Research and policy have invested in the prospect that gaining digital skills enhances children’s and young people’s outcomes. A systematic evidence review of research on digital skills among 12- to ...17-year-olds identified 34 studies that used cross-sectional survey methods to examine the association of digital skills with tangible outcomes. Two-thirds concerned the association with online opportunities or other benefits. Another third examined online risks of harm. Findings showed a positive association between digital skills and online opportunities, information benefits, and orientation to technology. Greater digital skills were indirectly linked to greater exposure to online risks, although any link to harm was unclear. While technical skills were linked with mixed or even negative outcomes, information skills were linked with positive outcomes. There was little research on the outcomes of communication or creative digital skills. Future research should examine the dimensions of digital skills separately and encompass a wider range of outcomes.
Participation of children and young people with disabilities is often restricted and needs to be higher on the agenda of relevant municipal service providers. With a sociology of childhood ...perspective and based on thematic analysis of two focus group discussions and one individual interview with children and young people with various (dis)abilities, we present and discuss their recommendations for achieving increased participation in activities and services within their local communities in two Norwegian municipalities. The findings are presented as six themes concerning service development participation, local activities, staff interaction, language and respect, community meeting places for youth with functional variations and inclusive built environments. Our findings should be of immediate concern for service providers, healthcare staff, policymakers and others who are responsible for services and policies aiming at increasing children’s participation in their daily life environments.
Impulsivity is considered a possible phenotype underlying the expression of self-harm and suicidal behaviors. Yet impulsivity is a not a unitary construct and there is evidence that different facets ...of impulsivity follow different neurodevelopmental trajectories and that some facets may be more strongly associated with such behaviors than others. Moreover, it is unclear whether impulsivity is a useful predictor of self-harm or suicidal behavior in young people, a population already considered to display heightened impulsive behavior.
A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies published in Medline, PubMed, PsychInfo or Embase between 1970 and 2017 that used a neurocognitive measure to assess the independent variable of impulsivity and the dependent variable of self-harm and/or suicidal behavior among young people (mean age < 30 years old).
6183 titles were identified, 141 full texts were reviewed, and 18 studies were included, with 902 young people with a self-harm or suicidal behavior and 1591 controls without a history of these behaviors. Deficits in inhibitory control (13 studies, SMD 0.21, p-value = 0.002, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.08–0.34), prediction interval (PI) = 0.06–0.35) and impulsive decision-making (14 studies, SMD 0.17, p-value = 0.008, 95% CI (0.045–0.3), PI = 0.03–0.31) were associated with self-harm or suicidal behavior. There were no significant differences between measures of different facets of impulsivity (ie. delay discounting, risky decision-making, cognitive or response inhibition) and self-harm or suicidal behavior.
Multiple facets of impulsivity are associated with suicidal behavior in young people. Future suicide research should be designed to capture impulsive states and investigate the impact on different subtypes of impulsivity.
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the mental health of human beings since 2020, especially the young people and the pre-existing marginalized groups such as men who have sex with men ...(MSM). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the multi-country outbreak of mpox in 2022 additionally posed a significant stress on the most-affected communities (i.e., MSM). This study investigated the level of depressive symptoms and its multifaceted associated factors among Chinese young men who have sex with men (YMSM) in this unique period.
In September 2022, a large-scale cross-sectional survey was conducted among YMSM aged 18–29 years across six representative provinces in China. Hierarchical regression analysis was performed to test the various types of associated factors of depressive symptoms.
Among the 2493 participants, 65.6 % (n = 1638) reported mild to severe depressive symptoms. The hierarchical regression analysis identified that depressive symptoms was significantly positively associated with unemployment, having substance use in the past 6 months, a higher level of MSM self-stigma, incompletion of COVID-19 vaccination, greater mpox risk perception, and presence of mpox related-like symptoms.
This study used the facility-based sampling method to recruit the participants, which may lead to selection bias.
Chinese YMSM faced significant mental health challenges during the concurrent epidemics of COVID-19 and mpox, which was associated with their socio-economic status, risk behaviors, stigma, and multiple diseases-related variables. Proactive measures may hold promise as effective strategies for mitigating mental distress among marginalized groups during public health crises.
•YMSM experienced severe depressive symptoms in dual-threat context in China.•Identifies key influencing factors across demographic and psychosocial realms.•Urges tailored mental health support for YMSM during health emergencies.•Recommends proactive mental health measures like campaigns and counseling.
Burgeoning evidence that modifiable parental factors can influence children's and adolescents' risk for depression and anxiety indicates that parents can play a crucial role in prevention of these ...disorders in their children. However, it remains unclear whether preventive interventions that are directed primarily at the parent (i.e. where the parent receives more than half of the intervention) are effective in reducing child internalizing (including both depression and anxiety) problems in the longer term.
