Associations between parent awareness, monitoring, enforcement and adolescent involvement with alcohol.

In a statewide random telephone survey of 454 parents and their 14- to 19-year-old adolescents, we examined the associations between various parenting strategies and self-reported teen drinking. Less teen drinking was associated with parents' reports of checking to see if other parents would be present at teen parties, particularly among White parents. Parents' monitoring of teens' activities was associated with feelings of competence at doing so.

Student-school bonding and adolescent problem behavior.

Adolescent problem behavior, including substance use, school misconduct and delinquency, is a national concern. Implicit in the concept of middle school is the recognition that students who develop positive social bonds with their school are more likely to perform well academically, and refrain from misconduct and other antisocial behavior. However, little scientific attention has been given to the complex interactions between middle school students and the school environment.

Expectancies and other psychosocial factors associated with alcohol use among early adolescent boys and girls.

Early experimentation with drinking increases the lifetime risk for substance abuse and other serious health and social problems. We studied factors associated with early alcohol experimentation by surveying 4,263 sixth- to eighth-grade students (67.1% White, 23.

Psychosocial, school, and parent factors associated with recent smoking among early-adolescent boys and girls.

Background: Experimentation with smoking often begins during adolescence, but an adequate understanding of the factors associated with early initiation remains elusive.

Methods: Sixth- to eighth-grade students (n = 4,263, 67.1% white, 23.

Prevalence and predictors of the prone sleep position among inner-city infants.

Context: The prone sleep position is associated with an increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), but few studies have assessed factors associated with the choice of infant sleep position.

Objectives: To describe infant sleep position in a cohort of infants born to predominantly low-income, inner-city mothers and to identify predictors of the prone sleep position in this population.

Design: Prospective birth cohort study.

Health communication in the prevention of alcohol, tobacco, and drug use.

Research on substance abuse prevention programs indicates that effectiveness is greater when multiple intervention approaches that address the specific vocabulary, perceptions, and values of the target population are employed. The field of health communication provides unique perspectives on media that can be applied to increase the salience and effectiveness of substance abuse prevention programs. Well-designed and well-delivered health communications have the capacity for reaching remote audiences, changing health attitudes and behavior, shaping social norms, changing the way health issues are portrayed by the popular media, and influencing decisions about legislation and policies.

Evaluation of a local designated driver and responsible server program to prevent drinking and driving.

Point of purchase interventions by beverage alcohol servers provide one promising approach to preventing drinking and driving and many communities now support such programs. To evaluate the impact of a designated driver and responsible server program in Houston, we assessed server training courses, observed and interviewed servers and patrons at five establishments participating in the program, and reviewed the distribution of vouchers awarded for a safe ride home by taxi. The training course for alcoholic beverage servers produced significant improvements in the participants' perceptions about their role in preventing drunk driving.

Physical activity in a multiethnic population of third graders in four states.

Objectives: This research assessed the amount of daily physical activity in a multiethnic sample of US third-grade students.

Methods: Physical activity interviews were conducted with 2410 third graders from 96 schools in four states. Blood pressure, cholesterol, body mass index, timed run for distance, physical-activity self-efficacy, and perceived support for physical activity were also assessed.

Creating capacity: establishing a health education research agenda for special populations.

On Day 2 of the joint CDC/SOPHE conference on Creating Capacity: Establishing a Research Agenda for Health Education, the participants were asked to identify research needs or special issues in working with children and adolescents, the elderly, women, men, and underserved groups. This article presents the priority research areas across subgroups identified by the participants. The cross-group priorities are followed by research recommendations for each subgroup.

Evaluation of health education programs: current assessment and future directions.

Recently there has been an increase in the different types of strategies used in health education interventions, including an emphasis on broadening programs focused on individual behavior change to include larger units of practice. There has also been an increasing critique of the traditional physical science paradigm for evaluating the multiple dimensions inherent in many interventions. Additionally, there is a growing recognition of the importance of involving multiple stakeholders in designing, implementing, and evaluating interventions.

