Substance use initiation (SUI) among adolescents is a critical public health concern. Research indicates SUI in middle adolescence increases the risk of substance use in adulthood and later dependence, which can result in deleterious consequences for youth, family relationships, and community (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, [SAMSHA], 2014). This study investigated the role of involvement with deviant peers, school connectedness, and parenting quality on SUI (e.g., alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana) in middle adolescence using secondary data from a 5-year longitudinal study (N = 387). First, exploratory factor analyses and confirmatory factor analyses with a separate independent sample were conducted to develop a measure of parenting quality. Second, moderated mediation was tested using PROCESS (Hayes, 2013) with each parenting quality factor as a moderator of two mediation pathways (involvement with deviant peers and school connectedness) on three SUI outcomes. Results from the exploratory factor and confirmatory factor analyses were consistent and provided evidence for a three-factor solution for parenting quality: Parental Knowledge and Affective Relationships, Parental Control, and Parental Communication and Involvement. Results from the moderated mediation analyses did not support parenting quality factors as moderators for either mediation model. Involvement with deviant peers (Wave 3) mediated the relation between school connectedness (Wave 2) and each of the three substances (Wave 5) across all levels of parenting quality (e.g., bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals = -.50 – -.18 at low, -.47 – -.19 at average, and -.50 – -.16 at high levels of Parental Knowledge and Affective Relationships for alcohol use initiation). More specifically, low school connectedness predicted higher involvement with deviant peers, which, in turn, predicted a higher likelihood of SUI. School connectedness was not a significant mediator in the relationship between involvement with deviant peers and SUI. Although parenting quality factors did not moderate either of the mediation pathways, development of a comprehensive and psychometrically valid measure may aid in identifying specific parenting problem areas necessary for preventive intervention planning. Additionally, supporting adolescents who lack strong connections within the school may help prevent involvement with deviant peers and SUI.

General strain theory has received a fair amount of empirical support and theoretical elaboration over the past several years. Since the introduction of general strain theory, Agnew and others have attempted to increase the comprehensiveness of the processes involved in strain theory. Until recently, the general strain theory literature has ignored what Agnew and associates (Agnew, Brezina, Wright, & Cullen, 2002) argue may be one of the most important conditioning effects of the strain-crime relationship, namely the dispositions or personality traits of the individual experiencing strain. Recently, Agnew and associates (2002) published results from a study examining the conditioning effects of personality traits (i.e., negative emotionality and low constraint) on the strain-delinquency relationship. Their findings indicated that certain personality traits significantly condition the effect of strain on delinquency. Research has suggested that more severe personality and behavioral traits, such as psychopathy, also influence criminality. The present study examined moderating effects of both personality dispositions and psychopathic behavioral features among a sample of 137 youths referred to juvenile diversion by the court system. The results suggest that personality dispositions and psychopathic behavioral features do not significantly moderate the strain-delinquency relationship. In addition, this study conducted ad hoc analyses examining whether or not delinquency significantly increases the likelihood that subsequent strain and delinquency will result (i.e., a state dependence explanation (see Nagin & Farrington, 1992; Nagin & Paternoster, 1991)). Moderating effects of personality and psychopathy were also included in this model. Further, the role of strain as a mediator for the personality and psychopathy link to delinquency was tested. The findings suggest that delinquency exacerbated subsequent strain and delinquency levels among these youths. Personality and psychopathic features did not moderate the strain-delinquency relationship. Strain did not significantly moderate the personality-delinquency relationship. Limitations and implications for future research and policy are discussed.

