U.S. adolescents' attitudes toward school, social connection, media use, and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Differences as a function of gender identity and school context.

The COVID-19 pandemic changed school contexts and social opportunities dramatically for adolescents around the world. Thus, certain adolescents may have been more susceptible to the stress of the pandemic as a function of differences in schooling. We present data from 1256 United States adolescents (ages 14-16) to examine how the 2020-2021 school context (in-person, hybrid, or virtual) related to feelings of school satisfaction and success, social connection, mental health, and media use.

Mental Health Stigma Reduction in the Midwestern United States: Evidence from a Digital Campaign Using a Collective Impact Model.

Addressing mental stigma is a key component of improving mental health outcomes. A digital media campaign was implemented to reduce mental health stigma in the Omaha Metropolitan area. The campaign used evidence-based approaches within a collective impact framework.

Growing and Glowing: A Digital Media Campaign to Increase Access to Pregnancy-Related Health Information for Black Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background: Low birthweight is a health issue disproportionately experienced by Black women. In Hillsborough County, Florida, Black women experience higher rates of low birthweight compared to the rest of Florida. This study examines the feasibility of a second attempt to use a digital low birthweight campaign to increase knowledge about low birthweight and pregnancy among Black women in Hillsborough.

Investigating Viewership of Season 3 of "13 Reasons Why" and the Mental Wellness of Adolescents: Partially Randomized Preference Trial.

Background: A conflicting body of research suggests that additional investigation is needed to understand how globally watched television shows featuring social and mental health issues, such as 13 Reasons Why, might affect adolescents' mental wellness.

Objective: This study aims to investigate adolescents' viewership of the third season of the Netflix drama 13 Reasons Why (13RW-3) and their engagement with show-related content, paying special attention to mental health outcomes and conversational partners.

Methods: A panel-based research platform operated by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago recruited 157 adolescents aged 13 to 17 years from its nationally representative pool of participants.

[Content Themes and Influential Voices Within Vaccine Opposition on Twitter, 2019].

Objectives: To report on vaccine opposition and misinformation promoted on Twitter, highlighting Twitter accounts that drive conversation.

Methods: We used supervised machine learning to code all Twitter posts. We first identified codes and themes manually by using a grounded theoretical approach and then applied them to the full data set algorithmically.

Using social media influencers to increase knowledge and positive attitudes toward the flu vaccine.

Seasonal influenza affects millions of people across the United States each year. African Americans and Hispanics have significantly lower vaccination rates, and large-scale campaigns have had difficulty increasing vaccination among these two groups. This study assessed the feasibility of delivering a flu vaccination promotion campaign using influencers, and examined shifts in social norms regarding flu vaccine acceptability after a social media micro influencer campaign.

Content Themes and Influential Voices Within Vaccine Opposition on Twitter, 2019.

To report on vaccine opposition and misinformation promoted on Twitter, highlighting Twitter accounts that drive conversation. We used supervised machine learning to code all Twitter posts. We first identified codes and themes manually by using a grounded theoretical approach and then applied them to the full data set algorithmically.

Evaluation of a campaign to reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages in New Jersey.

Obesity is a leading cause of premature death in the U.S., in part due to consumption of sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs).

The Influence of Active Gaming on Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Black and Hispanic Youth.

Background: Youth in the United States have low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness, a risk factor for childhood obesity. Lower levels of physical fitness for black and Hispanic youth contribute to health disparities. In this feasibility study, we examined active video games (AVGs) as a tool to improve fitness and attitudes toward physical activity during early adolescence.

Screen Media Exposure and Obesity in Children and Adolescents.

Obesity is one of the best-documented outcomes of screen media exposure. Many observational studies find relationships between screen media exposure and increased risks of obesity. Randomized controlled trials of reducing screen time in community settings have reduced weight gain in children, demonstrating a cause and effect relationship.

"When You're a Baby You Don't Have Puberty": Understanding of Puberty and Human Reproduction in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence.

