Patterns of alcohol use and marijuana use among students at 2- and 4-year institutions

Objective: The objective of this study was to understand substance use patterns of alcohol, marijuana, and simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use among 2- and 4-year college students. Participants: Participants were 526 young adults aged 18–23 (n?=?355 4-year students; n?=?171 2-year students) recruited from February 2015 to January 2016 who were participating in a larger longitudinal study. Methods: Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify past-month classes of alcohol, marijuana, and SAM use. Results: Among both 2- and 4-year students, a four-class solution yielded the best-fitting model, with 2-year classes tending to include greater marijuana use and less alcohol use and 4-year classes tending to include heavy alcohol use. Demographic characteristics were largely similar across classes. Conclusions: Classes of alcohol, marijuana, and SAM use differed by education status. Screening and prevention efforts for 4-year students may need to be tailored for the needs of 2-year students.     

Health insurance literacy: A mixed methods study of college students

Objective: This study examines the health insurance literacy, or the ability to use health insurance effectively, of college students. Participants: A total of 455 students from a large, public university completed an online questionnaire in November 2016. Methods: A questionnaire examined students’ knowledge of commonly encountered health insurance terms and ability to apply that knowledge to determine cost-sharing in a clinical setting. Results: The majority of students were able to correctly identify the most commonly encountered terms, but could not identify terms related to plan types and options. Eighty-eight percent of students could not determine their cost-sharing for two presented scenarios. Approximately half of the students indicated they had been confused about their health insurance plan, with one-quarter of students stopping or delaying medical care due to confusion. Conclusions: Outreach and education for students should target specific deficits in knowledge such as those identified in this study.     

Qualitative exploration of supporting figures in the lives of emerging adults who left care compared with their noncare‐leaving peers

Studies on youth leaving care have emphasized their limited social support and their need for continuing support after emancipation. However, less is known about the nature of their existing social networks after emancipation and their roles during their transition to adulthood compared with their noncare‐leaving peers. With this in mind, 32 young adults aged 18 to 25 participated in semi‐structured interviews regarding their current support figures in order to learn whether they were congruent with their needs after emancipation. Thematic analysis revealed four main features of the two groups' social networks: (a) stability versus uncertainty as to the lasting presence of the supportive figure, (b) reliance on parents as main supportive figures versus relying on different supportive figures, (c) confidence versus uncertainty in the supportive figures' ability to help, and (d) holistic versus fragmented support of the young adults' needs. The discussion addresses the unique characteristics of care leavers in emerging adulthood and the implications of their social networks' features for their adjustment after emancipation. One of the study's recommendations is to proactively connect them to new supportive figures such as professionals or mentors by offering them mentoring programs cognizant of the instrumental and developmental tasks of emerging adulthood.     

Comparison on predictors of mental health service use among Asian older adults

Studies have mostly examined mental health service use of older Asian immigrant combining all Asian Americans into one group whereas immigration backgrounds and socioeconomic status of each Asian minority group are different. Therefore, this study aimed to identify predictors of mental health service use within specific ethnic groups among older Asian adults focusing on Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, and Vietnamese in California. The Behavioral Model for Vulnerable Populations (BMVP) is used to guide the secondary data analysis of a sample of 3,453 older Asian immigrants from the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS). Logistic and linear regression analyses are performed to examine predictors of mental health service use and the frequency of mental health service use, respectively. As results, mental health‐seeking patterns differ by ethnicity within the older Asian immigrant sample, not being married (Korean), higher levels of acculturation (Filipino), lower levels of neighborhood cohesion (Korean and Vietnamese), higher levels of perceived safety (Korean) and lower levels of perceived safety (Vietnamese), higher levels of mental distress (Korean and Filipino), and having perceived need (all) were related to more visits for mental health services. The study findings highlight the necessity of cultural competency services and programs for each Asian ethnicity.     

Work-related factors associated with psychological distress among social workers

The current study assesses the association between several work-related factors and psychological distress among social workers (SWs) in Israel. The data were collected through structured questionnaires, administered to a sample of 494 SWs. The findings suggest that most of the examined work-related factors (namely, years of professional experience, personal work-related subjection to violence, burnout, compassion fatigue, and sense of coherence), with the exception of compassion satisfaction, significantly predicted psychological distress among SWs. The conclusion is that it is important to embed within the social work practice strategies for reducing sources of psychological distress (job demands) and increasing material, professional, and personal resources. Reducing the levels of psychological distress experienced by SWs will benefit not only themselves, but also their families and colleagues, as well as their clients. Moreover, this has potential benefits for the social work profession and for the general community.     

