Adolescent sleep insufficiency one year after high school.

INTRODUCTION: Sleep difficulties affect approximately 45% of adolescents and are associated with health consequences such as depression and obesity. Sleep duration immediately following high school is not well understood, especially for those not pursuing post-secondary education. We examined adolescent sleep insufficiency and its association with school and work status. METHODS: Data were collected in 2012 and 2013 as part of the NEXT Generation Health Study (NEXT), a nationally representative, longitudinal study of U.S. adolescents. Self-reported sleep was compared with guidelines for healthy sleep. RESULTS: On weekdays, 31% reported less than 7 h of sleep; which reduced to 6% on weekends. Average weekday sleep was 7.4 h and weekend sleep was 9.2 h. Few results emerged from interaction analyses comparing different work and school statuses. CONCLUSIONS: This study captures sleep habits of adolescents one year after high school regardless of school and/or working status. Implications and future directions are discussed.

Conscientious personality and young drivers' crash risk.

INTRODUCTION: Personality characteristics are associated with many risk behaviors. However, the relationship between personality traits, risky driving behavior, and crash risk is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between personality, risky driving behavior, and crashes and near-crashes, using naturalistic driving research methods. METHOD: Participants' driving exposure, kinematic risky driving (KRD), high-risk secondary task engagement, and the frequency of crashes and near-crashes (CNC) were assessed over the first 18months of licensure using naturalistic driving methods. A personality survey (NEO-Five Factor Inventory) was administered at baseline. The association between personality characteristics, KRD rate, secondary task engagement rate, and CNC rate was estimated using a linear regression model. Mediation analysis was conducted to examine if participants' KRD rate or secondary task engagement rate mediated the relationship between personality and CNC. Data were collected as part of the Naturalistic Teen Driving Study. RESULTS: Conscientiousness was marginally negatively associated with CNC (path c=-0.034, p=.09) and both potential mediators KRD (path a=-0.040, p=.09) and secondary task engagement while driving (path a=-0.053, p=.03). KRD, but not secondary task engagement, was found to mediate (path b=0.376, p=.02) the relationship between conscientiousness and CNC (path c'=-0.025, p=.20). CONCLUSIONS: Using objective measures of driving behavior and a widely used personality construct, these findings present a causal pathway through which personality and risky driving are associated with CNC. Specifically, more conscientious teenage drivers engaged in fewer risky driving maneuvers, and suffered fewer CNC. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Part of the variability in crash risk observed among newly licensed teenage drivers can be explained by personality. Parents and driving instructors may take teenage drivers' personality into account when providing guidance, and establishing norms and expectations about driving.

Teen Drivers' Perceptions of Their Peer Passengers: Qualitative Study.

BACKGROUND: The presence of peer passengers increases teenage drivers' fatal crash risk. Distraction and social influence are the two main factors that have been associated with increased risk. Teen drivers' perceptions of their peer passengers on these factors could inform our understanding of the conditions under which peer passengers increase crash risk or promote safer driving. The purpose of this study was to examine teen drivers' perceptions of their peer passengers on distraction and social influence. METHOD: A convenience sample of male and female drivers participated in a semi-structured interview that included questions on their perceptions of the effects of peer passengers on driving on distraction and social influence. The analysis of the interviews was guided by a grounded theory approach. FINDINGS: Teenage drivers were aware of the risk that peer passengers posed. Some described having passengers in the vehicle as distracting, and recognized that the level of distraction increased with the number of passengers in the vehicle. Drivers that felt responsible for the safety of their peer passengers described strategies they used to control the in-vehicle environment. Drivers described driving with passengers as a performance, and articulated direct and indirect sources of pressure, gender norms, and unspoken expectations of their passengers as influencing their driving behavior. CONCLUSIONS: The influence of passengers is situation specific and dependent on whom the passenger(s) may be. Passenger influence may be either protective or harmful, depending on the circumstances. Some passengers exert direct influence, but often their influence appears more indirect and subtle.

Trends in bullying, physical fighting, and weapon carrying among 6th- through 10th-grade students from 1998 to 2010: findings from a national study.

OBJECTIVES: We examined trends from 1998 to 2010 in bullying, bullying victimization, physical fighting, and weapon carrying and variations by gender, grade level, and race/ethnicity among US adolescents. METHODS: The Health Behavior in School-Aged Children surveys of nationally representative samples of students in grades 6 through 10 were completed in 1998 (n = 15,686), 2002 (n = 14,818), 2006 (n = 9229), and 2010 (n = 10,926). We assessed frequency of bullying behaviors, physical fighting, and weapon carrying as well as weapon type and subtypes of bullying. We conducted logistic regression analyses, accounting for the complex sampling design, to identify trends and variations by demographic factors. RESULTS: Bullying perpetration, bullying victimization, and physical fighting declined from 1998 to 2010. Weapon carrying increased for White students only. Declines in bullying perpetration and victimization were greater for boys than for girls. Declines in bullying perpetration and physical fighting were greater for middle-school students than for high-school students. CONCLUSIONS: Declines in most violent behaviors are encouraging; however, lack of decline in weapon carrying merits further attention.

Motivation and planning as mediators of the relation between social support and physical activity among U.S. adolescents: a nationally representative study.

BACKGROUND: More than half of U.S. high-school students do not meet the moderate and vigorous physical activity (MVPA) 5 hours per week recommendation. The purpose of this study was to determine how individual dimensions (motivation and planning) mediate the relationship of social context with physical activity by integrating available measures of personal characteristic including internal/external motivations (derived from Self-Determination Theory -SDT]) for MVPA, MVPA planning, peer MVPA, and parental support to better understand adolescent MVPA. METHODS: Survey responses of a nationally representative cohort of 11th graders (N=2439) in the NEXT Generation Health Study were analyzed with structural equation modeling. RESULTS: Adolescent MVPA was directly, significantly associated with MVPA planning (ß=0.17), peer MVPA (ß=0.21), and internal motivation (ß=0.50). Internal motivation was associated with peer MVPA (ß=0.31), parental support for MVPA (ß=0.16), and external motivation (ß=0.40). A significant relation between parental support and external motivation (ß=0.31) was also found. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents with higher internal motivation and more active friends were more likely to engage in MVPA. The results are consistent with SDT and suggest that planning is an important construct for adolescent MVPA.

Perspectives from before and after the pediatric to adult care transition: a mixed-methods study in type 1 diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: Among the many milestones of adolescence and young adulthood, transferring from pediatric to adult care is a significant transition for those with type 1 diabetes. The aim of this study was to understand the concerns, expectations, preferences, and experiences of pretransition adolescents and parents and posttransition young adults. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Participants completed questionnaires and responded to open-ended qualitative questions regarding self-management, self-efficacy, and their expectations and experiences with pediatric and adult care providers across the transition process. RESULTS: At a mean age of 16.1 years, most pretransition adolescents had not yet discussed transferring care with their parents or doctors. Although many posttransition young adults reported positive, supportive interactions, several described challenges locating or establishing a relationship with an adult diabetes care provider. Qualitative themes emerged related to the anticipated timing of transfer, early preparation for transition, the desire for developmentally appropriate interactions with providers, the maintenance of family and social support, and strategies for coordinating care between pediatric and adult care providers. CONCLUSIONS: Standardizing transition preparation programs in pediatric care and introducing transition-oriented clinics for late adolescents and young adults prior to adult care may help address patients' preferences and common transfer-related challenges.