Effectiveness of smoking cessation program for male adolescents in South Korea

The objective of this study was to implement and verify the effectiveness of a smoking cessation program based on a cognitive behavioral model, composed of six sessions. Participants included 80 male middle school students who smoked. They were divided into experimental (n = 35 students) and comparison (n = 45 students) groups, and the smoking cessation program was conducted in the experimental group. Results of self-report scales for smoking behaviors and urinary cotinine and CO levels before and after the program were statistically analyzed with mixed regression including factors for group, time, and a group-by-time interaction. The results indicated that the group effect, time effect, and group-by-time interaction effect were significant for the nicotine dependency. The variation patterns in the two groups became significantly different over time as nicotine dependency drastically decreased in the experimental group, whereas those in the comparison group showed little change from pre-program examination to post-program examination. Significant time effects were observed for smoking cessation efficacy and urinary cotinine levels, reflecting increased smoking cessation efficacy and decreased cotinine levels in both groups across time. The results suggest that this six-week smoking cessation program in male adolescents in South Korea was valid to implement.     

Prevalence and economic well-being of families raising multiple children with disabilities

This study estimates the prevalence of households raising more than one child with disabilities, and examines these families' economic well-being. Using pooled data from the 2004 and 2008 Survey of Income and Program Participation we compare households with multiple children with disabilities (n = 932) to households with one disable child (n = 3457) and to households with at least one child but none with disabilities (n = 21,378) on measures of material hardship. Three percent of U.S. households with children had more than one disabled child. Compared to other households with children, those with multiple children with disabilities were significantly more likely to have income below the federal poverty level and to report material hardships. The number of children with disabilities is an important contextual variable for studying the economic circumstances under which, care is provided to children with disabilities. Its implications for practice and policy are discussed.     

Cultural diversity competencies in child and youth care services in Portugal: Development of two measures and a brief training program

Few researchers have examined the training of child care workers in cultural diversity competencies, despite the growing number of ethnic minority children and youth in residential care. The present paper reports two studies. In study 1, we aimed to adapt and develop two measures of cultural diversity competencies—a self-report questionnaire and an objective measure based on a case vignette (n = 51). In study 2, we proposed a brief training program. A quasi-experimental design (n = 30) was used, with cultural competencies being evaluated before and after the training. Results revealed that (1) child care workers tended to over-estimate their self-perceived competence and that (2) the experimental group was more capable of including cultural elements in their definition of strategies and relational aspects of intervention after a brief training than the group that received no training (control). Implications of this study are discussed for further development of cultural diversity competencies in professionals working in residential child care.     

Small-dollar children's saving accounts and children's college outcomes by race

This is paper three of four in the Small-Dollar Children Accounts series that studies the relationship between children's small dollar savings accounts and college enrollment and graduation. The series uses different subsamples to examine three important research questions: (a) Are children with savings of their own more likely to attend or graduate from college? (b) Does dosage (no account, only basic savings, savings designated for school of less than $1, $1 to $499, or $500 or more) matter? And (c) is designating for school more predictive of college enrollment or graduation than having basic undesignated savings alone? Using propensity score weighted data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and its supplements we created multi-treatment dosages of savings accounts and amounts to answer these questions separately for black (n = 404) and white (n = 453) children. White children's savings are not significantly related to their college outcomes. Differently, compared to black children without savings accounts, black children are three times more likely to enroll in college when they have school savings of less than $1 and six times more likely when they have school savings of $1 to $499. Further, black children with school savings of $1 to $499 are four times more likely to graduate from college and black children with school savings of $500 or more are three-and-a-half times more likely to graduate from college, compared to those with no savings account. We suggest Child Development Accounts (CDAs) may be a promising tool for helping black children get to and through college.     

Foster children placed with or separated from siblings: Outcomes based on a national sample

This study examines a range of outcomes for children in foster care who have siblings, using a large, national U.S. database. Three types of sibling placements are defined: split (child has no siblings in the home), splintered (at least one sibling in the home), and together (all siblings in the home). The study analyzes records (n = 1701) from the National Study of Child and Adolescent Wellbeing, including Child Protective Services (CPS) and Long-term Foster Care (LTFC) samples. It contributes to the literature in its inclusive definition of siblings, use of three categories for sibling placement status, and use of outcome measures that include the perceptions of foster children. The study reports limited significant findings. Neither foster parents' nor youths' reports of behavioral problems differ by sibling placement status. As rated by teachers, academic performance in the group placed together exceeds that in both of the other groups. For children in kinship homes, teachers also reported less problematic internalizing and externalizing behavior for the splintered and together groups than for the split group. Children in the splintered group also responded more favorably than those in the split group to questions of closeness to the primary caregiver and liking the people in the foster family.     