This mixed methods study evaluated clinical and criminal justice outcomes of the Florida Jail Diversion and Trauma Recovery (JDTR) program that utilized compensated veteran peer mentors. Quantitative results showed veteran participation in JDTR improved clinical outcomes, such as PTSD symptoms, function difficulty and depression scores, but not criminal justice outcomes such as re-arrest rates. Study limitations, however, prevent the drawing of conclusions regarding the potential effectiveness of veteran peer interventions improving criminal justice outcomes. Qualitative results showed participants overwhelmingly viewed their assigned veteran peer mentor as a "peer" and rated them as "very important" to their future success. Improvements in avoidance and numbing and depression symptoms also suggest peer interventions may be effective in improving responsivity to evidence-based criminal justice interventions. Overall, findings were consistent with the RNR model that views mental illness as a responsivity factor, not a criminogenic need. They were also consistent with research on "first generation" forensic mental health interventions that shows improvements in clinical outcomes do not result in reductions in recidivism. Social workers as well as other mental health clinicians and policy makers should be familiar with evidenced-based criminal justice strategies, such as RNR, that focus on reducing recidivism and should incorporate these strategies into the development, implementation and evaluation of "second generation" interventions. Future research should evaluate the fidelity of implementation of such interventions as well as the role of peer mentors and importance of the recovery model and therapeutic alliance in improving criminal justice outcomes and responsivity.

<p>The researcher’s interest regarding criminality has increased and there were many studies focusing on what may influence an individual to commit crime. There were even articles stating that family bonds have the strongest impact in influencing a child when it comes to developing future criminal behavior.  In this qualitative study the stories are told by real individuals who have shared their experiences from childhood and adolescence to help identify the insecurities that made them commit a crime.  Setting existing theories aside, the study showed that it was not the structural background that mostly impacted future criminal behavior but the individual background factors weighted the most. Individuals seemed to be more impacted by factors such as thrill seeking or bad economy.  This study reflects the individual’s real stories and all included information is believed to be genuine.</p>

<p>Suicide is the ultimate outcome of mental illness and is a big and serious problem in society. About 1500 persons commit every year suicide in Sweden and many more engage in suicidal behaviour. This review aims at, from research studies from the 21th century, find out the knowledge of riskfactors regarding the risk for committing suicide among adolescents. The research questions are: What does research say, from a psychobiological perspective, about riskfactors among adolescents regarding the risk for suicidal behaviour? How much does genetic factors have an effect on the risk for suicidal behaviour among adolescents? and : What is the importance of environmental factors such as family connections, friends and school environment concerning suicidal thoughts among adolescents?</p><p>The method that is used in order to answer these questions is a researchreview including ten research-studies. The theory that is used for the analyse of the results is the psychobiologial perspective, which includes genetic and psychological theories. The conclusion of the review is, not surprisingly, that the genetic factors are of great importance for the development of suicidal behaviour. These factors interact with environmental factors in a complex way and is an explanation for suicidal thoughts among adolescents. The most prominent riskfactors mentioned in the result are: Psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviour among parents, psychiatric disorders among the adolescents, neclect, psycial abuse, sexual abuse and also longtime unemployment among mothers. Furthermore are lack of friends and being victim of bullying serious riskfactors for developing suicidal behaviour.</p>

Recently, researchers have introduced the notion of super-peers to improve signaling efficiency as well as lookup performance of peer-to-peer (P2P) systems. In a separate development, recent works on applications of mobile ad hoc networks (MANET) have seen several proposals on utilizing mobile fleets such as city buses to deploy a mobile backbone infrastructure for communication and Internet access in a metropolitan environment. This paper further explores the possibility of deploying P2P applications such as content sharing and distributed computing, over this mobile backbone infrastructure. Specifically, we study how city buses may be deployed as a mobile system of super-peers. We discuss the main motivations behind our proposal, and outline in detail the design of a super-peer based structured P2P system using a fleet of city buses. / Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)

The researcher’s interest regarding criminality has increased and there were many studies focusing on what may influence an individual to commit crime. There were even articles stating that family bonds have the strongest impact in influencing a child when it comes to developing future criminal behavior.  In this qualitative study the stories are told by real individuals who have shared their experiences from childhood and adolescence to help identify the insecurities that made them commit a crime.  Setting existing theories aside, the study showed that it was not the structural background that mostly impacted future criminal behavior but the individual background factors weighted the most. Individuals seemed to be more impacted by factors such as thrill seeking or bad economy.  This study reflects the individual’s real stories and all included information is believed to be genuine.

