Despite the availability of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, African American women are still at risk for contracting HPV. This is significant because HPV is one of the main risk factors for cervical cancer. The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the relationship between the use of HPV vaccination for cervical cancer prevention and personal history of HPV, reduced access to healthcare, and risky sexual behaviors in African American women. The theoretical framework used for this study was the health belief model (HBM). Two hundred twenty-nine (n=229) African American women living in the United States, ages 18-49, who participated in the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were the sample under study. A univariate analysis was performed to describe the population and obtain frequencies and percentages for all covariates. A bivariate analysis was conducted to determine whether there was an association between any of the independent variables and the dependent variable. A multivariable logistic regression was conducted to build a predictor model for use of HPV vaccination. Women between the ages of 18 and 34 were 7.22 times as likely to receive the HPV vaccine as women aged 35-49 years, and this was statistically significant (OR: 7.22; 95% CI: 2.36 - 22.13). This study can contribute to positive social change within the community and public health profession through an increased awareness and knowledge of HPV and cervical cancer, especially for African American women.

Gang membership is associated with increased exposure to risky behaviors, including violent victimization and other negative health outcomes (Krohn and Thornberry 2008; Howell and Decker 1999) Using a sample of 74 African American female gang members from Champaign IL, this study explores the association between gang friendships and risky sexual behavior, specifically the number of sexual partners an individual has had. I argue that gang friendship networks are proxies for risky behavior and this may extend into the realm of sexual health as well. Understanding the effect of friendship may help to explain an individual’s propensities towards risky sexual behavior above and beyond individual level attributes, as friendship has been linked to peer influence. I will examine three main research questions. (1) What is the broad effect of friendship on sexual risk taking among female gang members? (2) How does gang affiliation alter the effect of friendship? and (3) How does the effect of friendship differ based on the strength of the tie? Findings suggest that friendship networks have a strong prediction effect on number of sexual partners amongst gang women in my sample, but varies based on type of friendship and strength of tie. Results suggest that affiliated gang friends increase the likelihood of having more sexual partners, whereas non-affiliated and non-gang friends decrease this likelihood. When disaggregated, the strength of the relationship is significant.

Barns motoriska utveckling är en viktig del av arbetet i förskolan. I Läroplan för förskolan, Lpfö 18 (Skolverket 2018, s. 9) står det att förskolans uppdrag är att utmana och främja barns motoriska utveckling och lärande i varierande miljöer. Den forskning som undersökt barns motoriska utveckling i utomhusmiljöer och vid riskfylld lek är bristfällig, vilket innebär att mer forskning inom området behövs. Därav är syftet med denna studie att undersöka hur förskollärare arbetar i utomhusmiljöer och hur riskfylld lek används för att främja barns motoriska utveckling. Studien har genomförts med den kvalitativa metoden self-report, där förskollärare besvarat nio frågor via e-post. I studiens resultat framkommer det att förskollärarna anser utomhusmiljön som betydelsefull för barns motoriska utveckling. Det framgår dessutom att när barn får möta varierande miljöer och leka med olika material främjas deras motorik. Förskollärarna lyfter fram vikten av närvarande, medforskande och stöttande pedagoger när barn utvecklas motoriskt i utomhusmiljöer. Resultatet visar även att förskollärarna anser att riskfylld lek är gynnsamt för barns motoriska utveckling, då de utmanas i olika rörelseaktiviteter vilket främjar deras motorik. / Children's motor development is an important part of the work in preschool. In the Swedish Curriculum for the preschool, Lpfö 18 (Skolverket 2018, p. 9) it is stated that the preschool's mission is to challenge and promote children's motor development and learning in varying environments. Previous research that has studied children's motor development in outdoor environments and at risky play is inadequate, which means that more research in the area is needed. Hence, the purpose of this study is to investigate how preschool teachers work in outdoor environments and how risky play is used to promote children's motor development. The study has been conducted using the qualitative method self-report, where preschool teachers answered nine questions via e-mail. The results of the study show that preschool teachers consider the outdoor environment to be important for children's motor development. It also appears that when children encounter varying environments and play with different materials, their motor skills are promoted. The preschool teachers highlight the importance of present, co-researching and supportive teachers when children develop motor skills in outdoor environments. The results also show that preschool teachers consider risky play to be beneficial for children's motor development, as they are challenged in various activities which promotes their motor skills.

