Megan L. Smith

The Role of Community, Family, Peer, and School Factors in Group Bullying: Implications for School‐Based Intervention

BACKGROUND Although an ecological perspective suggests the importance of multiple levels of intervention, most bullying research has emphasized individual- and school-focused strategies. This study investigated community and family factors that influence school efforts to reduce odds of group bullying behavior and victimization. METHODS We used multilevel logistic regression to analyze data from the 2009 Youth in Iceland population school survey (N = 7084, response rate: 83.5%, 50.8% girls). RESULTS Parental support and time spent with parents were protective against group bullying behavior while worsening relationships with teachers and disliking school increased the likelihood of such behavior. Knowing kids in the area increased the likelihood of group bullying while intergenerational closure was a protective factor. Normlessness was consistently positively related to group bullying. We found no indication of higher-level relationships across the bullying models. Parental support was protective against victimization. Disliking school, intergenerational closure, and anomie/normlessness were strongly and negatively related to victimization. We found some indication of multilevel relationships for victimization. CONCLUSIONS Findings support efforts to increase family and community connection, closure, and support as a part of school-based intervention. These factors become more important as young people participate in or experience greater odds of group bullying behavior and victimization.

Energy drink consumption and substance use risk in middle school students

Objectives Energy drink (ED) sales have increased greatly in recent years and ED is now a common topic in health behavior research. Most studies work with samples of college students and/or young adults and to a lesser degree with high school students. Research is lacking on ED consumption in younger users. The purpose of this study was to fill this gap and assess the prevalence of ED consumption in a sample of middle school students as well to analyze the relationships between ED use and illicit and licit drug use in girls and boys of this age. Method We use cross-sectional school-survey data from 6–8th grade students in three US mid-Atlantic schools conducted in September to November 2014 (N = 1152, response rate: 82.4%). Results Approximately 20% of participants had consumed ED and 10% had smoked cigarettes. Almost 14% had used alcohol at least once in their lifetime and 5.5% marijuana. Boys were more likely than girls to have used ED but no gender difference was observed in the prevalence of illicit substances. However, ED use was positively related to smoking and alcohol use among both genders, but also to several forms of illicit drug use among girls. Conclusion ED consuming girls are particularly prone to also use illicit substances. This is the first survey-type study which reports a positive relationship between ED consumption with both licit and illicit drug use in middle school-aged girls and boys.

Improving Academic Self-Efficacy, School Connectedness, and Identity in Struggling Middle School Girls A Preliminary Study of the REAL Girls Program

Girls struggling to be successful in middle school are often dealing with negative life experiences that affect their ability to achieve academically. Frequently, their academic failures and problem behaviors are associated with feeling overwhelmed by difficult and challenging life circumstances. In the absence of intervention, these patterns may contribute to girls chronically underperforming in school, dropping out of school, and becoming involved in delinquent and high-risk behaviors. This article describes a quasi-experimental, mixed-methods study of the REAL Girls program. REAL Girls was designed to help struggling middle school girls develop resilience—particularly academic self-efficacy, school connectedness, and identity—and achieve successful outcomes in school and life. In this study, using a crossover design, 48 girls identified as experiencing academic failure, school behavior problems, or truancy participated in one of two implementations of this 3-day intervention. Findings based on both quantitative and qualitative data suggest that REAL Girls contributed to positive increases in academic self-efficacy, school connectedness, and identity. Repeated measures analysis of variance and paired t tests suggest significant increases in each outcome variable, both immediately after program delivery and 2 weeks later, and effect size estimates suggest moderate to large program impact. Focus groups conducted 90 days after implementation of the program confirmed the quantitative findings and support the efficacy of the REAL Girls program and approach.

The Impact of Negative Life Events on Young Adolescents: Comparing the Relative Vulnerability of Middle Level, High School, and College-Age Students.

Early adolescence represents a particularly vulnerable period of development during which young people are susceptible to establishing lifelong behavior patterns associated with poor life, health, and educational outcomes (McGee & Williams, 2000; Mohay & Forbes, 2009; Morgan & Todd, 2009; Schumacher & Kurz, 2000). Previous research demonstrates older adolescents and young adults often experience negative life events (NLEs) prior to corresponding periods of depression, anxiety, and anger (Johnson, Whisman, Corley, Hewitt, & Rhee, 2012; Sigfusdottir & Silver, 2009) and that NLE-related distress can influence students’ readiness to learn (De Anda et al., 1997; Franko et al., 2004; Oliva, Jimenez, & Parra, 2009).

Detecting Symptom Exaggeration in College Students Seeking ADHD Treatment: Performance Validity Assessment Using the NV-MSVT and IVA-Plus

ABSTRACT The symptoms of ADHD are highly subjective, and there is ample empirical evidence that demonstrates the ease with which impairments in attention can be feigned on many commonly used subjective and objective measures of attention. We examined the combination of two assessment measures, NV-MSVT and IVA+, to screen for performance validity and ADHD symptoms in college students. Results indicated that the NV-MSVT was effective in differentiating between students with potential high impairment, such as ADHD, and possible malingerers. In addition, in vivo clinical data (N = 350) resulted in lower validity cut-off scores on the IVA+ than had been previously suggested. Clinical implications and future research are also discussed.

