Children discharged from kin and non-kin foster homes: Do the risks of foster care re-entry differ?

This study investigates whether the type of pre-discharge placement, kinship versus non-kinship foster care, has a net impact on children's likelihood of re-entering substitute care after controlling for possible selection biases through the use of regression adjustment and propensity score matching (PSM). Children in kin and non-kin foster care are compared on their rates of foster care re-entry, using bivariate comparisons and accelerated failure time (AFT) models. Lower rates of foster care re-entry after reunification from kinship homes are attributed to differences in child characteristics at removal, greater stability of kin placements, and gate-keeping functions that agencies and courts exercise over discharge and re-entry options. Children adopted from kinship and non-kinship homes exhibit similar re-entry rates, but the results for legal guardianship are mixed.     

Examining the relationship between psychotropic medication use and testing positive for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea among detained adolescents

Objective

We examined whether psychotropic medication (PTM) use was related to testing positive for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea among detained adolescents.

Methods

A convenience sample of 550 detained adolescents ages 14-18 years were recruited from eight youth detention centers in Georgia. Using A-CASI technology, data was collected on demographic factors, use of PTM, and sexual risk behaviors. Chlamydia and Gonorrhea diagnoses were assessed by laboratory testing.

Results

Thirteen percent (13.1%) of adolescents not using PTMs tested positive for STIs compared to only 4.9% of those reporting PTM use. PTM users had a 62% smaller odds ratio for testing positive for Chlamydia or Gonorrhea.

Conclusion

Findings suggest that use of psychotropic medication, if deemed useful by detained youth, may be a protective factor against engaging in behaviors which may culminate in contracting some STDs. The practice implications are discussed within the context of these findings.     

Alcohol Use and Popularity: Social Payoffs From Conforming to Peers' Behavior

Although many economic analyses of adolescents have examined the costs of risky behaviors, few have investigated the gains that young people derive from such actions, particularly in terms of social payoffs for complying with peer behavior. This paper studies the relationship between adolescents' use of alcohol (relative to that of their peers) and popularity at school. We use data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a rich and nationally representative survey with detailed information on social networks. Our findings suggest that adolescents are socially rewarded for conforming to their peers' alcohol use and penalized (to a lesser degree) for increasing their consumption above that of their peers. Male adolescents are rewarded for keeping up with their peers' drinking and for getting drunk. Female adolescents are rewarded for drinking per se, but not necessarily for keeping up with their peers. The results offer new information on peer influence and have implications for substance abuse interventions at school and in the community.     

Make Your Work Matter: development and pilot evaluation of a purpose-centered career education intervention

Developing a sense of purpose is both salient and desirable for adolescents, and purpose in people's lives and careers is associated with both general and work-related well-being. However, little is known about whether purpose can be encouraged through school-based interventions. This article reports the results of a quasi-experimental pilot study and follow-up focus group that evaluated Make Your Work Matter, a three-module, school-based intervention designed to help adolescent youth explore, discover, and enact a sense of purpose in their early career development. Participants were eighth-grade students. Compared to the control group, the intervention group reported increases in several outcomes related to purpose-centered career development, such as a clearer sense of career direction; a greater understanding of their interests, strengths, and weaknesses; and a greater sense of preparedness for the future. However, no significant differences were found on items directly related to purpose, calling, and prosocial attitudes. These results inform the ongoing development of Make Your Work Matter and other school-based career interventions and pave the way for larger-scale trials of such purpose-promoting intervention strategies.     

Learning-project structures in different work types: an empirical analysis

This study demonstrates that work-related learning projects can be organized using different structural arrangements. Sixteen learning projects conducted by ninety-six participants in three different work types were analysed and compared both qualitatively and quantitatively. No evidence was found for the claim that learning-project structures necessarily depend on the type of work in which they are carried out. However, two distinct combinations of learning project structure and work type did not emerge. It is concluded that actors have organizational choice in organizing learning projects, but their options are less likely to be realized if the learning-project type is very different from the worktype.     

Conceptualizing social-ecological drivers of change in urban forest patches

Urban Ecosystems - We introduce a conceptual model of the urban forest patch as a complex social-ecological system, incorporating cross-scale interactions. We developed this model through an...