How students evaluate university programmes for older people: A comparison between two models in Spain

This study examines how older students evaluate the University Programme for Older People (UPOP) they participate in, and how such evaluation might vary depending on the type of UPOP. The sample was made up of 257 older students (mean age = 67.6 years) and was gathered from two UPOP models, one structured as Older People Classrooms (134 participants) and the second one as University of Experience (123 participants). Participants completed a questionnaire evaluating different dimensions of the programme and two incomplete sentences to identify its weak and strong points. Overall, results suggest that older students are very satisfied with the educational experience. Apart from attracting a different profile of student (younger and more involved), University of Experience students seem to give more importance to methodological issues when compared to Older People Classroom counterparts. These results are discussed in the context of new strategies to improve university courses aimed at older people.     

Factors predicting student intervention when witnessing anti-LGBTQ harassment: The influence of peers,teachers, and climate

Bullying and harassment are systemic problems in schools, especially for sexual minority youth. Previous research suggests the importance of addressing student intervention in cases of bullying, but little is known about how to encourage this kind of intervention, particularly in response to anti-LGBTQ bullying. The present study used data collected through a participatory action research project to examine three factors' impact on students' intentions to intervene: hearing homophobic language, seeing teachers intervene, and seeing other students intervene. In the final model, seeing other students intervene (β = .19, p < .001) had a more significant positive effect on a students' own likelihood to intervene than seeing teachers intervene (β = .07, p < .05). In multivariate analysis, frequency of hearing homophobic language did not impact student's likelihood to intervene. Findings suggest the importance of youth leadership in multi-level anti-bullying programs.     

Communicating during crisis: Use of blogs as a relationship management tool

Using a post-test only experimental design with control group, this study investigated the impact of blogs on relationship management during a crisis. Participants (N = 109) were exposed to a personal blog (n = 45), organizational blog (n = 46), or control (n = 18). Results indicate blogs impact the perception of the level of crisis an organization experiences. Additionally, relationships created through blogs impact the perception of crisis. Use and credibility were also investigated.     

The Brief Assessment Checklists (BAC-C,BAC-A): Mental health screening measures for school-aged children and adolescents in foster,kinship, residential and adoptive care

More than half of children and young people in foster, kinship, and residential care, as well as those subsequently adopted from care, have mental health difficulties that require clinical formulation and intervention. While an increasing number of alternate care jurisdictions are instituting universal mental health screening, existing measures may not adequately screen for a range of attachment- and trauma-related mental health difficulties observed among these populations. The Brief Assessment Checklist for Children (BAC-C), and the Brief Assessment Checklist for Adolescents (BAC-A) are 20-item caregiver-report psychiatric rating scales designed to: 1. screen for and monitor clinically-meaningful mental health difficulties experienced by children and adolescents in various types of care; and 2. be safely administered and interpreted by health and social care professionals other than child and adolescent mental health clinicians. The BAC-C/A were also designed to be used as brief casework monitoring tools by foster care and adoption agencies, and for treatment monitoring in CAMHS. The BAC-C and BAC-A were derived from the Assessment Checklist for Children (ACC, 120 items) and Assessment Checklist for Adolescents (ACA, 105 items) respectively. Internal consistency of BAC-C (N = 347) and BAC-A (N = 230) scores were 0.89 and 0.87 respectively. The BAC-C/A were highly accurate in screening for clinical range ACC and ACA scores (area under the curve (AUC) ranging from 0.96 to 0.99), as well as for CBCL clinical range scores (AUCs: BAC-C = 0.89 to 0.92; BAC-A = 0.93 to 0.94). They were moderately accurate in screening for children that caregivers reported had been referred to mental health services (AUCs: BAC-C = 0.74; BAC-A = 0.79). Initial BAC-C/A psychometric properties compare favourably with that of existing screening instruments, including the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Brief Problem Monitor (CBCL short form).     

