Construct Validity of the Portuguese Version of the Wagnild and Young Resilience Scale.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: This study aims to validate the resilience scale developed by Wagnild and Young for the Portuguese population. METHODS: The instrument validation was conducted with a sample of 313 adults attending the Higher Institute of Educational Sciences, of which 62.3% were female and 37.7% male, between 18 and 58 years old. RESULTS: Three factors were decided upon: life satisfaction, planning-discipline, and independence, and there was a positive average correlation between the three factors. The confirmatory factor analysis showed excellent comparative fit index and root mean square error of approximation values, so we conclude that the model has an excellent fit. Also, Cronbach's alpha coefficient used for internal consistency values reported good values. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the key global indicators of the model's fit and reliability analysis express their quality for Portuguese population.

Relações entre suporte social, autorregulação e consumo de outras substâncias em adultos portugueses

Neste estudo, investigaram-se as relações entre suporte social percebido, auto-regulação e comportamentos de consumo de álcool, tabaco e outras substâncias psicoactivas. A amostra foi constituída por 340 participantes. O suporte social correlacionou-se favoravelmente com a auto-regulação, mas somente na vertente de satisfação com o apoio social é que se observou esta tendência de forma evidente. O número de figuras de apoio diferenciou-se significativamente com o uso de tabaco, o que sugere o âmbito afiliativo de algumas substâncias psicoactivas. Nesse sentido, o uso de tabaco pode estar associado a uma rede social mais ampla, mas não com a qualidade do suporte social.

In this study the relationships between perceived social support, self-regulation and consuming behaviors of tobacco and other psychoactive substances we investigated. The sample consisted of 340 adult participants. Social support correlated positively with self-regulation, but was solely in the aspect of satisfaction with social support that this trend was noted clearly. The number of support providers differed considerably with the use of tobacco, which suggests the affiliative scope of some psychoactive substances. Accordingly, the use of tobacco may be associated with a larger social network, but not with the quality of social support.

Effectiveness of two prevention programs on alcohol use as a function of provider type / Eficacia de dos programas de prevención del consumo de alcohol en función del tipo de aplicador

Currently, it is still unclear how to translate effectively programs validated in research for use in real-world contexts. Among the efforts being made to identify strategies which optimize the application of these programs in everyday practice are tests of the differential effectiveness of the programs depending on the application agent. Method: this study analyses the effects of two programs on alcohol use and its variables as a function of provider type. Two hundred students from the first year of secondary education were distributed among five experimental conditions: four treatment conditions, in which the two programs were applied by teachers at the school or external psychologists, and a control condition. Results: the results suggest that, for both programs, teachers obtain better outcomes in alcohol use and concern about addiction. Conclusions: it is concluded that teachers are the ideal application agents in terms of efficiency, and we discuss the implications for research and preventive practice.

En la actualidad no es claro cómo traducir efectivamente los programas validados en la investigación para su aplicación en contextos reales. Entre los esfuerzos que se han realizado está el de identificar estrategias que optimicen la aplicación de estos programas en la práctica cotidiana que tienen diferente efectividad dependiendo del agente que los aplique. Metodología: este estudio analiza los efectos de dos programas sobre el consumo de alcohol y sus variables en función del aplicador. Doscientos estudiantes de primer año de secundaria se distribuyeron en cinco condiciones experimentales: cuatro en condición de tratamiento, en que se aplicaron dos programas aplicados por profesores de la escuela o psicólogos externos, y un grupo control. Resultados: los hallazgos sugieren que en los dos programas los profesores obtienen mejores resultados sobre el consumo de alcohol y la preocupación por la adicción. Conclusiones: se concluye que los profesores son los agentes aplicadores ideales en términos de eficiencia y discutimos las implicaciones que esto tiene para la práctica investigativa y práctica.

Alcohol and tobacco use and cognitive-motivational variables in school settings: effects on academic performance in Spanish adolescents.

