This qualitative descriptive inquiry investigates the perceptions and uses of social support of a selected group of adolescents who attended an English school for students with learning disabilities in Montreal, Quebec. I draw on Vygotskian socio-cultural theory as a framework for understanding how the participants access and use people for social support and how these adolescents provide others with social support. I use three Vygotskian concepts, the zone of proximal development, self-regulation and internalization to examine the differences between those who use support well and those who do not. Data collected and analyzed includes audio taped interviews with focus groups, students, parents, teachers and professional staff, school based and classroom based participant observations. A major finding to emerge is that adolescents in this inquiry use or do not use support well based on what they have internalized through previous experiences and social interactions in their home contexts. The students who use support well appear to have had positive demonstrations of social support within their zones of proximal development, thus enabling them to internalize and self regulate how to access and use social support in other contexts. The students who do not use support well do not appear to have experienced positive demonstrations of social support within their zones of proximal development. This latter group experience difficulties in accessing, accepting and using social support both in home and school contexts. However, these adolescents can learn to self regulate, access and use social support when adults, their peers or significant others listen and validate their concerns and move into their zones of proximal development. Implications for teachers include; (a) Creating open and trusting environments in which students feel comfortable in risk-taking and self-disclosure; and (b) Implementing mentoring programs in which a collaborative environment is created and

There appears to be a need to demystify suicidal behaviour not just for the benefit of researchers and health workers but equally for parents, teachers and most importantly for adolescents themselves. The focus in this study was on attempting to provide a fresh perspective of adolescent suicidal behaviour by viewing some delinquent and deviant behaviour as possible manifestation of suicidal behaviour and by decoding and making an attempt to understand the non-verbal voices/cries of suicidal adolescents. In general, suicide and suicidal behaviour among adolescents, has received relatively little attention from Education Departments throughout South Africa. Suicide-prevention is also sadly neglected by government and public health authorities. Unfortunately, despite the fact that the phenomenon has become the first cause of death among the younger age groups, with a higher mortality rate than for road accidents, it has not so far managed to provide backing for preventive schemes within the school and community systems of the same magnitude as the ones developed to tackle other public health problems, such as Aids. The purpose of this study was to gain greater insight into the phenomenon of adolescent suicidal behaviour so that a clearer and broader definition (that included both overt and covert behaviour) was formulated. This will then assist, amongst others, educators, parents and adolescents to identify more easily adolescent suicidal behaviour in its various forms . The study also hoped to investigate and identify the factors that could contribute to suicidal behaviour in adolescents. It also hoped to explore what support systems were available and accessible to the adolescents, more especially those manifesting deviant and delinquent forms of suicidal behaviour and to investigate the effectiveness of the support systems. The concept of networking and creating supportive connections is strongly supported when facing problems of suicide and suicidal behaviour. In creating a connection with the parents, teachers are able to better connect with learners because they will be more aware of the stressors that adolescents are experiencing. Since evidence indicates (Snyder, 1971) that potential suicide victims typically turn first to family and everyday friends and to the more traditional and perhaps formal sources such as clergy, psychiatrists, social workers only later, the need for the school to be more ready to play the role of referrer to other established sources of help is apparent. Teachers should not mistake adolescent suicidal behaviour for just delinquent 'brat' behaviour. In many situations adolescent suicidal behaviour becomes a way of communicating with others after all other forms of communication have broken down - when connections with the outer world is tenuous or non-existent. Stigma keeps adolescent suicidal behaviour from being identified as a public health problem that is preventable. This could be the reason (besides financial ones) why the Department of Education has not seen the urgency to strengthen counselling services in schools. In the absence of such support parents, educators and adolescents need to join forces - create a network of connections - both physical and emotional - so that desperate cries of adolescents are heard, interpreted and eliminated. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2007.

The purposes of this project were to assess nutrition knowledge and dietary behavior of adolescents, and to determine what relationship, if any, exists between nutrition knowledge and dietary behavior. A newly-developed 25-question nutrition knowledge survey was used to measure general nutrition knowledge among 287 seventh grade students in Newburgh, Indiana. Dietary behavior scores were determined by rating choices purchased in the school cafeteria over one week as to whether or not they met the Indiana S.B. 0111's definition of a "better choice" food. Results indicated low levels of nutrition knowledge (mean score 48.5%). Girls score significantly higher on the nutrition knowledge survey than did boys (51% versus 48%). The average dietary behavior score of seventh grade students was 73.8% (an average of 7.8 `better choice' foods out of every 11.4 total foods purchased over one week period). No significant relationship was found between the score on the nutrition knowledge test and the dietary behavior score (r = .06, NS). When a linear regression analysis was performed, nutrition knowledge was a more important predictor of dietary behavior than either gender or race. / Department of Family and Consumer Sciences

