Kimberly L. Henry

Violent Media Content and Aggressiveness in Adolescents A Downward Spiral Model

Theory and research on media violence provides evidence that aggressive youth seek out media violence and that media violence prospectively predicts aggression in youth. The authors argue that both relationships, when modeled over time, should be mutually reinforcing, in what they call a downward spiral model. This study uses multilevel modeling to examine individual growth curves in aggressiveness and violent media use. The measure of use of media violence included viewing action films, playing violent computer and video games, and visiting violence-oriented Internet sites by students from 20 middle schools in 10 different regions in the United States. The findings appear largely consistent with the proposed model. In particular, concurrent effects of aggressiveness on violent-media use and concurrent and lagged effects of violent media use on aggressiveness were found. The implications of this model for theorizing about media effects on youth, and for bridging active audience with media effects perspectives, are discussed.

The Causal Impact of Childhood-Limited Maltreatment and Adolescent Maltreatment on Early Adult Adjustment

PURPOSE We use full-matching propensity score models to test whether developmentally specific measures of maltreatment, in particular childhood-limited maltreatment versus adolescent maltreatment, are causally related to involvement in crime, substance use, health-risking sex behaviors, and internalizing problems during early adulthood. METHODS Our design includes 907 participants (72% male) in the Rochester Youth Development Study, a community sample followed from age 14 to age 31 with 14 assessments, including complete maltreatment histories from Child Protective Services records. RESULTS After balancing the data sets, childhood-limited maltreatment is significantly related to drug use, problem drug use, depressive symptoms, and suicidal thoughts. Maltreatment during adolescence has a significant effect on a broader range of outcomes: official arrest or incarceration, self-reported criminal offending, violent crime, alcohol use, problem alcohol use, drug use, problem drug use, risky sex behaviors, self-reported sexually transmitted disease diagnosis, and suicidal thoughts. CONCLUSIONS The causal effect of childhood-limited maltreatment is focused on internalizing problems, whereas adolescent maltreatment has a stronger and more pervasive effect on later adjustment. Increased vigilance by mandated reporters, especially for adolescent victims of maltreatment, along with provision of appropriate services, may prevent a wide range of subsequent adjustment problems.

Multilevel Latent Class Analysis: An Application of Adolescent Smoking Typologies With Individual and Contextual Predictors

Latent class analysis (LCA) is a statistical method used to identify subtypes of related cases using a set of categorical or continuous observed variables. Traditional LCA assumes that observations are independent. However, multilevel data structures are common in social and behavioral research and alternative strategies are needed. In this article, a new methodology, multilevel latent class analysis (MLCA), is described and an applied example is presented. Latent classes of cigarette smoking among 10,772 European American females in 9th grade who live in 1 of 206 rural communities across the United States are considered. A parametric and nonparametric approach for estimating an MLCA are presented and both individual and contextual predictors of the smoking typologies are assessed. Both latent class and indicator-specific random effects models are explored. The best model was comprised of 3 Level 1 latent smoking classes (heavy smokers, moderate smokers, nonsmokers), 2 random effects to account for variation in the probability of Level 1 latent class membership across communities, and a random factor for the indicator-specific Level 2 variances. Several covariates at the individual and contextual level were useful in predicting latent classes of cigarette smoking as well as the individual indicators of the latent class model. This article will assist researchers in estimating similar models with their own data.

School-related Risk and Protective Factors Associated with Truancy among Urban Youth Placed at Risk

Truancy is a serious concern in the United States. Its negative effects are so pervasive that in 2003 the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention named truancy prevention a national priority. Effective prevention of truancy requires a thorough understanding of the characteristics that describe truant youth as well as factors that may put them at risk for truancy. Unfortunately, surprisingly little is known about the correlates and/or causes of truancy. In this paper we explore associations between truancy and several salient school-related risk and protective factors among a sample of youth who grew up in socially disorganized neighborhoods of Denver, CO. We demonstrate that several school-related risk and protective factors are associated with truancy. Perhaps most importantly, we identify that the two most robust predictors are school performance and involvement with delinquent peers, and that these two variables form a synergistic relationship in which the relationship between delinquent peer association and truancy is mitigated among students who perform well in school. Editors’ Strategic Implications: The authors use data from a large probability sample drawn from neighborhoods with high crime rates to identify key correlates of truancy. They also draw attention to the dearth of efficacious truancy prevention efforts in spite of the magnitude of the problem.

Academic Achievement and Adolescent Drug Use: An Examination of Reciprocal Effects and Correlated Growth Trajectories

BACKGROUND The primary aim was to examine correlated growth trajectories and reciprocal effects between academic achievement and drug use over the course of junior high school. METHODS One hundred and three male and 98 female students from 3 rural junior high schools were surveyed 4 times over the course of 3 years. Dual trajectory latent growth models were estimated. RESULTS Growth trajectories of school achievement and drug use over the course of junior high were highly correlated. Students who demonstrated deteriorating achievement during the course of junior high school showed an increase in drug use during this same time frame. Cross-process regressions indicated that students who demonstrated superior academic achievement in sixth grade exhibited a shallower rate of increase in drug use (ie, their drug use escalated to a lesser extent). CONCLUSIONS The processes of academic disengagement (as marked by deteriorating grades) and drug use during adolescence appear to be related to one another. Prevention initiatives aimed at keeping adolescents academically engaged in school may have protective benefits against escalation of drug use.

