Childhood sexual abuse in pregnant and parenting adolescents.

Objective: To examine childhood sexual abuse in Australian childbearing adolescents and the contribution of abuse variables (sexual and physical abuse) to antenatal and postpartum depression and anxiety in adolescents.

Methods: Seventy-nine adolescents proceeding with a pregnancy for the first time were surveyed about abuse experiences and were administered the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) at the third trimester and at 6 weeks and 6 months postpartum.

Results: The prevalence of physical abuse before the age of 16 years was 20.

The association between depressive symptoms and smoking in pregnant adolescents.

There have been no studies that have specifically examined the relationship between smoking and depressive symptoms in Australian pregnant adolescents. Eighty one pregnant adolescents completed an adapted version of Lawson's (1994) Smoking Questionnaire and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. Smoking status (smokers vs.

Influence of adolescent maternal characteristics on infant development.

The present study proposed that several adolescent maternal variables would be associated with infant development. Using a sample of 71 adolescent mother-infant dyads, the study examined the relative influences of the adolescent's level of separation-individuation (Separation-Individuation Process Inventory), feelings of attachment towards the infant (Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale), and feelings of anxiety regarding separation (Maternal Separation Anxiety Scale) on infant mental and motor development (Bayley Scales of Infant Development, 2nd ed.).

The relationship between child sexual abuse and academic achievement in a sample of adolescent psychiatric inpatients.

Objectives: To examine the relationship between sexual abuse and academic achievement in an adolescent inpatient psychiatric population. Individual factors expected to influence this relationship were measured to explore the way they each interacted with sexual abuse and its relationship to academic achievement.

Method: Eighty-one adolescent psychiatric inpatients participated in the study (aged 12--18 years: M=16.