published_or_final_version / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / Community Medicine / Master / Master of Public Health

The sexual content of media aimed at pre- and early adolescents (including magazines, movies, TV shows, and websites) has increased dramatically in recent years. Psychologists have expressed concern that exposure to such material leads to “internalized sexualization.” A recent APA Task Force (2007) called on researchers to study sexualization among pre- and early adolescent girls to understand its effect on development. In this master’s thesis, I developed the first known measure of internalized sexualization. The scale was demonstrated to be internally reliable and valid. The scale was also used to examine the relation between internalized sexualization and academic achievement. A strong negative relation was found between the two constructs; girls with higher levels of internalized sexualization have poorer academic achievement than girls with lower levels of internalized sexualization. The implications of the findings are discussed and future directions for research are suggested. / text

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In New Zealand, it is common for young people to mix 1-benzylpiperazine (BZP) containing 'party pills' and ethanol (drinking alcohol). However, there is no scientific literature which compares the individual and combined long-term effects of these substances. Therefore, the aim of this study was to provide a comparison of BZP and ethanol's individual and combined effects on adulthood behaviour following repeated adolescent exposure. To investigate this 40 male and 40 female adolescent rats received daily exposure (post natal days 41 - 50) to BZP (10 mg/kg) and/or ethanol (2 g/kg) or saline vehicle (1 ml/kg) via intraperitoneal injection. Animals were tested in a Y maze, light/dark emergence box, and an open field during early adulthood (PND 78 - 81) and again during mid-adulthood (PND 117 - 120). Results found females treated with alcohol ambulated less in the open field. Interestingly, no other behavioural differences between the treatment groups were observed. Overall, it appeared that adolescent exposure to BZP and/or alcohol did not have long-term behavioural consequences, at least in rats. This finding was most likely due to the narrow range of testing ages adopted in the study.

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The purpose of this study was to determine adolescents' level of interest and engagement in risk behaviours as it relates to adolescents' and parents' perceptions of the parenting variables, demandingness and responsiveness. Data were collected from both adolescents and parents. The sample was obtained from two schools: (a) 44 Grade 8 students (28 girls, 16 boys) from a local junior high school and their parents (44 mothers, 37 fathers) ; and (b) 33 Grade 8 students (10 girls, 23 boys) from a second local junior high school. In order to examine perceptions of parenting, participants were asked to complete a 33 item questionnaire adapted from Lamborn et al.'s (1991) parenting measure and Greenberg's (1991) Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment. Adolescents were also asked to report on their level of engagement in 26 risk behaviours, adapted from Lavery et al.'s (1993) 23-item Risk Involvement and Perception Scale. Results indicate adolescents' interest in becoming involved in risk behaviours although a relatively low incidence of actual engagement in risk behaviours is evidenced at this time. Adolescents from one school report significantly higher interest in risk behaviours than those from the other (F₃,₇₃ = 4.98, p<.03). However, the relationships between adolescents' ratings of risk behaviours and the two parenting variables were similar at the two schools. Findings were, therefore, reported for the combined group of adolescents (N = 77) . Adolescents' perceptions of parental demandingness and responsiveness were relatively positive overall. Relationships between adolescents' perceptions of parental demandingness and responsiveness, particularly with regard to mothers, were inversely related to interest in risk behaviours (ranging from r = -.62 to r = -.35 for Total Risk Behaviour). Multiple regression analyses indicated that mothers' demandingness, as perceived by adolescents, is the most significant predictor (Standard beta = -.56, p.001) of teens' interest propensity for engagement in risk behaviours. Adolescents' perceptions of parenting are more strongly related to their interest in risk behaviours than are parents' perceptions of their own parenting. Discrepancy scores between perceptions of demandingness and responsiveness indicate that parents typically rated themselves higher on the parenting variables than did their teens. However, the absolute magnitude of discrepancy in parental demandingness was found to be only moderately associated with adolescents' ratings of risk behaviours (r = .32) and no relationship was found for discrepant perceptions of parental responsiveness. Four parenting style groups (Authoritative, Authoritarian, Permissive Indulgent, and Permissive Indifferent), based on Baumrind's conceptual framework, were formed on the basis of adolescents' ratings of their parents' demandingness and responsiveness. Adolescents parented Authoritatively (scores above the median on both variables) reported the lowest level of interest in risk behaviours, whereas teens from Permissive Indifferent families report the highest (F₃,₄₅ = 8.03, p < . 001) . A qualitative study was conducted by examining adolescents' use of leisure time. Eight adolescents, a male and a female chosen from each of the four parenting groups, completed a four-day Activity Log describing what they did, where, and with whom in out-of-school time. Those who were parented Authoritatively reported the fewest risk factors and the lowest level of interest in risk behaviours. Further investigation of adolescents' interest or engagement in risk behaviours, using the Activity Log in conjunction with comprehensive interviews, is warranted. This study contributes to knowledge in this area in several ways: (a) a wide range of risk behaviours was examined in relation to the parenting variables, demandingness and responsiveness; (b) in addition to adolescents' data, both fathers' and mothers' data were examined in relation to adolescents' interest and engagement in risk behaviour; and, (c) new measures, some derived from others' work and one newly created, were employed. / Graduate