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a mental disorder that negatively affects personal health and burdens the global health system. Alcohol-attributed harms can also extend beyond the drinkers to other people in the society through increased road traffic accidents and more interpersonal violent behaviors. The effects of this disorder make it crucial to investigate predisposing mechanisms in order to identify at-risk individuals and further develop novel interventions. Although aberrant learning and dysfunctions in decision-making have been observed in individuals with AUD, it is not yet clear whether they predispose the development of risky drinking behaviors or result from repetitive alcohol use. To disentangle this, we studied the drinking behaviors of a community sample comprising participants who were 18–24, which is when the prevalence of alcohol use typically peaks. This thesis investigates whether two types of learning mechanisms—the balance between goal-directed and habitual control and the susceptibility to interference between Pavlovian cues and instrumental behaviors—are associated with the development of risky alcohol drinking behaviors. For Study 1, we assessed how goal-directed and habitual controls at 18 predispose alcohol use development over the course of 3 years. Goal-directed and habitual control, which are informed by model-based (MB) and model-free (MF) learning, were assessed with a two-step sequential decision-making task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Three-year drinking trajectories were constructed based on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C; assessed every 6 months) and a gram/drinking occasion measure (binge drinking score; assessed yearly). Latent growth curve models were applied to examine how the MB and MF controls were associated with the drinking trajectories. We found that MB control was negatively associated with the development of the binge drinking score trajectory. In contrast, MF reward prediction signals in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the ventral striatum (VS) were associated with a higher starting point and a steeper increase/less decrease in AUDIT-C, respectively. For Study 2, we investigated the cross-sectional association between the susceptibility to interference between Pavlovian cues and instrumental behaviors and risky (binge) drinking behaviors at age 18. During a Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT) task, the participants were instructed to “collect good shells” and “leave bad shells” while the appetitive (monetary gain) or aversive (monetary loss) Pavlovian cues were presented in the background. The behavioral interference PIT effect was characterized by an increased error rate (ER) during incongruent trials (“collecting good shells” in the presence of an aversive Pavlovian cue or “leaving bad shells” during the presentation of an appetitive Pavlovian cue) in comparison to congruent ones. Overall, the individuals demonstrated a substantial behavioral PIT effect. Neural PIT correlates were found in the VS, dorsomedial, and lateral prefrontal cortices (dmPFC and lPFC, respectively). High-risk drinkers, in comparison to low-risk drinkers, exhibited a stronger behavioral PIT effect, decreased lPFC responses, and increased trend-level VS responses. Moreover, the effective connectivity from the VS to the lPFC during the incongruent trials was weaker for the high-risk drinkers, which indicates that the altered interplay between bottom-up and top-down neural responses may contribute to the poor interference control performance of this group. During Study 3, we further examined whether the susceptibility to Pavlovian cues during conflict trials was associated with the development of drinking behaviors over 6 years from ages 18 to 24. The drinking behaviors were again constructed based on the AUDIT-C and the binge drinking score. The PIT task was assessed at ages 18 and 21. Following Study 2, the increased ER in the incongruent condition compared with the congruent condition (along with the neural responses in the VS, lPFC, and dmPFC during the incongruent trials) were included in the latent growth curve models as predictors. A stronger VS response during a conflict at age 18 was associated with a higher starting point in both drinking trajectories but was negatively associated with the development of the binge drinking score trajectory. At age 21, high ER and enhanced neural responses in the dmPFC were associated with a risky AUDIT-C trajectory that started to emerge and develop until age 24. Through exploratory cluster analyses of the drinking trajectories, we identified two subgroups: the drinking behavior in the 'late riser' group escalated after age 21, whereas the drinking of 'early peakers' culminated at this age and then declined. The late risers displayed enhanced dmPFC responses and higher ER during conflict at age 21. Interestingly, this group also exhibited an increased ER from ages 18 to 21. Taken altogether, the unbalanced goal-directed to habitual control, informed by less MB and more MF control, appears to be a strong predisposing candidate mechanism that underlies the development of risky drinking behaviors during young adulthood. At age 18, the susceptibility to interference between Pavlovian cues and instrumental behaviors was associated with risky drinking behavior. The development of risky drinking behaviors over the 6 years was associated with the behavioral interference PIT effect at age 21 and its change from ages 18 to 21. Researchers could further explore the dynamics in PIT to predict risky drinking behaviors in the future.

