Psychometric evaluation of the Adverse Childhood Experience International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ) in Malawian adolescents

BackgroundAdverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can have lifelong adverse impacts on health and behavior. While this relationship has been extensively documented in high-income countries, evidence from lower-income contexts is largely missing. In order to stimulate greater research on the prevalence and consequences of ACEs in low-income countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) developed the ACE-International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ).ObjectiveIn this paper, we explore the factor structure, validity and reliability of the original ACE-IQ, and evaluate whether potential adaptations improve its predictive validity.Participants and settingFour hundred and ten adolescents (age 10–16 years old) from Malawi.MethodsThe adolescents answered an adapted version of ACE-IQ and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI).ResultsTaken together, our results suggest that (a) the ACE-IQ is structured in three dimensions: household disruption, abuse, and neglect; (b) there is support for the validity of the scale evidenced by the correlation between subdimensions (average across 13 correlations, phi = .20, p < 0,01; across subdomains (phi = .10, p < 0,01); partial agreement among children with the same caregiver (ICC = .43, p < .001) and correlation between ACE and depression (predictive validity; r = .35, p < .001); (c) information on the timing of the adversities (“last year” in addition to “ever”) modestly improved the predictive value of the ACE-IQ in models of depression (from R² = .12 to .15, p < .001); and (d) additional HIV-related questions showed low endorsement and a modest correlation with BDI (r = .25, p < 0,01).ConclusionOur findings suggest that the ACE-IQ is appropriate for use among adolescents from a low-income context.     

If 'we' can succeed, 'I' can too: Identity-based motivation and gender in the classroom

Gender matters in the classroom, but not in the way people may assume; girls are outperforming boys. Identity-Based Motivation (IBM) theory explains why: People prefer to act in ways that feel in-line with important social identities such as gender. If a behavior feels identity-congruent, difficulty is interpreted as meaning that the behavior is important, not impossible, but what feels identity-congruent is context-dependent. IBM implies that boys (and girls) scan the classroom for clues about how to be male (or female); school effort will feel worthwhile if successful engagement with school feels gender-congruent, not otherwise. A between-subjects experimental design tested this prediction, manipulating whether gender and success felt congruent, incongruent, or not linked (control). Students in the success is gender-congruent condition described more school-focused possible identities, rated their likely future academic and occupational success higher, and tried harder on an academic task (this latter effect was significant only for boys).     

Contradictory Messages: A Content Analysis of Hollywood-Produced Romantic Comedy Feature Films

This study analyzed the romantic content of a sample of 40 romantic comedy films using a basic grounded theory methodology. Analyses revealed that such films appear to depict romantic relationships as having qualities of both new and long-term relationships; that is, to be both novel and exciting, yet emotionally significant and meaningful. Furthermore, relationships were shown to have both highly idealistic and undesirable qualities but for any problems or transgressions experienced to have no real negative long-term impact on relationship functioning. The potential for viewer interpretations is discussed and the need for future research highlighted.     

Testing Components of Confirmation: How Acceptance and Challenge from Mothers,Fathers, and Siblings are Related to Adolescent Self-Concept

The current study assessed how confirmation from family members (mothers, fathers, siblings) was related to adolescents' (ages 13–22) self-concepts. To extend confirmation theory, two components of confirmation were distinguished—acceptance and challenge—to understand their unique and combined contribution to predicting adolescent sense of self. 206 adolescents completed a general questionnaire, and a subset (n=60) completed daily diaries regarding conversations with family members. Analyses of the general perceptions of family interactions suggested the roles of acceptance and challenge in predicting adolescent sense of self varied by family member, whereas analyses of adolescents' reports of daily conversations suggested acceptance and challenge were strong predictors of sense of self regardless of family member. In addition, although the combination of acceptance and challenge was hypothesized to predict the strongest levels of sense of self, analyses suggested the effects of acceptance and challenge were additive. Adolescent participation in conversations, as hypothesized, also mediated the relationship between confirmation and sense of self. Overall, analyses provide partial support for the theoretical extensions, and directions for further theory development and future research are discussed.     

