The primary purpose of this case study was to determine if the university under study had adequate health-related programs, services, and supports in place to develop health-literate young adults. A secondary purpose was to identify strengths and gaps in these university health-related programs, services, and supports, which, if addressed, could increase the likelihood that college graduates would be health-literate. This research study served to answer three broad research questions: 1) What are the health-related needs and concerns among selected university undergraduates? 2) What is the level of awareness and utilization of health-related programs, services, and supports by university undergraduate students? 3) What are the strengths and gaps among health-related programs, services, and supports? As more and more young adults come to colleges and universities seeking an education, they bring with them high-risk health behaviors that can impede their academic success. Post-secondary institutions have programs, services, and supports in place specifically designed to ease the transition into college, provide academic assistance services, promote a safe learning and living environment as well as facilities and departments dedicated to raising awareness of and maintaining physical and mental health. The effectiveness with which these health-related programs, services, and supports are meeting their goals and reaching their target audience can be assessed by collecting student feedback regarding their attitudes, perceptions and usage. The first part of the study involved personal interviews with preselected representatives of Student Affairs, the President of the university, the Provost, Captain of Public Safety, and the Senior Athletic Director. Interview questions were designed to determine how, if any, of the programs, services, or supports under study supported the six dimensions of health and wellness, or the IOM skill set for health literacy. After all interviews were conducted, transcripts were reviewed and coding was conducted to determine the connection between the selected programs, services, and supports, and the IOM health literacy skill set and the six dimensions of health and wellness. Additionally, transcript review allowed for the identification of strengths and weakness among each of the programs, services, and supports. The second part of the study engaged students who volunteered to participate in focus groups in an open discussion about what they perceived health to be (as a concept) and to determine what, if any, personal health-related issues or concerns they felt at the present time, how health-related issues or concerns created barriers to their academic success, and their level of awareness about the programs, services, and supports available. In addition to conducting personal interviews and focus groups, I analyzed documents and material (i.e. web-pages, brochures, student handbook, under graduate bulletin) related to each department under study. This document analysis was also coded for connections to the six dimensions of health and wellness or the IOM's health literacy skill set. Web-pages were further analyzed for strengths and gaps related to each program, service, or support. An embedded analysis was conducted and themes were interpreted. Discussion and recommendations were stated at the conclusion of the case study; increasing health-literacy among college students and raising awareness of and attempting to reduce high-risk, health-related behaviors are consistent with goals and characteristics of a graduate from the university under study. Not surprisingly, when asked, most students only identified the physical aspect of "health" and sometimes, as a mental aspect with regards to stress. Feedback from focus group discussions indicated that students could make a connection between all six dimensions of health and how they might impede academic performance. Unfortunately, however, they did not seem to possess the skills or the knowledge on to how correct negative health behaviors themselves, or how to seek out various health-related programs, services, and supports that are available. By in large, students seemed very interested in learning more about many of these programs, services, and supports and indicated that they wished they had been made aware of such opportunities at the beginning of their college careers. Students also communicated lack of knowledge and awareness about the available health-related programs, services, and supports. Focus group discussions indicated that students felt as though the campus under study had not really taken the time to discover which methods of communication were successful; further indicating that current delivery methods were outdated and ineffective.

Literature reveals that college freshmen that reside on American campuses partake in many risky health behaviors, but little is known on the effects of housing on these risk behaviors. The purpose of this study was to examine the health risk behaviors of college freshmen that lived in either traditional, non-themed housing or in wellness themed housing (WELL) and if there was a difference between the two. Four research questions guided this study: (1). What are the risk behaviors of freshmen college students? (2). What are the risk behaviors of students in the WELL LC? (3). What are the risk behaviors of freshman residing in traditional housing? (4). What are the differences in risk behaviors between the freshmen living in the WELL LC and traditionally housed freshmen? The health risk behaviors that were determined for testing were injury-related behaviors, substance use behaviors, sexual behaviors, dietary behaviors, physical activity and sleep. The instrument used was a combination of the National College Health Risk Behavior Survey and Epworth Sleep Survey. The Traditional and the WELL completed the surveys in the beginning of the fall semester and again at the end of the spring semester of the same academic year. There were a higher percentage of alcohol-related injury behaviors, substance use and sexual activity in traditional residents. Dietary behaviors, physical activity and sleep behaviors were not significantly different between Traditional and WELL residents. The conclusion of this study indicated that the WELL housing may have had a positive effect on abstaining from alcohol, drugs, and sexual behaviors. Further research is needed to explore the root cause of these behavioral differences. / Ph. D.