The aim of the present study was to analyze: (a) the relationship between alcohol and tobacco use and academic performance, and (b) the predictive role of psycho-educational factors and alcohol and tobacco abuse on academic performance in a sample of 352 Spanish adolescents from grades 8 to 10 of Compulsory Secondary Education. The Self-Description Questionnaire-II, the Sydney Attribution Scale, and the Achievement Goal Tendencies Questionnaire were administered in order to analyze cognitive-motivational variables. Alcohol and tobacco abuse, sex, and grade retention were also measured using self-reported questions. Academic performance was measured by school records. Frequency analyses and logistic regression analyses were used. Frequency analyses revealed that students who abuse of tobacco and alcohol show a higher rate of poor academic performance. Logistic regression analyses showed that health behaviours, and educational and cognitive-motivational variables exert a different effect on academic performance depending on the academic area analyzed. These results point out that not only academic, but also health variables should be address to improve academic performance in adolescence.

Uso de alcohol y tabaco y variables cognitivo-motivacionales en el ámbito escolar: Efectos sobre el rendimiento académico en adolescentes españoles / Alcohol and tobacco use and cognitive-motivational variables in school settings: Effects on academic performance in Spanish adolescents

El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar: (a) la relación entre el consumo de tabaco y alcohol y el rendimiento académico y (b) la capacidad predictiva de los factores psicoeducativos y el abuso de alcohol y tabaco sobre el rendimiento académico en una muestra de 352 adolescentes españoles de 2º a 4º de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria (ESO). Para analizar las variables cognitivo-motivacionales se utilizaron el Self-Description Questionnaire-II, la Sydney Attribution Scale y el Achievement Goal Tendencies Questionnaire. El consumo abusivo de alcohol y tabaco, el sexo y la repetición de curso fueron también evaluados utilizando medidas autoinformadas. El rendimiento académico fue evaluado a partir de los registros escolares. Se utilizaron análisis de frecuencias y regresión logística para analizar los datos. Los análisis de frecuencias revelaron que los estudiantes que abusan del tabaco y el alcohol presentan un rendimiento académico más pobre. Los análisis de regresión logística destacaron que los comportamientos saludables así como las variables educativas y cognitivo-motivacionales ejercieron un efecto predictivo diferente sobre el rendimiento académico dependiendo del área académica analizada. Estos resultados señalan que para mejorar el rendimiento académico en la adolescencia se han de tener en consideración no sólo variables académicas sino también variables relacionadas con la salud(AU)

The aim of the present study was to analyze: (a) the relationship between alcohol and tobacco use and academic performance, and (b) the predictive role of psycho-educational factors and alcohol and tobacco abuse on academic performance in a sample of 352 Spanish adolescents from grades 8 to 10 of Compulsory Secondary Education. The Self-Description Questionnaire-II, the Sydney Attribution Scale, and the Achievement Goal Tendencies Questionnaire were administered in order to analyze cognitive-motivational variables. Alcohol and tobacco abuse, sex, and grade retention were also measured using self-reported questions. Academic performance was measured by school records. Frequency analyses and logistic regression analyses were used. Frequency analyses revealed that students who abuse of tobacco and alcohol show a higher rate of poor academic performance. Logistic regression analyses showed that health behaviours, and educational and cognitive-motivational variables exert a different effect on academic performance depending on the academic area analyzed. These results point out that not only academic, but also health variables should be address to improve academic performance in adolescence(AU)

Autorregulação e consumo de substâncias na adolescência / Self-regulation and substance use in adolescence

O objetivo deste estudo é avaliar o papel da autorregulação desenvolvimental na adolescência como fator diferenciador do consumo de tabaco e álcool. Para isso, foi utilizada uma amostra de 407 alunos do Ensino Médio, avaliada com o recurso a um conjunto de questões sobre o consumo destas substâncias e ao Inventário de Autorregulação Adolescente (Moilanen, 2007), um instrumento baseado na teoria desenvolvimental sobre a autorregulação. Os resultados sugerem que a autorregulação é um fator diferenciador entre adolescentes que consomem, ou não, substâncias e a intensidade deste consumo. Adolescentes que consomem tendem a apresentar, consistentemente, pontuações mais baixas na autorregulação a curto e longo-prazo. As limitações e implicações dos resultados são apresentadas e discutidas.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of developmental self-regulation in adolescence as a differentiating factor of tobacco and alcohol use. It was used a sample of 407 high school students, assessed with a number of questions about such substances use and the Adolescent Self-regulatory Inventory (Moilanen, 2007), a developmentally based measure about self-regulation. Results suggest that self-regulation is a differentiating factor between adolescents who use substances and those who not, and the intensity of consumption. Teenagers who use alcohol and tobacco seem to present consistently lower scores in short and long-term self-regulation. The limitations and implications of the results are presented and discussed.

