive of Their Specific Purposes Do Youth Believe Their Family and Friends Are?
This study links specific social supports to specific purposes described by youth. We examined whether developmental level, social-structural supports of gender and ethnicity, and close relationship supports of family and friends explained (a) how likely youth were to describe three dimensions of a specific purpose content (intention, engagement, and beyond-the-self reasons), and (b) how youth with specified purposes used social supports to pursue those purposes. Youth in higher grade levels were more likely to describe their future plans, activities that pursued those plans, and reasons that considered consequences to oth...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - April 9, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Moran, S., Bundick, M. J., Malin, H., Reilly, T. S. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Communicating Trust Between Parents and Their Children: A Case Study of Adolescents' Alcohol Use in Denmark
This article discusses how Danish parents and their children communicate trust. Based on Niklas Luhmann’s sociological theory, the article explores new aspects of communication about alcohol-related rules. The analysis shows how the parents emphasize the importance of communicating trust, while the adolescents, on the other hand, observe the parents’ communication on the basis of their own, more instrumental, logic. Trust becomes a functional solution to the parents’ paradoxical situation, because it enables them to balance between a democratic family ideal, emphasizing the adolescents’ independence...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - April 9, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Demant, J., Ravn, S. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
"You Start Feeling Old": Rock Musicians Reconciling the Dilemmas of Adulthood
Using interview data from 38 musicians, this study examines the ways in which the transition to adulthood is complicated by aspirations to a nonstandard line of work. Musicians face a recurring set of obstacles as they move into adulthood and respond by enacting various tactics to reconcile these dilemmas. The "on-time" musicians do so by framing emerging adulthood as a time for exploration, while musicians in young adulthood regarded as "off-time" feel more pressure to disengage from musical careers. Those who persist are able to do so by successfully reframing the musician identity as congruent with adulthood. This resea...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - April 9, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Ramirez, M. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Exploring Indigenous Identities of Urban American Indian Youth of the Southwest
This study examined the indigenous identities of urban American Indian youth using measures related to three theoretical dimensions of Markstrom’s identity model: identification (tribal and ethnic heritage), connection (reservation ties), and involvement in traditional cultural practices and spirituality. Data came from self-administered questionnaires completed by 142 urban American Indian middle school students in a southwestern metropolitan area with the largest urban American Indian population in the United States. Using both quantitative and qualitative measures, descriptive statistics showed most youth were con...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - April 9, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Kulis, S., Wagaman, M. A., Tso, C., Brown, E. F. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
"My Son Is Reliable": Young Drivers' Parents' Optimism and Views on the Norms of Parental Involvement in Youth Driving
This study aimed to address this question. It draws on both quantitative and qualitative data obtained through a phone survey of 906 Israeli parents of young drivers that included both open- and closed-ended items and 20 semistructured interviews with parents. The main findings were that parents tended to be optimistic about their own child’s driving compared with other young drivers and were relatively unconcerned about speeding. Whereas most parents thought restrictions regarding driving at night or talking on the phone should be placed on young drivers, most believed many parents do not enforce them. Most also bel...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - January 25, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Guttman, N. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Latino Parent and Adolescent Perceptions of Hoped-for and Feared Possible Selves for Adolescents
The authors examined Latino parent and adolescent reports of hoped-for and feared possible selves for adolescents. Twenty-nine Latino parents (18 mothers, 11 fathers) and their 18 adolescents participated in semistructured individual interviews. Interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed, and coded for themes via content analysis. Themes that emerged included achievement, interpersonal, personal characteristics, financial-material, cultural roots, and risk behaviors. More parents than adolescents mentioned feared interpersonal selves such as being a teenage parent. Findings suggest that Latino parents and adolescents ...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - January 25, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Halfond, R., Corona, R., Moon, A. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Facing Adulthood: Comparing the Criteria That Chinese Emerging Adults and Their Parents Have for Adulthood
Discussion will focus on how the traditional Chinese notion of "face" may play an important role in the criteria young people and their parents endorse as necessary for adulthood. (Source: Journal of Adolescent Research)
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - January 25, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Nelson, L. J., Duan, X. x., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Luster, S. S. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Relationship Churning in Emerging Adulthood: On/Off Relationships and Sex With an Ex
We build on the emerging adulthood literature to examine two forms of relationship instability, reconciliations and sex with an ex; we term these forms of relationship churning. Analyzing recent data on emerging adult daters and cohabitors (n = 792), we find that nearly half report a reconciliation (a breakup followed by reunion) and over half of those who break up continue a sexual relationship (sex with an ex). We analyze individual demographic, social psychological, and relationship factors associated with reconciliations and sex with an ex. These findings showcase that emerging adult relationships are characterized by ...
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - January 25, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Halpern-Meekin, S., Manning, W. D., Giordano, P. C., Longmore, M. A. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
Do Video Games Promote Positive Youth Development?
We argue that video game play may meet Larson’s (2000) criteria for fostering initiative in youth, and thus, may be related to positive outcomes such as flow, cooperation, problem solving, and reduced in-group bias. However, developmental and social psychologists examining adolescent video game use have focused heavily on how video games are related to negative outcomes, while neglecting potential positive outcomes. In this article we review the adolescent video game literature, examining both negative and positive outcomes, and suggest important directions for future research. (Source: Journal of Adolescent Research)
Source: Journal of Adolescent Research - January 25, 2013 Category: Child Development Authors: Adachi, P. J. C., Willoughby, T. Tags: Articles Source Type: research