Huvudsyftet med denna kvalitativa studie är att bidra med kunskap om förskollärares och barnskötares uppfattningar om riskfylld lek. Med stöd av de frågeställningar som vi har valt att fördjupa oss inom detta ämne har vi studerat hur förskolepedagoger resonerar kring riskfylld lek, hur de beskriver sina undervisningsstrategier med risktagande och vilka faktorer som anses påverka barns möjligheter att utmana sina gränser genom lek. Som metod för datainsamling har vi valt semi-strukturerade intervjuer med förskolepedagoger som arbetar med barn mellan tre och sex år. Begreppet barnperspektiv och Becks (1992) teori om risksamhället är två analytiska utgångspunkter som använts i denna uppsats. Resultatet har visat att riskfylld lek har sitt utrymme i förskolor i Stockholms län, men samtidigt är vuxnas syn på den leken fortfarande delad. De intervjuade förskolepedagogerna har berättat om olika faktorer som påverkar barns tillgång till riskfylld lek samt hur de arbetar för att främja den typen av lek. Föräldrars och kollegors oro och attityder samt olika beslut från kommuner och fastighetsägare som påverkar miljöer anses begränsande för barns möjlighet att engagera sig i utmanande lekar. Samtidigt ser förskolepedagogerna naturmiljön och dialog med de andra vuxna som viktiga faktorer som kan stötta barns riskfylld lek. Enligt resultatet är de intervjuade pedagogerna medvetna om den riskfyllda lekens fördelar och således antar de sin roll som stöttande och tillåtande när det kommer till att utmana barnen att öva på något som ligger utanför ramen för de kompetenser som de redan har.

I denna studie analyseras bilderböcker med fokus på hur riskfylld lek och maktrelationer skildras. Analyserna sker med hjälp av narratologiska begrepp. Viktiga begrepp i analysen av bilderböckerna, utöver riskfylld lek, är makt, motstånd och förhandling. Tidigare forskning visar att riskfylld lek är gynnsam för barnens både fysiska och kognitiva utveckling och deras förmåga att bedöma risker. Analysen är en kvalitativ bilderboksanalys med syfte att belysa hur riskfylld lek och barns självständighet gestaltas i bilderböcker för barn i förskoleålder. Det framkom att den riskfyllda leken gestaltas på olika vis i de olika bilderböckerna, men med ett övergripande tema där leken är lustfylld för barnen. I de analyserade bilderböckerna är i vissa fall de vuxna inte närvarande, när de vuxna finns med i berättelserna så har de övergripande ett negativt synsätt kopplat till de risker barnen möter i leken. Att arbeta pedagogiskt med samtal och aktiviteter kring litteratur som gestaltar riskfylld lek kan medföra att representationerna i bilderböckerna samt i de normer barn och pedagoger möter i förskolan skulle kunna ändras för att bättre överensstämma med utbildningsteori och barns egna erfarenheter. Samtalen, med fokus på ämnen som riskfylld lek, makt och delaktighet kopplat till förskolans verksamhet, kan möjliggöra för barn att genom dessa samtal påverka sin egen situation. / This study looks at how “risky play” and children’s independence is portrayed in picture books aimed at children ages 3-6. The picture books are analyzed using narratological concepts, focusing on how power relations are portraited. Some of the key concepts dealt with in the analysis, in addition to risky play, are power, resistance and negotiation. Research shows that risky play in ECEC is important for children to develop not only physically, but also their cognitive development and ability to assess risks. Although it was concluded that risky play is portraited in different ways in the books analyzed, an overarching theme of the play portraited as joyful was identified. In some of the picture books analyzed, adults were absent throughout. When the adults were included in the stories, they generally had a negative view on the potential risk children face in risky play. By working pedagogically in ECEC with conversations and activities around literature that portrays risky play, representations could shift to better align with educational theory and children’s own experience. The conversations, with a focus on topics such as risky play, power and participation connected to the ECEC context, can enable adults and children to, through conversations, give the children the opportunity to influence their own situation in the ECEC settings.