Adolescent drinking and driving: etiology and interpretation.

In the adolescent population, drinking and driving is an important cause of injury, disability and premature death. A literature review of the demographics and etiology of drinking and drinking/driving reveals: 1) which subgroups of the adolescent population are more likely to drink and drink/drive; 2) where and why adolescents drink and drink/drive; 3) peer and family issues associated with adolescent drinking and drinking/driving; and 4) adolescent expectancies and perceived efficacies associated with drinking and drinking/driving. A discussion of the role of theory and the use of etiologic data in intervention research precedes an overview of several types of school-based alcohol-prevention programs and recommendations for more theory based interventions.

Observed levels of elementary and middle school children's physical activity during physical education classes.

Background: The benefits of childhood physical activity include fitness, weight control, and exercise habits that may carry over into adulthood. School physical education is the primary program responsible for training the nation's youth to be physically active and national objectives call for students to be engaged in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at least 50% of class time. The purpose of this study was to determine through systematic observation in a regional sample of elementary and middle schools the amount of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity students obtain during physical education classes.

The physical activity of fifth-grade students during physical education classes.

One hundred fifty-seven fifth-grade students in 20 of the 355 elementary schools in one Texas county were systematically observed during physical education classes. On average, the students spent 8.5% of class time in moderate to vigorous physical activity, 23.

Effect of perceived barriers on compliance with antihypertensive medication.

Noncompliance with antihypertensive medication remains an obstacle to the management of hypertension, and despite research efforts over the past decade, the predictors of noncompliance remain unclear. According to values expectancy theory, individuals rationally choose noncompliance when the barriers or costs of treatment outweigh the expected benefits. Noncompliance, therefore, is likely to occur when net costs of treatment are high.

Is childhood obesity associated with high-fat foods and low physical activity?

Childhood obesity is a major health problem with serious long-term health implications. Efforts to determine risk factors beyond genetic predisposition have been equivocal. Common notions of overeating and under-exercising as causes have not been supported by prior research.

Promoting physical activity and a healthful diet among children: results of a school-based intervention study.

Background: National health objectives call for improved diet and more regular physical activity among children. We tested the effects of a school-based program to improve students' diet and physical activity behavior at school.

Methods: Two of the four elementary schools in one Texas school district were assigned to intervention and two to control conditions.

Children's frequency of participation in moderate to vigorous physical activities.

Third and fourth grade boys (n = 422) and girls (n = 390) in four Texas elementary schools reported their participation in moderate to vigorous physical activities (MVPAs) over a 3-day period. Students were surveyed during class on successive days. On a subsample (n = 44), the agreement between reported and observed physical activities during physical education or recess was 86.

Children's frequency of consumption of foods high in fat and sodium.

We administered a food frequency instrument to third-fifth grade students (n = 943) in four Texas schools. Comparison of foods reported on the food frequency questionnaire and on 24-hour dietary recalls (n = 7) produced a percent agreement of 83.3.

A center-based program for exercise change among black-American families.

A center-based program was designed and implemented to promote aerobic physical activity among healthy Black-American families with children in the fifth through seventh grades. Ninety-four Black-American families were actively recruited and randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. Families in the experimental group were encouraged to participate in a program with the following features: one education and two fitness sessions per week for 14 weeks; educational sessions that included individual counseling, small group education, aerobic activity, and snack components; located in a convenient building cherished by the community; aerobic activity sessions in a fitness center outfitted and staffed according to modern characteristics; a variety of incentives including free transportation and babysitting and reminders to promote attendance.

Validity of the observation of children's physical activity.

An observational method for quantifying intensity of activity was validated against min-by-min heart rates during physical education periods. The mean heart rate values increased as the activity points increased. Moderate average correlations were obtained between the min-by-min activity points and heart rates.