No description available.

No description available.

Health behaviors, positive and negative, can support or reduce risk for multiple chronic diseases, such as substance use disorder and obesity. These diseases are marked by overconsuming commodities that offer predictable short-term benefits, and neglecting other behaviors with variable long-term benefits (e.g., fast food is enjoyable in the moment; exercise may have delayed benefits, but moment-to-moment may not be as reinforcing as fast food). An individual's valuation of these fast food or exercise may depend on how far out into the future these benefits are considered, their temporal window. The first study shows that the temporal window is constricted among high-risk substance users than people who do not have substance problems, especially when considering higher-value choices. The second study shows that the temporal window can change depending on the environment. Specifically, engaging with stories of job loss can constrict the temporal window. The third study shows that engaging with job loss can specifically constrict the temporal window and increase the value of fast food among obese individuals. The final study shows that a similar hardship scenario, natural disasters, can constrict the temporal window, increase demand for alcohol and cigarettes, and decrease the valuation of more temporally extended reinforcers (e.g., employment, savings, and seatbelt wearing) among smoking drinkers. Together, these studies support a model, reinforcer pathology; wherein the temporal window, which can differ both between individuals and environments, drives valuation of reinforcers that impact health. / Doctor of Philosophy / Health behaviors, positive and negative, can support or reduce risk for multiple chronic diseases, such as substance use disorder and obesity. These diseases are marked by overconsuming commodities that offer predictable short-term benefits, and neglecting other behaviors with variable long-term benefits (e.g., fast food is enjoyable in the moment; exercise may have delayed benefits, but moment-to-moment may not be as reinforcing as fast food). An individual’s valuation of these fast food or exercise may depend on how far out into the future these benefits are considered, their temporal window. The first study shows that the temporal window is constricted among high-risk substance users than people who do not have substance problems, especially when considering higher-value choices. The second study shows that the temporal window can change depending on the environment. Specifically, engaging with stories of job loss can constrict the temporal window. The third study shows that engaging with job loss can specifically constrict the temporal window and increase the value of fast food among obese individuals. The final study shows that a similar hardship scenario, natural disasters, can constrict the temporal window, increase demand for alcohol and cigarettes, and decrease the valuation of more temporally extended reinforcers (e.g., employment, savings, and seatbelt wearing) among smoking drinkers. Together, these studies support a model, reinforcer pathology; wherein the temporal window, which can differ both between individuals and environments, drives valuation of reinforcers that impact health.

No description available.

In national surveys of adolescents, Latina females have been found to have higher rates of suicidal ideation and attempts when compared to Latino males and to non-Latino White and Black males and females (Centers for Disease Control [CDC], 2014). The reasons for these gender and racial disparities in suicidal behavior have not been definitively established. Prior research indicates that suicidal behavior among adolescents is influenced by both individual-level psychological symptoms and by psychosocial risk factors (Bridge, Goldstein, & Brent, 2006; King & Merchant, 2008; Prinstein, Boergers, Spirito, Little, & Grapentine, 2000). Among Latina adolescents in particular, the interplay between cultural processes and family relationships has been identified as a key influence on suicidal behavior (Zayas, 2011). The purpose of this study was to build upon Zayas’s (2011) model of suicidality among adolescent Latinas by evaluating the relative effects of individual, family, and peer factors on suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts. A latent variable structural equation model (SEM) was developed and tested using a sample that included 946 Latinas aged 13 to 18 who were interviewed for a national psychiatric epidemiological survey, the National Comorbidity Survey – Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A; Kessler, 2013). The SEM model measured the direct and indirect effects of the latent variables of generation status, peer support, negative peer influence, family relationships, and depression on suicidality. Results of the study indicated that higher levels of depression, poorer family relationships, and higher levels of negative peer influence resulted in higher levels of suicidality. The influence of family relationships and negative peer influence on suicidality were partially mediated by depression; however, negative peer influence also had a substantial direct effect on suicidality. Results of this study support a clinical focus on multisystemic interventions for Latina adolescents that address functioning at individual, family, and peer levels, as well as further investigation into the pathways by which negative peer influence impacts suicidality in this population. / text