Compared to a range of comparison conditions, parenting interventions reduced child internalizing problems, at a minimum of 6months after the intervention was delivered. Mean effects were very small for measures of internalizing and depressive symptoms, and small for measures of anxiety symptoms. Pooled effects for anxiety diagnoses were significant and indicated a number needed to treat (NNT) of 10. Pooled effects for depression diagnoses approached significance but suggested a NNT of 11. These results were based on effects reported at the longest follow-up interval for each included study, which ranged from 6months up to 15years for internalizing measures, 5.5years for depressive measures, and 11years for anxiety measures.
Our findings underscore the likely benefits of increasing parental involvement in preventing internalizing problems, particularly anxiety problems, in young people.
•Preventive parenting interventions can reduce child internalizing problems.•The effects of parenting interventions can last for up to 11years.•Preventive interventions directed primarily at parents can have long-term benefits for children.•We should increase parental involvement in preventing child internalizing problems.
The reality of anthropogenic climate change has been established 'beyond reasonable doubt' by leading scientists worldwide. Applying a systematic literature review process, we analysed existing ...literature from 1993 to 2014 regarding climate change education for children and young people, with the aim of identifying key areas for further research. While a number of studies have indicated that young people's understandings of climate change are generally limited, erroneous and highly influenced by mass media, other studies suggest that didactic approaches to climate change education have been largely ineffectual in affecting students' attitudes and behaviour. The review identifies the need for participatory, interdisciplinary, creative, and affect-driven approaches to climate change education, which to date have been largely missing from the literature. In conclusion, we call for the development of new forms of climate change education that directly involve young people in responding to the scientific, social, ethical, and political complexities of climate change.
The aim of this research is to analyse the way young people perceive the food waste process, as well as the determinants and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the responsible behaviour of young ...people towards food waste. The research design involves a study on a sample of 375 students from Romanian universities and the development and validation of a model using SEM-PLS. Our findings show that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more people exhibiting food waste reduction behaviour, an increased awareness for the ethics of food waste among young people, and increased awareness of the environmental consequences of food waste. The limits of the paper refer to non-probability sampling technique and sampling structure that is limited to a single country. The practical implications of the study highlight that this pandemic is a good moment to raise awareness among young people about food waste and we discuss possible strategies on this matter. Our research offers a new perspective on food waste in the conditions of current health crisis, and possible anticipated economic recession, in the future.
Identifying young people who are susceptible to e-cigarettes is important for developing interventions designed to discourage uptake. Current evidence in a broader range of national contexts is ...needed given recent surges in youth e-cigarette use in many countries and the constantly evolving nature of vaping products and the promotional strategies used by the industry to increase their appeal.
A cross-sectional online survey was administered to around 1000 15–30 year olds in each of four countries: Australia, China, India, and the United Kingdom (total n = 4007). The survey assessed demographic characteristics, e-cigarette and tobacco use, exposure to e-cigarette advertising, and number of friends and family members who vape. Those who had never used e-cigarettes (n = 1589) were assessed for susceptibility (curiosity about e-cigarettes, intentions to use in the next 12 months, and likely use if offered by a friend). Mixed effects logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with susceptibility to e-cigarette use.
Susceptibility to e-cigarette use was apparent among 54% of respondents from Australia, 61% from India, 62% from the UK, and 82% from China. Factors positively associated with susceptibility were tobacco use, exposure to advertising, higher income, and having friends and family members who vape. Factors negatively associated with susceptibility were perceptions of harmfulness and education.
The results indicate the need across a diverse range of countries for interventions designed to address substantial proportions of young people who are likely to be susceptible to e-cigarette use.
•Many young people worldwide are trialing e-cigarettes despite potential harm.•Most work to date on e-cigarette susceptibility has been conducted with US students.•High levels of susceptibility were identified in youth in four diverse countries.•Timely interventions are needed that focus on potential harms.•Restricting e-cigarette advertising may reduce susceptibility levels.
•This study explores young people’s behaviour intentions to reduce PM2.5 in China.•The extended theory of planned behaviour model has been adopted.•Personal moral norm is significantly related to ...intention to reduce PM2.5.•The indirect effect of subjective norm is greater than direct effect.
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions have attracted extensive attention because of their severe negative impacts on human health and the national economy. Promoting public participation in reducing PM2.5, especially among young people, is one effective manner in which to control PM2.5 emissions. The present study explores the determinants that influence young people’s behavioural intentions towards reducing PM2.5 using an extended version of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), which incorporates personal moral norms. Additionally, this paper evaluates and compares the direct and indirect relationships between subjective norms and PM2.5 reduction intentions. This study was tested empirically using survey data collected from 425 respondents in China. The results revealed that young people’s attitude towards reducing PM2.5, the subjective norm, was that behavioural control and personal moral norms significantly affect PM2.5 reduction intentions. Furthermore, the indirect effects of subjective norms on PM2.5 reduction intentions via other determinants were 2.5 times greater than the direct effect. In addition, the results also validated the appropriateness of the extended theory of planned behaviour for exploring young people’s PM2.5 reduction intention. Based on the results, implications and future research directions are also discussed.
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