WHO's upcoming report Global health risks will identify the global and regional mortality and disease burden associated with 24 health risks. These risk factors range from environmental risks such as exposure to smoke from indoor solid fuel use, to metabolic risks such as high blood pressure. The report finds that five leading risk factors (childhood underweight, unsafe sex, alcohol use, unsafe water and sanitation, and high blood pressure) are responsible for one-quarter of all deaths in the world and one-fifth of all disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). Success in reducing exposure to these five risk factors alone would increase global life expectancy by nearly 5 years. This report describes the changing risk profiles of developing countries. Global health risks are in transition as declining fertility rates and fewer deaths from infectious diseases at young ages are reflected in population age patterns with a predominance of older people. At the same time, patterns of physical activity, diet, alcohol and tobacco consumption are changing. Low-and middle-income countries now face increasing burdens of chronic, noncommunicable conditions in addition to infectious diseases. Understanding the effects of health risks is vital to designing and targeting prevention efforts. However, the analysis of risk factors is challenging due to the inherent complexity of finding and interpreting evidence on risks and their causal associations with disease and disability. Risk assessment is limited both by epidemiologic knowledge and by availability of global information on risk factor exposure. To carry out a quantitative risk assessment, evidence must exist first, to show that the exposure to each risk causes disease, second, to quantify the magnitude of harm caused by each exposure, and lastly, to

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Large-scale validation research on instruments measuring problematic social media use (SMU) is scarce. Using a nationally representative sample of 6,626 Dutch adolescents aged 12 to 16 years, the present study examined the psychometric properties of the nine-item Social Media Disorder scale. The structural validity was solid, because one underlying factor was identified, with adequate factor loadings. The internal consistency was good, but the test information was most reliable at moderate to high scores on the scale’s continuum. The factor structure was measurement invariant across different subpopulations. Three subgroups were identified, distinguished by low, medium, and high probabilities of endorsing the criteria. Higher levels of problematic SMU were associated with higher probabilities of mental, school, and sleep problems, confirming adequate criterion validity. Girls, lower educated adolescents, 15-year-olds, and non-Western adolescents were most likely to report problematic SMU. Given its good psychometric properties, the scale is suitable for research on problematic SMU among adolescents.

This research note addresses the current and potential future role of psychologists in the study of international migration. We review ways in which psychologists have contributed to the study of migration, as well as ways in which psychological scholarship could be integrated with work from other social science fields. Broadly, we discuss four major contributions that psychology brings to the study of international migration—studying migrants’ internal psychological experiences, incorporating a developmental perspective, conducting experimental studies, and integrating across levels of analysis. Given the position of psychology as a ‘hub science’ connecting more traditional social sciences with health and medical sciences, we argue for a more prominent role for psychologists within the study of international migration. Such a role is intended to complement the roles of other social scientists and to create a more interdisciplinary way forward for the field of migration studies. The research note concludes with an agenda for further scholarship on migration.

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The goal of this study was to examine behavioral norm effects in 2 peer contexts (classroom, school) on adolescent substance use (tobacco, alcohol, cannabis) and aggressive behaviors (bullying, physical fighting). Participants were 5,642 adolescents (M age 5 14.29 years, SD 5 1.26; 49% boys). There were 3 hypotheses. First, behavioral norms in both contexts affect individual behavior. Second, classroom norms have stronger effects on individual behavior than school norms. Third, classroom and school norms interact and exacerbate each other's influence. Results indicated that classroom norms had stronger effects than school norms on individual tobacco and alcohol use. Furthermore, school norms had equal or stronger effects than classroom norms on the 2 indicators of aggressive behaviors. There was no evidence for an interaction between classroom and school norms for any dependent variable. This study demonstrates that the complexity of multiple (nested) peer contexts should be considered to fully understand peer influence processes.

Few studies have explored the contribution of family and school factors to the association between ADHD symptoms and lower education. Possibly, having more ADHD symptoms contributes to poorer family functioning and less social support, and consequently a lower educational level (i.e., mediation). Moreover, the negative effects of ADHD symptoms on education may be stronger for adolescents with poorer family functioning or less social support (i.e., interaction). Using data of the Dutch TRAILS Study (N = 2,229), we evaluated associations between ADHD symptoms around age 11 and educational level around age 14, as well as between ADHD symptoms around age 14 and 16 years and subsequent changes in educational level around age 16 and 19, respectively. We assessed the potential mediating role of family functioning, and social support by teachers and classmates, all measured around ages 11, 14, and 16, while additionally evaluating interactions between ADHD symptoms and these hypothesized mediators. ADHD symptoms were associated with poorer family functioning, less social support by teachers and classmates, and lower education throughout adolescence. No conclusive evidence of mediation was found, because unique associations between family functioning and social support by teachers and classmates and education were largely absent. Furthermore, we found no interactions between ADHD symptoms and family functioning and social support by teachers and classmates. Although social support by teachers and classmates and good family functioning may benefit the wellbeing and mental health of adolescents with high levels of ADHD symptoms, they will not necessarily improve their educational attainment.