Indigenous land rights and dynamics of the land market in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

This paper raises a number of important issues relating to legal and economic development concepts. It concentrates on the supply constraints affecting land development decisions of both private and public landowners in releasing land for development purposes. With reference to the indigenous land rights in Kuala Lumpur, this paper focuses on the restrictions in interest, which may limit the land from being transferred in the open market. With a limited market, the indigenous land achieves a lower value in the market place because transactions are limited within a particular group of people only. As a result, the market forces are restricted and the land development process for urban regeneration often comes to a halt. In examining the role of the indigenous land market in the redevelopment process of Kuala Lumpur, the study uses an institutional analysis to show the way in which these restrictions in interest affect landowners’ decisions and, thus, restrict the supply of land to real estate redevelopment. In conclusion, the paper shows various causes for land supply constraints and ways to improve these with the aim to undertake urban redevelopment initiatives considering pressure for more land in the market.     

Evaluation of a group-based social skills training for children with problem behavior

This study evaluated a group-based training program in social skills targeting reduction of problem behaviors in N = 161 children between 7 and 13 years of age. The effects of the intervention were tested in a quasi-experimental study, with a follow-up assessment 12 months after an optional continuation camp. At the post-test, both the experimental and control group showed less social problems and internalizing problems, whereas only the experimental group showed a small and positive change in social anxiety. After a 12 month follow-up, a subsample of the experimental group (children who followed a continuation camp) showed large positive changes for all outcome measures, except for externalizing problems, showing a small effect.     

Risk and protective factors for residential foster care adolescents

Based on Jessor's (1998) Problem Behavior Theory, this study investigated the relationship between risk and protective factors and adolescent psychopathology and adjustment. For this purpose, adolescent girls (n = 69) and boys (n = 71) living in residential foster homes in the city of Tehran, responded to an adapted version of the Adolescent Health and Development Questionnaire, Jessor, 1998) and their foster home caregivers rated the adolescents' internalizing/externalizing problems and prosocial behavior with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ, Goodman, 2001). This study identified several influential aspects at the levels of the individual, foster home, peers and community that serve as a direct risk and protective factors, and also documented indirect pathways of gender, individual, foster home, peers and community influence.Three main patterns, protective, protective and enhancing, and protective but reactive seemed to characterize most of the risk by protective factor interactions. The risk and protective factors associated with foster home adolescents' mental health are broadly in line with previous published findings. Based on the present findings, the extension of universal intervention programs designed within the framework of PBT and which address multiple targets seems justified to be used with foster care home adolescents.     

Risk-taking behavior and academic self-efficacy as variables accounting for problematic internet use in adolescent university students

Objective

This study investigated the relationship between risk-taking behavior and academic self-efficacy and problematic internet use in adolescent university students and whether problematic internet use varies according to the variables of gender, possession of a computer and living with the family.

Methods

The study was performed with 556 students from the Karadeniz Technical University Fatih Faculty of Education in Turkey. The Problematic Internet Use Scale, the Adolescent Risk-Taking Questionnaire, the Academic Self-Efficacy Scale and Personal Information Collection Form were used in the collection of data.

Results

Pearson correlation analysis revealed a significant positive correlation between problematic internet use and risk-taking behavior (r = .37, p < .01) and a significant negative correlation between problematic internet use and academic self-efficacy (r = − .12, p < .05). Multiple regression analysis revealed that risk-taking behavior and academic self-efficacy accounted for 14% of total problematic internet use variance (F_(2,553) = 46.11, p < .05). The individual contribution to the model of risk-taking (β = .37) and academic self-efficacy (β = − .09) is significant. Our results also showed that university adolescents' problematic internet use scores vary by gender (t = − 4.90, p < .05) and possession or otherwise of a computer (t = 3.10, p < .05), but not on the basis of whether they live with their families (t = − .13, p > .05).

Conclusions

Risk-taking behavior and academic self-efficacy emerged as significant predictors of problematic internet use.     

Child protection and out-of-home placement experiences of preschool children born to mothers enrolled in methadone maintenance treatment during pregnancy