This study gives attention to the effects of instability of placement, emotional disturbances, and at-risk behaviors on the academic performance of adolescents in foster care, specifically males. The purpose of this study was to examine the academic success of male adolescents in foster care and environmental influences that prevent many children from excelling. Data were extracted and analyzed (Chi-Square) from 50 of200 case files (active and discharged). The sample represented male residents (12 to 18 years of age) of a privately run, state licensed residential group home in Georgia. Academic performance was measured by grade point average. Twenty-eight percent did not function on grade level while 72% functioned on grade level. There was no statistical significance between academic achievement and instability of placement (X2= .577, p = .448), emotional disturbances(X2= .759, p = -.348), aggressive/violent behavior (X2= .020, p = .887), and sexual activity (X2=.732, p = .392). However, there was statistical significance found between academic achievement and substance use (X2= 4.095, p = .043). An additional key finding in this study was 74% of the adolescents had a mental health diagnosis but had only been in foster care less than one year. Therefore, additional research should be conducted to determine the preexisting conditions adolescents experience before entering foster care. The findings from this study can perhaps encourage the child welfare community to investigate other variables that may impact the academic achievement of adolescents in foster care.

It is estimated that US children 2 to 18 years of age spend an average of 5.5 hours, daily, using media of all types. 1 During these years, it is estimated they will have viewed over 200,000 acts of violence just on television. 2 In this issue of the Southern Medical Journal, Dr. Robert DuRant and colleagues reported on their findings that an increased frequency of watching professional wrestling on television was associated with an increase in reported date fighting and other violent behaviors, risky sexual behavior, and smoking cigarettes, among a multistate random sample of adolescents aged 16 to 20 years. 3 In this cross-sectional study, 22.4% of males and 13.6% of females reported watching professional wrestling on television during the 2 weeks before the survey. Prior research, including experimental and longitudinal studies, has consistently demonstrated strong associations between exposure to media violence and desensitization to violence, greater acceptance of violence as a means of solving problems, and violent behavior, as well as depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbance. 4

Background: As the number of smokers in industrialized nations declines the number of smokers in developing countries increases. Many of the nations that are experiencing an increase in smoking prevalence are poor, politically unstable countries. The smoking rates among adolescents are increasing at an especially alarming rate. The tumultuous sociopolitical conditions such as civil unrest, the overthrowing of government regimes and the presence of political violence makes adolescents in these environments susceptible to engagement in high risk behavior such as smoking as a means of self- medicating the symptoms of mental disorder or unhealthy coping mechanisms. The purpose of this study was to analyze the difference in smoking behaviors and beliefs among adolescents in politically unstable countries compared to those in more stable areas. Methods: The West Bank, Gaza Strip, Yemen, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait were selected for inclusion in the study based on their World Bank Indicators. Stable countries were defined by their ranking in the 50th percentile or higher on the Political Stability and Absence of Violence Index, whereas unstable countries were defined as being in the 10th percentile or lower. Using secondary data from the 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) for eight countries, univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to assess the factors associated with smoking behaviors. Cases were truncated for 13- 15 year old respondents. A p- value of < .05 and 95% confidence intervals was used to determine statistical significance through the various analyses performed. Results: The univariate and multivariate analysis found that living in an unstable country and being male was associated with increased odds of smoking and experimentation among 13- 15 year old adolescents. Conclusion: The study results suggest that political stability may be associated with smoking behaviors and beliefs among adolescents. Since the factors that create political instability are multi-factorial and beyond the scope of this study, interventions should be designed to address smoking and other risk behaviors within this unique sociopolitical context. Previous interventions in similar settings have found programs integrating mental health dimension and religious leaders have been successful in staving off the onset of smoking among study populations. INDEX WORDS: teens, adolescents, trauma, political instability, risk behavior, tobacco, smoking, interventions,