青春发育突增期不同发育类型学生健康促进模式的构建

从我国目前青春期不同发育类型学生体质状况和身心发育需求的实际出发,针对当前学校健康教育的薄弱环境,把握健康教育与健康促进紧密结合的发展趋势,提出了"青春发育突增期不同发育类型学生健康促进模式".它是开展学校健康教育的一种范式,是一种在一定社会背景下、在一定目标规定下、在一定理论指导下对青春发育突增期的学生进行学校健康促进的一个操作程序.其干预活动的主要行为危险因子为: 缺乏体育锻炼、不平衡膳食、性知识贫乏、家长教育方法不当、心理压力过大、适应能力较差等.     

目前青少年成长发展的基本特征与评价

通过对全国7个省市青少年成长发展状况的调查分析,发现在改革开放条件下青少年成长发展具有六个特征：认同主流价值观;人生目标趋于功利化和多元化;有着较高的道德追求;人际关系和谐,区域差异明显;科技素养有待提高;消费观念理性,虽然当代青少年成长发展中存在一些消极的方面,但主流是好的,是充满希望,值得信赖的一代。     

Out-of-school learning assistance in adolescence

This study inquired into the structure and predictors of out-of-school learning assistance among adolescents. It used longitudinal data gathered from up to 4936 Polish lower-secondary school students. The analysis of the assistance structure, performed with latent class analysis, showed that about 50% of students belonged to the latent class with no assistance. All other students belonged to one of four latent classes, representing types of assistance. These latent classes were: frequent non-paid assistance in all subjects, moderate non-paid assistance in all subjects, non-paid assistance in selected subjects, paid and non-paid assistance in mathematics. The analysis of predictors of assistance provision showed that 12 out of 14 hypothesised factors affected membership probability (MP) in at least one latent class. A lower level of past school achievement raised MP in all the classes. Students’ gender, intelligence, intellectual helplessness, learning disability, educational aspirations, family affluence, level of parental education, and school location predicted MP in selected classes.     

Cross-Cultural Concepts of Adolescence in Europe,the United States and Japan

In the twentieth century, in Europe and North America, the origin and development of the concept of adolescence owes much to the growth of universal education. However, in the latter years of the present century the countries of Europe and North America began to experience relative economic decline and, at the same time, develop growing respect for the educational achievements of the countries of the Pacific Rim. This paper seeks to examine models of adolescence more closely both in the countries of the first industrial revolution and in the country that leads the world in academic achievement – Japan.     

Adolescent exposure to violence and adult physical and mental health problems

Evidence on the relationship of adolescent exposure to violence (AEV) with adult physical and mental health problems is limited, with studies often focusing on earlier childhood rather than adolescence, and also on short term rather than long term outcomes. Information specifically on the relationship of AEV to seeking help for mental health problems in adulthood from either formal sources such as mental health professionals or informal sources such as friends and clergy is even more difficult to find. The present study investigates how adolescent exposure to violence (AEV), in the form of parental physical abuse, witnessing parental violence, and exposure to violence in the neighborhood, are related to self-reported adult physical problems and seeking formal or informal assistance with mental health, controlling for more general adolescent violent victimization and for self-reports and parent reports of mental health problems in adolescence. This study adds to the literature on AEV and adult physical problems, and provides a rare look at the relationship of AEV to adult help-seeking for mental health problems. The results suggest that AEV is associated with mental health problems in adolescence for both females and males, that for females AEV is related to physical problems and to seeking help for mental health problems in adulthood, but for males the only significant relationship involves inconsistent reports of witnessing parental violence and adult physical problems.     

How gender norms are reinforced through violence against adolescent girls in two conflict-affected populations

Violence against women and girls is a global concern, and particularly salient in humanitarian settings. Successful efforts to prevent gender-based violence in humanitarian settings must address a wide range of issues, from discriminatory laws to explicit community support for violence, and yet, at the core of these efforts is reducing oppressive gender and social norms. This study examined local attitudes towards and social norms around responding to physical and sexual abuse of girls through interviews conducted with adolescent girls (n = 66) and with caregivers (n = 58) among two conflict-affected populations: villages in South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudanese and South Sudanese refugees in Ethiopian camps. The findings suggest how communities use violence as a tool to enforce the importance of girls practicing community-defined “good” adolescent girl behavior, and have implications for gender-based violence programming among other conflict-affected populations.