Protective factors in adolescent health behavior.

Abstract

The role of psychosocial protective factors in adolescent health-enhancing behaviors--healthy diet, regular exercise, adequate sleep, good dental hygiene, and seatbelt use--was investigated among 1,493 Hispanic, White, and Black high school students in a large, urban school district. Both proximal (health-related) and distal (conventionality-related) protective factors have significant positive relations with health-enhancing behavior and with the development of health-enhancing behavior. In addition, in cross-sectional analyses, protection was shown to moderate risk. Key proximal protective factors are value on health, perceived effects of health-compromising behavior, and parents who model health behavior. Key distal protective factors are positive orientation to school, friends who model conventional behavior, involvement in prosocial activities, and church attendance. The findings suggest the importance of individual differences on a dimension of conventionality-unconventionality. Strengthening both proximal and distal protective factors may help to promote healthful behaviors in adolescence.

Hydroxychloroquine and smoking in patients with cutaneous lupus erythematosus

“…Smokers are more likely to be risk takers and to engage in behaviour that involves negative consequences balanced by potential gain. 53 For example, smokers are more likely than nonsmokers to avoid use of seat belts 54 and to report risky sexual behaviour. 55 Smokers are also less likely than nonsmokers to engage in healthy behaviours, such as healthy eating, 56 physical activity, 57 and cancer screening.…”

Modeling Insect-Repellent Use for Chikungunya Disease Prevention Among US-Caribbean Travelers

“…Being distal, they do not have any direct reference to the adaptive behavior; nor do they have any obvious or immediate implications for health enhancing behavior, although they can serve a risk or protective function. 27 PMT has been used as a framework to develop and evaluate persuasive communication and as a social cognitive model to predict health behavior. 28 In a meta-analysis of studies using PMT which represented more than 20 health issues, Floyd et al 26 reported that increases in severity of threat, susceptibility/ vulnerability, response efficacy, and self-efficacy significantly facilitated protection motivation and behaviors.…”

Adolescents’ Response to Parental Efforts to Influence Eating Habits: When Parental Warmth Matters

“…Parental modeling of positive health behaviors predicts better adolescent health behaviors, whereas parents' modeling of negative health behaviors (e.g., smoking) predicts worse adolescent health behaviors (Jessor et al 1998). However, parents also often explicitly try to control the dietary intake of their adolescent children (Brown and Ogden 2004), and the relationship between these explicit control attempts and adolescents' eating habits is unclear.…”