Children born to opiate-dependent women engaged in methadone maintenance treatment are at high risk of child welfare concern. However, few studies have examined the early child protection service (CPS) contacts of this group or the risk factors that place some but not other mother–infant dyads at increased risk of serious concern resulting in the removal of the child from the family home. As part of a prospective longitudinal study based in New Zealand, 73 women enrolled in methadone maintenance treatment during pregnancy and 54 non-methadone maintained comparison mothers were recruited during pregnancy and interviewed close to delivery, 18-months and 4.5-years. At each follow-up evaluation, detailed life history methods were used to describe children's family circumstances and all CPS contacts. By 4.5-years postdelivery, methadone maintained mothers were ten-times more likely to have been investigated by child protection services than comparison mothers (59% v. 6%, p < .001). Of these contacts, almost half (44%) resulted in the removal of the child from the family home compared to no comparison children (p < .001). These children were most frequently placed before age 1, with an average of 1–2 caregiver changes (range: 0–7). In addition to maternal methadone maintenance treatment during pregnancy (p < .001), significant independent predictors of child out-of-home placement included maternal depression (p = .01), maternal history of child custody loss (p = .02), and to some extent, high levels of family socioeconomic adversity (p = .06). Findings highlight the complex psychosocial needs of this high-risk group, as well as the need for careful monitoring and parenting support following hospital discharge.     

Knowledge, Attitude and Perceptions of University Students towards Educational Loans in Malaysia

National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loan is the major source of financing tertiary education in Malaysia. Non-repayment of the loan among university students after they have graduated becomes a major problem to the government since the total amount of loan available to the students is depended on the loan repayment. This study sought to examine the students’ knowledge and attitude regarding the loan. Three aspects of focus are knowledge, attitude and perception of students towards the loan and the repayment of the loan. This study also analyzed the legal literacy of students towards the PTPTN agreement. A total of 1,500 students of University Putra of Malaysia participated in the study and data were collected using self-administered questionnaire. The findings revealed that students have good knowledge about PTPTN loan agreement but there were a significant proportion of students with negative attitudes towards the repayment of the loan. Majority of them perceived the loan as a burden to them and it limits many options of their life after graduation.     

LoTTS parent-infant interaction coding scale: Ease of use and reliability in a sample of high-risk mothers and their infants

Reliable and valid measurement of parent-infant interactions is necessary to demonstrate parental skill acquisition, but existing observational coding schemes are too complex for practical use in most human service settings. The LoTTS Parent-Infant Interaction Coding System (LPICS) was developed specifically to require minimal training and to be maximally useful for human service (rather than research) settings. The LPICS consists of three global scales and four behavioral counts. Undergraduate students participated in approximately 9 h of training and coding using the LPICS. Low inter-rater reliability scores initially necessitated modifications to the LPICS in order to enhance reliability. The revised scoring procedure showed more promise, particularly for three behavior counts: talking to the infant (ICC = .86, excellent), touching the infant (ICC = .90, excellent), and smiling at the infant (ICC = .66, good), and one global scale: parental warmth (ICC = .58, fair). The revised LPICS may have utility as a brief, simple, and easy-to-teach observational measure of parent-infant interactions.     

Small-dollar children's savings accounts and children's college outcomes by income level

This is paper two of four in the small-dollar children's savings account series in this issue that examines the relationship between children's small-dollar savings accounts and college enrollment and graduation. This series of papers uses different subsamples to examine three important research questions: (a) Are children with savings of their own more likely to attend or graduate from college; (b) Does dose (no account, only basic savings, savings designated for school of less than $1, $1 to $499, or $500 or more) matter; and (c) Is designating savings for school more predictive than having basic savings alone. Using propensity score weighted data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and its supplements we created multi-treatment doses of savings accounts and amounts to answer these questions separately for children from low- and moderate-income (below $50,000; n = 512) and high income ($50,000 or above; n = 345) households. We find that low- and moderate-income children may be more likely to enroll in and graduate from college when they have small-dollar savings accounts with money designated for school. A low- and moderate-income child who has school savings of $1 to $499 prior to reaching college age is over three times more likely to enroll in college and four times more likely to graduate from college than a child with no savings account. These findings lead to policy implications that are also discussed.     

Recollections of harsh discipline in childhood and depressive feelings in adulthood: The roles of culture and gender

The present study examined the roles of culture and gender in the association between recollections of harsh discipline experienced during childhood and levels of depressive feelings in early adulthood. A sample of Jewish (n = 250) and Arab (n = 115) university students reported regarding exposure to corporal punishment and emotional aggression from each parent during childhood, and about current depressive feelings. Consistent with predictions, both culture and gender moderated the links between corporal punishment (used by either mother or father) and depression. Arab males, for whom exposure to corporal punishment might be more culturally normative, showed a different pattern than both Arab females and Jewish respondents. Moreover, culture moderated the association between emotional aggression from fathers (but not mothers) and depression. The discussion focuses on the importance of examining the effects of gender (of child and parent) in conjunction with culture, and on the complex role of cultural normativeness.