Syftet med studien är att öka kunskapen om förskollärares uppfattningar av riskfylld lek i förskolans utemiljö. Utifrån våra egna tidigare erfarenheter, när vi har varit verksamma i förskola, har vi sett och upplevt att säkerheten hos pedagogerna tar överhand när barnen vill utforska riskfylld lek. Vi har även sett att riskfylld lek är ett underforskat ämne nationellt och det behövs mer forskning.  Studiens forskningsfrågor handlar om vilka uppfattningar förskollärare har om riskfylld lek samt vilka möjligheter och dilemman som framträder i förskollärarnas uppfattningar om den riskfyllda leken. I studien används en kvalitativ metod med semistrukturerade intervjuer med åtta förskollärare. Utifrån intervjuerna och analys med en fenomenografisk analysmodell har fyra olika uppfattningar om riskfylld lek framkommit. De olika uppfattningarna är vikten av att barnen ska utmana sig i leken, att barnen ska lära sig i leken, pedagogernas alternativ till riskfylld lek samt pedagogernas rädsla för att barnen ska skada sig. Det framkommer i resultatet att förskollärarna är medvetna om fördelarna som riskfylld lek kan bidra med till barnens utveckling. Risken för skada väger över och kan istället leda till att förskollärarna hellre begränsar barnens riskfyllda lek. Möjligheterna som visas utifrån förskollärarnas uppfattningar är att det är av vikt att barnen har närvarande pedagoger och att det finns olika sätt hur pedagoger är närvarande i barnens lek. Dilemma som framkommit är att förskollärarna anser att ekonomin begränsar dem i möjligheterna till att skapa och utveckla en utmanande utemiljö för barnen. Ett annat dilemma som visas är att stora barngrupper påverkar den riskfyllda leken för att pedagogerna känner att de inte alltid räcker till för att barnen ska kunna få utforska den riskfyllda leken. / The aim of this study is to enhance understanding regarding preschool teacher’s perceptions of risky play in the outdoor environment of preschools. Based on our own previous experiences while actively participating in preschool activities, we observed that educators prioritize safety when children seek to engage in risky play. We have also noticed that risky play is a relatively under-researched topic nationally, highlighting the need for further investigation. The study uses a qualitative method, utilizing semi-structured interviews with eight preschool teachers. Based on these interviews, and analysis with a phenomenographic analysis model four distinct perception of risk play emerge. These includes the significance of children challenging themselves in play, children learning through play, pedagogue’s consideration of risky play as an alternative, and the pedagogue’s concerns about potential injures to children. The results indicate that preschool teachers are aware of the benefits that risky play can contribute to the children's development. However, the fear of injury tends to outweigh these benefits, leading preschool teachers to lean towards limiting children's engagement in risky play. The possibilities based on the pre-school teacher’s perceptions indicate the importance of having pedagogues present for the children, and that there are various ways in which pedagogues can engage in the children's play. A dilemma that emerged is that preschool teachers believe financial constrains limit their ability to create and develop a stimulating outdoor environment for the children. Another dilemma highlighted is that large groups of children impact the risky play because educators feel they may not always be sufficient to supervise the children adequately in exploring such activities.