Purpose and life satisfaction during adolescence: the role of meaning in life,social support,and problematic digital use

This study examined the characteristics of youth with different types of purpose in life, as well as the associations between adolescents’ life satisfaction, purpose in life, meaning in life, social support, and problematic digital use. The sample included 193 participants aged 14–18 who completed self-report questionnaires on life satisfaction, purpose in life, meaning in life, social support, and problematic digital use. The following purpose in life clusters were found: (1) other-oriented goals (n?=?33); (2) self-oriented goals (n?=?42); and (3) both other- and self-oriented goals (n?=?107). Adolescents with both self- and other-oriented goals had significantly higher life satisfaction, meaning in life, and social support compared to the other groups. Meaning in life and greater support from parents and teachers were significantly associated with greater life satisfaction. In addition, having other-oriented goals was associated with lower life satisfaction. Finally, support from parents (p?=?0.05) mediated the association between problematic digital use and life satisfaction. Findings are discussed in light of previous research and the theoretical and practical implications are examined.     

Everything for the Children: Orphans Growing Up in Informal Adoptive Families in China

Most orphaned children in China are cared for by their extended families or become state wards under the guardianship of child welfare institutions. Some exceptions are children who are found and cared for by families in the community, without a formalized adoption or foster relationship. In some locations, institutions now accept guardianship for these children and support the informal adoptive family to continue to care for them. This article examines the outcomes for these children as they became young adults by comparing these 12 children raised within the system as they approach or have approached young adulthood (now aged 16–40 years-old). Some of the participants were either informally adopted or lived in institutional care. The results of this study found that the family environment was more conducive to the young people’s wellbeing as they approached or entered adulthood. The participants raised in informal care appeared to be treated similar to the biological children in these families. When the institution formalized the state guardianship responsibility, it also meant the families had state resources for support to protect the children’s rights to economic security, education, health care, and social participation. This practice by the institution supported the addition of informal adoption, as one step closer to permanency than foster care. Future implications include considering this option to help promote the family system assisting these children, families, and the state.     

Deaths of people with serious mental disorder: An exploration of deaths in custody and fatal police contacts

People with serious mental disorders (PSMDs) are overrepresented both in prison deaths and during fatal encounters with the police in the community (deaths after police contact, DAPC). To identify common factors present across cases of who died during contact with the criminal justice system in Queensland, publicly available coroners reports were analysed (N = 38). The findings of the study indicated psychosis and mood disorders were the most common diagnosis in incarcerated PSMD deaths, and suicide was the most common cause of death for incarcerated PSMDs. Within incarcerated settings, access to healthcare records, medication compliance, risk assessment and monitoring, and safe housing of at‐risk prisoners may be potential areas to explore with regard to prevention. Similarly, PSMD DAPCs were more likely to be experiencing mood or psychosis disorders than other forms of mental disorder, and suicide and police shootings were the most common causes of death. In PSMD DAPC, inadequate mental health access, treatment noncompliance and comorbid substance use were included as potential areas that could direct research efforts toward prevention.     

Sexual Health Services for Homeless Youth: A Qualitative Analysis of their Experiences

The sexual health problems experienced by homeless youth bring into question their use of available sexual health services. Using a qualitative typological analysis, this study aims to identify sexual health services utilization profiles for homeless youth, and to understand the role of the homeless experience on the utilization of sexual health services. Individual interviews were conducted with 33 homeless youth (17 men, 16 women) between 18 and 25?years of age. Typological analysis identified four profiles: (1) a targeted use of sexual health services to determine one’s serological status following a relational change during the homeless experience; (2) a limited use of sexual health services to manage sexual emergencies that arise during the homeless experience; (3) a regular use of sexual health services to avoid the risks associated with the homeless experience; (4) a frequent use of sexual health services to obtain support when engaging in prostitution during the homeless experience. This study shows that the precarious and unstable conditions within the homeless experience incite youth to utilize sexual health services in different ways. These findings point to the importance of rethinking sexual health services to better adapt them to the different utilization profiles of homeless youth.     

Divorce,living arrangements,and material well-being during the transition to adulthood in rural Malawi

In this paper, we use longitudinal data to investigate how parental death and divorce influence young women’s own experience of divorce in Malawi, a setting where women marry relatively early and unions are fragile. We find that maternal death and parental divorce are positively associated with divorce for young women but, after controlling for socio-demographic and marital characteristics, only the association with maternal death remains statistically significant. Maternal and paternal death are both strongly associated with women’s post-divorce living arrangements, which in turn affects their material well-being. This finding suggests that divorcing at a young age shapes the subsequent life chances of women; although some women return to their parental home and may have the opportunity to reset the transition to adulthood, other women begin their 20s as head of their own household and with considerable material disadvantage.