Basic knowledge of human reproduction can help youth prepare for puberty and make later classes focused on advanced reproductive health topics manageable. With the intention of potentially informing the creation of learning materials, we conducted a needs assessment among children ages 7 to 12 in our suburban Chicago community to ascertain their current understanding of, and beliefs and misconceptions about, human reproduction, and to determine their needs for additional reproductive health education. We held qualitative focus group interviews with local children.

Food Marketing to Children Online: A Content Analysis of Food Company Websites.

Since 2006, many U.S. food and beverage companies have pledged to market healthier foods to children to help combat the childhood obesity epidemic.

Effects of Exergame Play on EF in Children and Adolescents at a Summer Camp for Low Income Youth.

Past research has suggested exergame play improves adolescents' executive function (EF) skills. EF change in 70 African American and Hispanic/Latino 10- to 16-year-olds participating in an inner-city summer camp was assessed following five 30-minute exergame play sessions. Children's EF scores improved from pre- to posttest, and factors related to this change were examined.

Should babies be watching television and DVDs?

Should babies be watching television and DVDs? This is a reasonable question to ask but a difficult one to answer. This article reviews the theories and related research to examine what is known about infant media use. The review provides evidence both for and against each theory.

Government and school progress to promote a healthful diet to American children and adolescents: a comprehensive review of the available evidence.

Context: The IOM released an expert committee report in 2005 that assessed the nature, extent, and influence of food and beverage marketing practices on American children's and adolescents' diets and health. The report concluded that prevailing marketing practices did not support a healthful diet and offered recommendations for diverse stakeholders to promote a healthful diet. The investigators evaluated progress for government and schools to achieve the IOM report recommendations over 5 years.

Industry progress to market a healthful diet to American children and adolescents.

Context: The IOM released an expert committee report in 2005 that assessed the nature, extent, and influence of food and beverage marketing practices on the diets and health of American children and adolescents. The report concluded that prevailing marketing practices did not support a healthful diet and offered recommendations for diverse stakeholders to promote a healthful diet. The investigators evaluated progress made by food, beverage, and restaurant companies; trade associations; entertainment companies; and the media to achieve the IOM report recommendations over 5 years.

Word learning from baby videos.

Objective: To examine whether children between 12 and 25 months of age learn words from an infant-directed DVD designed for that purpose.

Design: Half of the children received a DVD to watch in their home over the course of 6 weeks.

Setting: All participants returned to a laboratory for testing on vocabulary acquisition every 2 weeks.

Just a talking book? Word learning from watching baby videos.

This study examined the relationship between viewing an infant DVD and expressive and receptive language outcomes. Children between 12 and 15 months were randomly assigned to view Baby Wordsworth, a DVD highlighting words around the house marketed for children beginning at 12 months of age. Viewings took place in home settings over 6 weeks.

Media and young children's learning.

Electronic media, particularly television, have long been criticized for their potential impact on children. One area for concern is how early media exposure influences cognitive development and academic achievement. Heather Kirkorian, Ellen Wartella, and Daniel Anderson summarize the relevant research and provide suggestions for maximizing the positive effects of media and minimizing the negative effects.

Digital childhood: electronic media and technology use among infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to describe media access and use among US children aged 0 to 6, to assess how many young children fall within the American Academy of Pediatrics media-use guidelines, to identify demographic and family factors predicting American Academy of Pediatrics media-use guideline adherence, and to assess the relation of guideline adherence to reading and playing outdoors.

Methods: Data from a representative sample of parents of children aged 0 to 6 (N = 1051) in 2005 were used. Descriptive analyses, logistic regression, and multivariate analyses of covariance were used as appropriate.

The Influence of Media Violence on Youth.

Research on violent television and films, video games, and music reveals unequivocal evidence that media violence increases the likelihood of aggressive and violent behavior in both immediate and long-term contexts. The effects appear larger for milder than for more severe forms of aggression, but the effects on severe forms of violence are also substantial (r = .13 to .