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Evolutionary models of adolescent and young adult risk-taking posit that risk-taking increases during this period of the life span as a strategic way for males, in particular, to show dominance, increase perceptions of attractiveness by the opposite-sex, and maximize their chances of acquiring a romantic partner (and ultimately produce offspring). Consistent with this perspective, existing research demonstrates that attractive females increase risk-taking in single males, in part by enhancing males’ sensitivity to rewards and diminishing their ability to inhibit impulsive behavior. By contrast, romantically committed males engage in less risk taking than their single counterparts, although the mechanisms underlying the effect of romantic partners/partnerships on male risk-taking are less clear. In the present study, I employed a behavioral paradigm that has been used in prior studies of peer influence to examine how romantic partners affect decision-making processes and risk-taking behavior in young heterosexual males (18 to 24 years old). I also explored whether there are particular individual and relationship characteristics that moderate the effect of romantic partners on males’ decision-making. This study was conducted using a sample of 134 romantically involved males (mean age=20.2, SD=1.65; 64% White) who were randomly assigned to participate in one of three experimental conditions: alone, in the presence of an attractive female confederate, or in the presence of their romantic partner. Across conditions, I compared males’ behavioral performance on five outcome measures: risk taking (using the Stoplight Task), preference for immediate rewards (using a Delay Discounting Task), reward learning and cost avoidance (using a modified version of the Iowa Gambling Task), and inhibitory control over both neutral and emotionally charged stimuli (using cognitive and emotional versions of the Stroop Task). I found that the presence of romantic partners diminishes risk taking in males, but that romantic partners do not have a significant impact on males’ sensitivity to rewards (neither immediate nor long-term), sensitivity to loss (i.e., cost avoidance), or their ability to inhibit attention to interfering—neutral or emotional—stimuli. However, improvements in cognitive control in the presence of romantic partners were observed among males who report low levels of passionate love. That is, mildly infatuated males exhibited better cognitive control in the presence of their romantic partners relative to mildly infatuated males who were alone. Partner presence had no such effects among males who reported being highly infatuated with their girlfriends. The presence of an attractive female stranger triggered a protective response among romantically involved males—prompting them to take fewer risks (when they are highly committed to their partners), to more quickly avoid decisions that lead to long-term loss (among older males only), and to exhibit better cognitive control (only among males in relatively longer relationships). The presence of an attractive female stranger did not affect males’ sensitivity to rewards. Evidently, the relative impact of an attractive female stranger on males’ risk taking and decision-making is highly dependent on individual and relationship factors, a finding that emphasizes the importance of context when it comes to understanding males’ relative susceptibility to temptation (e.g., other females) and opportunities for potential risk (e.g., infidelity). By contrast, the dampening effect of romantic partners on male risk taking is neither dependent on individual or relationship characteristics nor the result of romantic partners’ influence on reward sensitivity or inhibitory control. However, given the finding that romantic partners enhance cognitive control when feelings of passionate love are relatively low, future research should examine how passionate love and cognitive control interact to predict risk taking. Although I could not identify potential mechanisms to explain why the presence of romantic partners diminishes males’ risk-taking, the current study demonstrates that under specific circumstances—such as when there is high relationship commitment or when the relationship is relatively long—the presence of an attractive female stranger can stimulate romantically involved males to engage regulatory processes that may contribute to their reduced inclination toward risky behavior in that context. This finding is consistent with prior studies and suggests that the presence of tempting stimuli and potential threats to relationship fidelity can trigger males’ deliberate engagement of regulatory processes in effort to maintain their current romantic relationship. In contrast, males’ reduced inclination to engage in risky behavior in the presence of their romantic partners may be automatically activated (without inducing a particular psychological state) regardless of individual and relationship characteristics. / Psychology