Suicide is the ultimate outcome of mental illness and is a big and serious problem in society. About 1500 persons commit every year suicide in Sweden and many more engage in suicidal behaviour. This review aims at, from research studies from the 21th century, find out the knowledge of riskfactors regarding the risk for committing suicide among adolescents. The research questions are: What does research say, from a psychobiological perspective, about riskfactors among adolescents regarding the risk for suicidal behaviour? How much does genetic factors have an effect on the risk for suicidal behaviour among adolescents? and : What is the importance of environmental factors such as family connections, friends and school environment concerning suicidal thoughts among adolescents? The method that is used in order to answer these questions is a researchreview including ten research-studies. The theory that is used for the analyse of the results is the psychobiologial perspective, which includes genetic and psychological theories. The conclusion of the review is, not surprisingly, that the genetic factors are of great importance for the development of suicidal behaviour. These factors interact with environmental factors in a complex way and is an explanation for suicidal thoughts among adolescents. The most prominent riskfactors mentioned in the result are: Psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviour among parents, psychiatric disorders among the adolescents, neclect, psycial abuse, sexual abuse and also longtime unemployment among mothers. Furthermore are lack of friends and being victim of bullying serious riskfactors for developing suicidal behaviour.

Bakgrund: Det sociala stödets inverkan på barn och ungdomars idrottsutövande är en betydelsefull faktor i strävan att uppnå inte bara goda idrottsresultat utan även en allmän positiv utveckling av fysiskt, psykiskt, socialt och kulturellt välbefinnande. Syfte: Syftet med denna litteraturstudie var att utforska det sociala stödets inverkan på barn och ungdomars idrottsutövande. Design: Litteraturstudie. Metod: Författarna har använt sig av databaser och elektroniska tidskrifter för att samla in vetenskapliga artiklar på engelska. Elva artiklar valdes ut. Resultat: Studiens författare fann tre huvudteman för barn och ungdomars sociala stöd; föräldrar, kamrater och tränare. Vidare tillkom underteman av det sociala stödets funktion såsom instrumentellt stöd, känslomässigt stöd, autonomi och förebilder. Konklusion: Socialt stöd som leder till inre motivation är den drivkraft som ger positiva attityder till idrott och främjar barn och ungdomars fysiska aktivitet över tid. / Background: The influence of social support on sports for children and adolescent is a major factor for the purpose of achieving not only good sport results but also an overall positive improvement of physical, psychological, social and cultural wellbeing. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of social supports on sports for children and adolescents. Design: Literature review. Methods: The authors used databases and electronic journals in order to collect scientific papers published in English. Ultimately eleven articles were selected. Result: The authors of this literature review found three main themes in children and adolescents social support: parents, friends and coaches. Further sub-themes were found for social support, such as instrumental support, emotional support, autonomy and role models. Conclusion: Social support leading to instrinct motivation is the momentum giving positive attitudes for sports and promotes physical activity over time for children and adolescents.

The number of children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who are being served in the public school system has increased dramatically in recent years. During an increased focus on inclusion within education, research shows that students with ASD educated in the general education classroom generally do not have as many friends as their peers without ASD. However, some students with ASD are found to have more friends than other students with ASD. Therefore, additional research must explore potential factors that may be influencing the success with which students with ASD form friendships within the general education classroom. Using a multiple case study ecological approach, this study examines child, peer, and general education teacher factors related to the friendship patterns of three male students with ASD in fourth or fifth grade general education classrooms. Results from this study indicate that consistent with previous research, some students with ASD are found to be more socially embedded within the social network of the general education classroom and report greater levels of social satisfaction than other students with ASD. Findings suggest that for the three participants within this study, having two solid friendships, regardless of the social status of the friends of the student with ASD, may be related to a higher level of social network status and lower levels of self-reported loneliness for students with ASD. Factors that were found to be important for the three target students in this study included quality of social skills, quality of friendship, understanding of the construct of friendship, and general education teacher experience level. Factors that were found to be less important for the three target students in this study included peer attitudes towards children with disabilities, teacher attitudes towards inclusion of students with autism, teacher knowledge of autism, and teacher knowledge and use of evidence-based practices. Possible explanations for these findings, as well as limitations, directions for future research, and implications are discussed.