Prevalence of substance use among middle school–aged e-cigarette users compared with cigarette smokers, nonusers, and dual users: Implications for primary prevention

BACKGROUND The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of substance use in e-cigarette (EC)-only users with combustible cigarette (CC)-only users, dual users, and nonusers in a large sample of middle school-aged adolescents. METHODS Population-based cross-sectional school survey conducted in 15 middle schools in 3 counties in West Virginia in the United States between October and December of 2015 (N = 6547, girls = 49.6%; response rate 84.7%). RESULTS Approximately 4.3% of participants had used EC only, 4.5% had used CC only, and around 5.5% were dual users. Nonusers had the lowest prevalence of all 9 forms of substance use assessed in the study (i.e., chewing tobacco, any alcohol, drunkenness, marijuana, sniffing, prescription drugs, hallucinogens, synthetic marijuana, and bath salts), followed by EC and CC users. Dual users had the highest prevalence of 8 of 9 forms of substance use. Multinomial logistic regression models showed that EC-only users had significantly greater odds over nonusers of using 8 of 9 types of substances included in the study. Conversely, EC-only users had significantly lower odds of using 7 of 9 types of substances when compared with dual users. However, EC-only users did not differ from CC-only users in odds of use in any of the 9 substances included in this analysis. CONCLUSIONS Among middle school-aged adolescents, EC-only users do not differ from CC-only users in odds for other forms of substance use. Primary prevention programs should consider EC use initiation as a pathway to greater risk of other licit and illicit substances among young adolescents.

Promoting Rigor-in-Practice through School Self-Evaluation: A Middle School's Experience with Model Development, Implementation, and Evaluation.

For years, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has demanded that our nation pay ever closer attention to school evaluation (Schmidt, 2008; Stanik, 2007). Never before have the stakes of evaluation been so high. School and district jobs, funding, and local control of educational policy and practice are all more directly jeopardized by unfavorable evaluations than at any other time in our country’s history (Schmidt, 2008; Stanik, 2007). These high-stakes consequences demand that educators be evaluation experts, fully prepared to take part in the debate about U.S. education and school evaluation.

Teacher Leader Model Standards and the Functions Assumed by National Board Certified Teachers

Abstract The Teacher Leader Model Standards (TLMS) were created to stimulate discussion around the leadership responsibilities teachers assume in schools. This study used the TLMS to gauge the self-reported leadership responsibilities of National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs). The NBCTs reported engaging in all domains of the TLMS, most frequently with Domain 1: Fostering a collaborative culture to support educator development and student learning, and least frequently with Domain 7: Advocating for student learning and the profession.

The Influence of Negative Life Events and Problem Behavior on Grades in Early Adolescence: Pathways to Academic Risk in the Middle Grades.

Abstract Younger adolescents demonstrate a greater vulnerability to negative life events than do older adolescents and adults. The authors examined whether this heightened vulnerability includes a greater likelihood for participating in problem behaviors associated with poor academic outcomes and receiving lower grades. The study was conducted using data from essentially the whole population of Iceland in the specified age group. Thus, the researchers were able to understand this relationship within traditionally high-risk populations as well as all young people representing the full range of possible risk. All middle grades and high school students who attended school at the time of the study completed a cross-sectional survey that included self-reports of negative life events (NLEs), participation in problem behaviors, and grades (n = 7,291, ~ 86% of population). Structural equation modeling indicated a strong pathway between NLEs, problem behaviors, and grades. For boys in the middle grades experiencing NLEs, problem behaviors mediated 100% of the variance in grades, while it mediated 56% of the variance among girls in the middle grades. Implications for research and practice are provided.

What Counts When it Comes to School Enjoyment and Aspiration in the Middle Grades

Abstract Young adolescents, and the middle level educators who work with them, face many exciting but demanding challenges during this key period of development. According to stage-environment fit theory, the degree to which middle grades students perceive a good fit between their school environment and their needs impacts their academic and life outcomes. The authors endeavored to build on middle level research by studying the extent to which students’ needs are supported by school environment factors and how this “fit” relates to two academic outcome variables: school enjoyment and aspiration. The sample consisted of middle grades students (N = 1,027) between the ages of 10 and 14. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses were conducted. After controlling for age, ethnicity, and gender, four subscales (Social Skills Needs, Mental Health Needs, Academic and Career Needs, and School Support) were entered as potential predictors. Both models were significant and accounted for ~20% of the variance. This study suggests that middle level educators, counselors, and administrators may benefit from considering ways to enhance the match between students’ and the middle grades’ learning environment, especially by considering non-academic factors as a way to provide indirect, but powerful, support for academic and life success.