Urban minority girls are at considerable risk for the negative health consequences of early sexual activity. Yet few researchers have explored the sources of information about sexual issues for these adolescents, particularly parent-child communication. As part of a larger qualitative study examining social cognitions about sexuality among urban girls, 72 African American and Latina mothers and 72 daughters representing two age groups (6-9 and 10-13) participated in focus group sessions. Both mothers and daughters addressed the cues associated with the timing of these conversations in the course of the daughters’ development; the content of their conversations, including the messages mothers used to influence girls’ decision making; and the approaches or strategies both employed. The authors’ analyses indicate that beneficial communication may be preempted by the antagonistic positions adopted by daughters and mothers as daughters advance sexually. Daughters may in fact benefit more from receiving sex education from other close sources.

Tobacco use, primarily in the form of cigarettes, is the leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality in the United States (U.S.). The adverse effects of tobacco use began to be recognized in the 1940’s and new hazards of active smoking and secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure from cigarettes continue to be identified to this day. This has led to a sustained and wide-ranging array of highly effective regulatory, public health, and clinical efforts that have been informed by extensive scientific data, resulting in marked decreases in the use of cigarettes. Unfortunately, the dramatic recent decline in cigarette use in the U.S., has been accompanied by an upsurge in adolescent and young adult use of new, non-cigarette tobacco and nicotine-delivery products, commonly referred to as alternative tobacco products (ATPs). Commonly used ATPs include hookah, cigars, smokeless tobacco, and electronic cigarettes. While there have been a number of review articles that focus on adult ATP use, the purpose of this review is to provide an overview of what is, and is not known about emerging ATP use among U.S. adolescents on a national scale; as well as to identify research gaps in knowledge, and discuss future health and policy needs for this growing public health concern. This paper is not meant to systemically review all published survey data, but to present clear depiction of selected ATP usage in youth populations using national survey data.

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OBJECTIVES: This study compared the impact of educational and enforcement interventions on retailers' sale of tobacco to minors in Central Harlem, New York. METHODS: In a randomized trial with repeated measures, 152 stores were randomly divided into control, education, and enforcement groups. RESULTS: Overall tobacco sales to 12- and 13-year-old minors at baseline (98%) were among the highest in the nation. At 6-month and 1-year follow-ups, decreases in rates of tobacco sales to minors were modest among education stores and substantial among enforcement stores. CONCLUSIONS: Effective reduction of tobacco sales to minors may require ongoing enforcement measures, including fines for retailers who violate state and local laws.

Background Despite expansion of research on elder mistreatment, limited attention has been paid to the development of improved measurement instruments. This gap is particularly notable regarding measurement of mistreatment in long-term care facilities. This article demonstrates the value of qualitative methods used in item development of a Resident-to-Resident Elder Mistreatment (R-REM) measure for use in nursing homes and other care facilities. It describes the development strategy and the modification and refinement of items using a variety of qualitative methods. Methods A combination of qualitative methods was used to develop close-ended items to measure R-REM, including review by a panel of experts, focus groups, and in-depth cognitive interviews. Results Information gathered from the multiple methods aided in flagging problematic items, helped to highlight the nature of the problems in measures, and provided suggestions for item modification and improvement. Conclusions The method employed is potentially useful for future attempts to develop better measures of elder mistreatment. The employment of previously established measurement items drawn from related fields, modified through an intensive qualitative research strategy, is an effective strategy to improve elder mistreatment measurement.