The Effect of Arrest and Justice System Sanctions on Subsequent Behavior: Findings from Longitudinal and Other Studies

The purpose of this chapter is to summarize what is known about the effect of arrest on subsequent behavior, especially delinquent behavior, and what prospective longitudinal studies have added to this knowledge base. In addition, we examine what longitudinal studies have found about the effect of sanctions following arrest. In so doing, what policy relevant actions might be justified on the basis of current knowledge about the effects of arrest and sanctions and the opportunities for longitudinal studies to provide additional information about these effects are considered.

Breaking the cycle of maltreatment: The role of safe, stable, and nurturing relationships

PURPOSE We examine two research questions. First, does a history of child maltreatment victimization significantly increase the likelihood of maltreatment perpetration during adulthood? Second, do safe, stable, and nurturing relationships (SSNRs) during early adulthood serve as direct protective factors, buffering protective factors, or both to interrupt intergenerational continuity in maltreating behaviors? METHODS Data come from the Rochester Youth Development Study that followed a community sample from age 14 to 31 with 14 assessments. Maltreatment victimization records covering birth through age 17 were collected from Child Protective Services records as were maltreatment perpetration records from age 21 to 30. Data on five SSNRs were measured during three interviews from ages 21 to 23. RESULTS There is a significant relationship between maltreatment victimization and maltreatment perpetration (odds ratio = 2.57; 95% confidence interval = 1.47-4.50). Three of the five SSNRs investigated-relationship satisfaction, parental satisfaction, and attachment to child-served as direct protective factors, significantly reducing risk for those who had been maltreated. However, none of the interaction terms--between maltreatment victimization and the SSNR--was statistically significant, indicating that the SSNRs did not serve as buffering protective factors CONCLUSIONS Although a history of maltreatment significantly increases the risk of subsequent perpetration of maltreatment, enhancing SSNRs with intimate partners and with children during early adulthood can decrease the odds that a victim of maltreatment will become a perpetrator. Mandated reporters and service providers should be aware of the risk posed by earlier maltreatment and be prepared to ameliorate that risk, in part by strengthening supportive social relationships.

Examination of the Predictors of Latent Class Typologies of Bullying Involvement among Middle School Students

This study employs latent class analysis to construct bullying involvement typologies among 3,114 students (48% male, 58% White) in 40 middle schools across the United States. Four classes were constructed: victims (15%); bullies (13%); bully/victims (13%); and noninvolved (59%). Respondents who were male and participated in fewer conventional activities were more likely to be members of the victims class. Students who were African American and reported being less successful at school had a higher likelihood of membership in the bullies class. Bully/victims shared characteristics with bullies and victims: Students with more feelings of anger toward others and a higher tendency toward sensation-seeking had a higher likelihood of membership in the bullies and bully/victims classes, whereas lower levels of social inclusion was associated with membership in the victims and bully/victims classes.

Low prosocial attachment, involvement with drug-using peers, and adolescent drug use: a longitudinal examination of mediational mechanisms.

The process of disengagement from prosocial entities (e.g., family and school) and either simultaneous or subsequent engagement with antisocial entities (e.g., friends who use drugs) is a critical contributor to adolescent drug use and delinquency. This study provides a series of formal mediation tests to demonstrate the relationship between poor family attachment, poor school attachment, involvement with friends who use drugs, and a students own use of drugs. Results indicate that poor family attachment exerts its effect on drug use through poor school attachment and involvement with friends who use drugs. In addition, poor school attachment exerts its effect on drug use through involvement with friends who use drugs. The results of this study corroborate theories that suggest disengagement from prosocial entities is associated with involvement with antisocial entities and eventual involvement in drug use. Implications for prevention strategies are discussed.

Predictors of Aggressive Behaviors among Rural Middle School Youth

This study determined multivariate sets of predictors for verbal and physical aggression among rural middle school youth. Surveys were obtained from 1,440 7th and 8th grade youth from six middle schools in five geographically dispersed states. Multivariate logistic regression identified final predictive models. Similar, but varying sets of predictors were identified across types of aggression. The most consistent set of predictors was gender, family actions against violence, peer violence, anger, academic performance, and alcohol use. These results suggest that in comparison with past studies of non-rural youth, similar factors predict aggressive behavior among urban and non-urban youth. Editors’ Strategic Implications: This paper makes two contributions to our understanding of the contextual factors influencing youth violence. First, it indicates that the predictive factors for rural and non-rural youth violence are similar. Second, it confirms the role of both family and peers in influencing such violence. Those who design and implement programs and polices addressing youth violence must look beyond individual variables in order to create comprehensive strategies.