Despite recognition in the literature that adolescence
represents a relatively high-risk developmental period for
health-risk behaviors, only limited attention has been given
to the subjective meanings adolescents assign to such
behaviors. One potentially fruitful avenue to explore in
understanding the adolescent perspective on health-risk
behaviors is the use of word association techniques. Word
association techniques are an efficient way of determining
the content and representational systems of human minds
without requiring their expression in the full discursive
structure of human language.
A free-association technique was used to provide insight
into the meanings adolescents give to a variety of
behaviors. Using this technique, 411 high-school students
(age range 14-20 years) provided up to five associations
for each of nine behaviors. Six of these behaviors (drinking
beer, drinking liquor, smoking cigarettes, smoking marijuana,
using cocaine, and having sexual intercourse) were
conceptualized as health-risk behaviors. The remaining
three behaviors (exercising, using a seatbelt when riding
in a car, and using a condom) were conceptualized as
health-protective behaviors. Based upon a five-point scale
(from 1=very negative to 5=very positive), respondents
also indicated whether their associations meant something
negative or something positive to them. In addition to
exploring the subjective meanings adolescents assigned to a
variety of behaviors, the study examined whether assigned
meanings differed by degree of participation in the behaviors,
by gender, and by age.
Results indicated that images associated with adolescent
health-risk and health-protective behaviors were
linked to the anticipation of specific outcomes. The specific
goals of adolescent health-risk behaviors that emerged
from this study included: social facilitation, having
fun, physiological arousal, relaxation and tension reduction,
sexual facilitation, and positive affective change.
Given that health-risk behaviors were found to be associated
with specific outcomes for adolescents, the present
study supported a possible shift in prevention and intervention
programs from a problem-focused approach to an
approach that offers less destructive alternatives for
meeting adolescent needs. / Graduation date: 1994
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/35330 |
| Date | 12 May 1993 |
| Creators | Benthin, Alida C. |
| Contributors | Moran, Patricia B., Pratt, Clara C. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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