Risk-taking behaviours in a sample of New Zealand adolescents

Abstract

Abstract:We surveyed the risk-taking behaviour of students aged 16 years and over in two New Zealand high schools, with a particular focus on road safety, substance use, sexual behaviour and personal safety. The questionnaire was completed by 471 students, a participation rate of 99 per cent. We found that seven out of 10 students who had ridden either a bicycle or motorcycle in the previous 12 months had not always worn a helmet; that 56 per cent had driven a car without a licence; and 23 per cent had been involved in a motor vehicle crash. A lifetime incidence of 63 per cent for cigarette smoking, 34 per cent for marijuana use and 78 per cent for alcohol use was found. Forty per cent of the students reported ever having sexual intercourse. During the previous 12 months, 49 per cent of these had not always used contraceptives and 61 per cent reported not always wearing condoms as protection for sexually transmitted diseases. Twenty-five per cent had physically harmed another person and 10 per cent reported carrying a weapon with the intent of harming someone else. This study shows that adolescents are willing to provide information on risk taking and that they are engaging in high levels of health-harming behaviour. Such information is important for designing health promotion programs to address adolescent risk taking. (Aust N Z JPublic Health 1997; 21: 455-61) DOLESCENCE and young adulthood are often times when risks, such as not wearing A bicycle or motorcycle helmets and seatbelts, drink-driving, substance abuse, unprotected sexual intercourse and physical violence, are taken. However, these activities all have the potential to affect the health of young people and cause loss, concern and costs to all levels of society.'+ An initial step in designing strategies to address risk taking requires information on the level and range of such behaviours. While studies in Australia,' Europe,6 the United States (US)' and South AfricaB have addressed this need, no New Zealand (NZ) studies have provided a comprehensive view of all risk-taking behaviour. Within NZ the results of two longitudinal studies, the Christchurch Child Development S t~d y ,~J ' and the Dunedin Multi-disciplinary Health Development Study,''-13 have provided information on specific risk-taking behaviours.The study on which this paper is based was developed as part of a wider project called the Youth Health Community Action Project, the aim of which was to obtain information to assist a community in developing strategies to enhance the health and wellbeing of its young pe0p1e.I~ One strategy was to undertake a survey on risk-taking behaviours at the only secondary school in the rural community selected. To increase the study size and therefore increase the opportunity to provide potentially useful results, an urban secondary school was also included. This survey aimed: 1. to ascertain whether young people would provide information on risktaking behaviours; and 2. to provide baseline information on whether young people are involved in risk-taking beh...

Young people's use of condoms and their perceived vulnerability to sexually transmitted infections

“…12,29,34,39,40 The finding that females are less likely than males to use condoms on every occasion of sexual intercourse is also well documented in both this study and other New Zealand studies. 29,33,34 Although it was not statistically significant in this study, condom use did decline with increasing age and this finding is consistent with other studies. 10,27,30,32,37 A large number of sexually active young people are therefore at risk of acquiring an STI.…”

“…33 In addition, as they get older, young people may become involved in more stable relationships where they come to trust their partner in a range of situations, and thus perceive less of a need to be concerned about STIs. 20 Most studies are also consistent in reporting more regular use of condoms by males than females 14,23,27,29,31,[33][34][35][36] and females, in turn, report a greater use of female contraceptives such as the contraceptive pill. 10,33,37 An underlying sense of invulnerability to STIs could play an influential contributory role in all of these associated factors.…”

“…It is generally believed that early school leavers exhibit riskier behaviours than those who complete their secondary school education. 29,34 Therefore, to ensure that students within both year groups were adequately represented, it was necessary to use year group as a stratification factor during sampling. Fifty per cent of classes from within each Year 12 and Year 13 group from all participating schools were randomly selected for participation.…”

“…However, the results cannot be generalised to all young people in this age group as it is recognised that those who leave school at an earlier age are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviour. 29,34 Sampling from the general population of young people aged 16-18 years would prove a more difficult task as there is no available population register or similar list of the population in this age group such as the electoral roll, as young people are ineligible to vote prior to the age of 18 years. In addition, as this study was a cross-sectional one, it is not possible to establish causality, only to suggest associations between particular variables.…”

Factors affecting motorcycle helmet use in the population of Greater Athens, Greece

“…[3][4][5] Many young TWMV users in Greece frequently ride without a helmet, even though helmet use has been mandatory both for TWMV drivers and passengers since 1977, possibly because of the inadequate enforcement of the law. The diYculty in enforcing a law which is massively resisted is widely known, but substituting "wearing" in place of the word "carrying", should help the implementation of this law.…”