Attributes that Differentiate Children Who Sip Alcohol from Abstinent Peers

Sipping alcohol during childhood may be a marker of differentiation as regards children’s future risk of underage drinking; yet very little is known about alcohol use when it occurs among elementary school-aged children. The purpose of the present study is to examine alcohol sipping behavior in a sample of third-grade school children to learn whether sipping is associated with attributes that could increase children’s likelihood of further underage drinking. We collected telephone interview data from 1,050 mothers and their third grade children (mean age 9.2 years; 48.2 % male) residing in the Southeastern United States. The majority of mothers were White non-Hispanic (69.02 %) or Black non-Hispanic (21.3 %); most (85 %) lived in households shared with fathers or other adult caretakers. We hypothesized that children who sip alcohol would score lower than abstinent peers on indicators of competence and score higher on indicators of exposure to alcohol-specific socialization by parents and peers. A multivariate model controlling for frequency of parent alcohol use and demographic covariates showed that children who had sipped alcohol were significantly less likely than abstinent peers to affirm indicators of competence and significantly more likely to affirm indicators of exposure to alcohol specific socialization by parents and by same age peers. These preliminary findings suggest that developmental attributes associated with risk of underage drinking begin to differentiate at least as young as middle childhood. Research is needed to test prospectively for continuity between alcohol risk attributes present in middle childhood and future alcohol use.     

The Peer Context and the Development of the Perpetration of Adolescent Dating Violence

The peer context is a central focus in research on adolescent risk behaviors but few studies have investigated the role of the peer context in the perpetration of adolescent dating violence. This longitudinal study examined between-subjects and within-person contemporaneous and lagged effects of peer attributes, measured with social network analyses, on trajectories of dating violence perpetration and determined if effects varied by grade and/or sex of the adolescent. Data are from adolescents who participated in a five-wave panel study beginning when they were in 7 through 9th grade and ending when they were in 10 through 12th grade (n = 3,412); half were male, 40.5 % were white, 49.9 % were black and 10.4 % were of another race/ethnicity. Significant between-subjects effects indicate that adolescents who typically have friends who use dating violence, and girls who are typically high in social status, are at increased risk for using dating violence throughout adolescence. Adolescents who typically have high quality friendships and girls who typically have friends with pro-social beliefs are at decreased risk for using dating violence throughout adolescence. Significant within-person contemporaneous effects indicate that both boys and girls reported lower levels of dating violence than usual at times when they had more friends with pro-social beliefs, and reported higher levels of dating violence than usual at times when they had higher social status. None of the lagged effects were significant and none of the effects varied across grade. These findings suggest that the peer context plays an important role in the development of the perpetration of adolescent dating violence.     

The British Police Experience

[Editor's note] The following is the text Sir Eric St. Johnston delivered before the members of the Wichita Crime Commission at their 24th Annual dinner meeting on October 19, 1977. Sir Eric St. Johnston is formerly of the Chief of Scotland Yard and Chief Inspector of Constabulary for England and Wales. Among others, he is a Knight of the Order of the Thistle, holder of the Commander Order of the British Empire, the Queen's Police Medal and the French Legion of Honour and Croix de Guerre. In his text, Sir Eric mentions various similarities and and dissimilarities regarding the police practices of two countries. He is of the opinion that there are a great deal of advantages in a centralized police system as contrasted to the American counterpart. This statement is similar to the Editor's assertion made some ten years ago. [Re: “Police Reorganization As A Deterrent to Crime,” Police, Vol. 12, No. 14, March-April, 1978, pp. 73–79. See also Crime and Delinquency Abstracts, Vol. 16, National Clearinghouse for Mental Health Information of the U.S. Department of HEW, Public Service, 1969, p. 589] Readers will find Sir Eric's text not only timely, stimulating and provocative, but also insightful through his comparison of his long career in English police with that of the United States' police. Certainly his remarks provide police planners and policy makers with what should be most pressing needs for combating the ever-increasing crime in England, the United States, and the world as a whole. The permission to reprint was obtained from Sir Eric by the Editor personally. The Editor wishes to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Maurice W. Corcoran, Managing Director, and his colleagues Mr. Will G. Price, Jr., President; Mr. Jay W. Swanson, Chairman of the Board; Mr. J. A. Mull, Jr., Past President; and Mr. William L. Connelly, Chairman, Annual Dinner Committee; all of the Wichita Crime Commission for their efforts and cooperation.     

Stability and Change in Rural Youths’ Educational Outcomes Through the Middle and High School Years

There is a dearth of literature that examines rural youths’ school transition and adaptation over the middle and high school years. Given rural education challenges, this study examines rural youths’ developmental trajectories of self-reported grades and affective and behavioral educational outcomes (i.e., school belonging, value of education, school misbehavior, and extracurricular activity participation). The cohort-sequential study consisted of 3,312 African American and White youth (50% female) who were surveyed over three and a half years, including the transition to high school. The results reveal significant changes in the outcomes from sixth to twelfth grade. For example, on average, school misbehavior increased over time while perceived school belonging decreased over time. Gender and race differences emerged; African American youth reported placing higher importance on education and less participation in school activities than White youth. The discussion focuses on the importance of examining rural adolescents’ educational pathways during the high school transition.     

Relationships among family characteristics and violent behavior by black and white male adolescents

Understanding why violence occurs disproportionately among black male adolescents has become a public health research priority due to recent increases in the rates of homicide and other violent crime in this population. This study examined independent, mediating, and moderating effects of family structure, attachment to parents, and family stress and conflict on self-reported fighting behavior. Subjects were black (n=163) and white (n=397) male 7th and 8th graders. Compared to white males, blacks were exposed to an excess of risk factors for violent behavior, including living in a single-parent household and higher levels of family stress and conflict. Although both groups reported similar levels of past-year fighting, black youth were more likely than whites to report attacking someone or being attacked by someone at school during the prior month. Controlling for age, area of residence, and other family characteristics, logistic regression analyses indicated that living in a nonintact family was a significant risk factor for violent behavior among black male youth, while attachment to parents was a significant protective factor for white males. Family stress and conflict was a risk factor for violent behavior cimmon to both groups of adolescents.This research was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse Grant No. R01 DA07037.Received Ph.D. from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Health and Social Policy Research Division, P. O. Box 12194, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709-2194. Research interests are in adolescent health promotion and disease/injury prevention. To whom correspondence should be addressed.Received Ph.D. from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Research interests are in adolescent health promotion and disease/injury prevention.Received Ph.D. from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Research interests are in adolescent health promotion and disease/injury prevention.