Specific personality characteristics have long been thought to be associated with adolescent substance abusers This study utilized the Millon Adolescent Personality Inventory (MAPI, Millon, 1982) to examine the personality styles, expressed concerns and behavioral correlates of adolescents.The subjects were 122 adolescents between the ages of 13 and 19 years old who were residents of an adolescent substance abuse treatment center. The MAPI was administered as a part of the initial assessment of each adolescent. The adolescents lived in areas that ranged from rural communities to midsize cities in a midwestern state.In this study, the dependent variable was the MAPI scores and the criterion variables were the following: gender, age, parent marital status, primary drug, secondary drug, drug use, treatment completion, and referral source. Additional subgroups studied were the following: 15-18 year old dependent males according to the primary drugs of alcohol or marijuana, and 15-18 year old females according to the primary drugs of alcohol and marijuana.Median base rate scores were calculated for the groups to reveal general personality profiles. Multivarite analyses of variance produced significant univariate Fs in the following groups: gender, parent marital status, and 15-18 year old dependent females by primary drug of choice. Results indicated that, as a whole, the group appeared to be fairly homogeneous in the personality characteristics revealed by the MAPI scores. The characteristics found mostoften in this sample were the following: moods that were unpredictable and erractic; attitudes that vacillated rapidly from unhappy to happy; relationships that ranged from ambiguous to belligerant, and affect that was irritable to disturbed. These adolescents also expressed considerable concern over family relationship issues. The Family Rapport scale was consistently the highest Expressed Concern scale. Other scales that were less pronounced, but frequently elevated were personal esteem, self-concept, and academic confidence. The most prominent elevation on the Behavioral Correlate scales was the Impulse Control scale.Similarities across groups on the scores of the MAPI scales was the most prominent finding. Scale scores in 15-18 year old dependent females group showed differences between alcohol users and marijuana users. Implications for treatment were discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

There is no abstract available for this dissertation. / Department of Educational Studies

Separation-individuation has been consistently identified as a critical process in adolescent development. Dysfunction in the separation-individuation process has previously been linked to pathology among college students and adults. The purpose of this study was to validate the psychometric integrity of the Dysfunctional Separation-Individuation Scale in a population of young adolescents. A one factor structure of the 19-item scale was obtained. The scale correlated highly in the expected directions with other measures of separation-individuation, as well as with measures of depression and positive adaptation. / Department of Educational Psychology

A review of the models of religious education reveals their weaknesses and limitations. The tension among the models and the leading theorists arises from the divergent understanding of the relationship of religion to education as well as the concept of personhood. The transcendent nature of persons is argued from both a psychological and philosophical perspective. The nature of the religious experience as well as religious development is examined in both adults and adolescents. Given the transcendent dimension of human nature, as witnessed through the religious response, it is argued that the first order activity of religious education should be the development of adolescent spirituality.

Thesis (MEd) -- University of South Australia, 1993

Thesis (MEd) -- University of South Australia, 1993

Doctor of Philosophy / The aims of the Thesis were: to investigate and quantify the factors influencing the production of maximum isometric grip strength force in a sample of Australian teenagers when using JamarTM-like handgrip dynamometers; to determine the reliability of this measure over long and short retest intervals; to establish a database of anthropometric and strength values for this group and prediction equations for premorbid strengths to aid assessment of recovery in those with upper limb pathologies. The history of these handgrip dynamometers demonstrates that they have been employed in one form or another for over three hundred years and are still widely used today in hand rehabilitation and medical examinations. Many new types of dynamometers have been constructed subsequent to the ubiquitous JamarTM and have all been briefly reviewed here. Handedness (dominance) was thought to be a possible factor influencing grip strength performance and was later evaluated. But first, the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory was tested with 658 teenagers and 64 adults and confirmed to be a valid tool for assessing handedness. Its validity was improved by substituting the tasks of sweeping and opening the lid of a box for hammering and use of a screwdriver. Its excellent reliability (ICC = .78, p < 0.01) was confirmed with 45 teenagers and 45 adults. There were 235 teenagers who performed maximal isometric grip strength tests and from the results a local database was created. It was confirmed that the grip strength difference in males and females becomes significant after the age of 13 years, and that the average teenaged male is stronger than the average teenaged female by 11.2 Kg force (p < .01). Height, weight, BMI, hand dimensions, past upper limb injuries, degrees of handedness and exercise levels were measured and compared with known norms to establish that the grip strength tested sample of teenagers was representative of urban teenagers in Australia. The influence of handedness on maximal grip strength in dominant and non-dominant hands was unable to be completely ascertained due to the vast majority of the sample of teenagers being right-handed. Only 13 of the 235 teenagers used their left hand for most tasks, with another 20 using their left hands for a small majority of tasks. There was a grip strength bias towards the dominant hand of 2.63 kg force (p < .01). The most accurate way to predict the grip strength of one hand is by knowing the grip strength of the other hand. Prediction models found that 90% (R2 adj .902) and 70% (R2adj .702) of the variance in one hand could be accounted for by the grip strength of their other hand for male and female teenagers, respectively. Prediction equations were also created to assist in estimating the pre-morbid grip strength of teenagers suffering from bilateral hand injuries. If for the males, measurements for height and hand surface area were entered into these models, the grip strength of the dominant and non-dominant hands could be estimated with 62.6 and 63.5% of the variance between the real and predicted scores accounted for, respectively. For the females the prediction models using height and hand surface area could only account for 33.9 and 42.8% of the variances, with no other independent variables improving the prediction equations. The reliability of the maximal grip strength performance of 154 of these teenagers was retested after one or four weeks. A number of sub-group permutations were created for age, gender, retest time interval and handedness groups. The measures of grip strength for males were highly reliable with ICC (3,1) values ranging from .91 to .97. These measures were significantly higher than that obtained from the females, where reliability values ranged from .69 to .83. Handedness played a significant part in grip strength reliability. The dominant hand of right-handed teenagers achieved an ICC (3,1) of .97, as contrasted with the non-dominant hand of left-handers who attained a very poor ICC (3,1) of .27. The shape of the hands of the males did not influence their grip strength or their reliability values, which ranged from .954 to .973. The shape of female hands did not affect their ability to generate maximal grip strength, only its reliability. The females with hands shaped squarer-than-average had mean grip strength reliability values of ICC (3,1) at only .48, in contrast to those with longer-than-average hands who achieved a mean ICC (3,1) of .92. The handle shape of the dynamometer may disadvantage square-handed females, and this should be further investigated.