Autorregulação e consumo de substâncias na adolescência / Self-regulation and substance use in adolescence

O objetivo deste estudo é avaliar o papel da autorregulação desenvolvimental na adolescência como fator diferenciador do consumo de tabaco e álcool. Para isso, foi utilizada uma amostra de 407 alunos do Ensino Médio, avaliada com o recurso a um conjunto de questões sobre o consumo destas substâncias e ao Inventário de Autorregulação Adolescente (Moilanen, 2007), um instrumento baseado na teoria desenvolvimental sobre a autorregulação. Os resultados sugerem que a autorregulação é um fator diferenciador entre adolescentes que consomem, ou não, substâncias e a intensidade deste consumo. Adolescentes que consomem tendem a apresentar, consistentemente, pontuações mais baixas na autorregulação a curto e longo-prazo. As limitações e implicações dos resultados são apresentadas e discutidas.(AU)

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of developmental self-regulation in adolescence as a differentiating factor of tobacco and alcohol use. It was used a sample of 407 high school students, assessed with a number of questions about such substances use and the Adolescent Self-regulatory Inventory (Moilanen, 2007), a developmentally based measure about self-regulation. Results suggest that self-regulation is a differentiating factor between adolescents who use substances and those who not, and the intensity of consumption. Teenagers who use alcohol and tobacco seem to present consistently lower scores in short and long-term self-regulation. The limitations and implications of the results are presented and discussed.(AU)

Uso y abuso de Internet en jóvenes universitarios / Use and abuse of the Internet in university students

El objetivo del trabajo es describir el uso y/o abuso de Internet con un cuestionario adaptado de Brenner, (1997); Suler, (1996) y Young, (1996), así como, la relación entre frecuencia de uso y determinadas variables psicosociales de jóvenes universitarios. Método: Participaron 391 estudiantes, 26,1% son hombres y el 73,9% son mujeres de media de edad de 19.59 años (DT=±2.83; Rango: 18-47 años) Utilizamos un cuestionario de variables sociodemográficas, el Cuestionario de Expresión Social (Caballo, E.V., 1993, EMES-C y EMES-M), Cuestionario de personalidad (E.P.I. Eysenck y Eysenck, 1982), y un Cuestionario de Internet y de Uso y Abuso de Internet (adaptado de Bruner, 1997, Suler, 1996 y Young, 1996a, Garcia del Castillo y Terol, 2007). Resultados: Un 73,91% de la muestra se conecta semanalmente con un tiempo medio de 84.81 minutos (DT=±42.05). Excepto en una de las subescalas del cuestionario de uso y abuso de Internet, todas muestran coeficientes de fiabilidad ≥70, y puntuaciones medias inferiores a la media del rango. El uso y abuso de Internet se relacionó con el componente cognitivo de las habilidades sociales (r=.14; p=.016) y el neuroticismo (r=.-13, p=.01)

Aim: To adapt a questionnaire for assessing the use and abuse of Internet, as well as the relationship between this resource and psychosocial profile in a group of university students. Method: 391 students filled out the questionnaires; 26.1% were men and 73.9% were women, with a mean age of 19.59 years (DT = ± 2.83; Range: 18-47 years). We used a sociodemographic questionnaire, Social skills questionnaire (Caballo, 1993, EMES-C and EMES-M), Personality questionnaire (E.P.I., Eysenck and Eysenck, 1982), and an Internet and Use and Abuse of Internet questionnaire (adapted from Bruner, 1997, Suler, 1996 and Young, 1996a, Garcia del Castillo y Terol, 2007). Results: 73.91 % of students connect for an average of 84.81 minutes (DT = ± 2.05) per week. Except for one subscale of the Internet use and abuse questionnaire, all the subscales showed reliability coefficients ≥ 70 and mean scores lower than the average of the score range. Internet use and abuse showed a relationship with psychosocial variables such as cognitive social skills (r =.14; p =.016) and neuroticism (r =.-13, p =.01)

Applying drug dependence research to prevention interventions in Spain.

This article examines the status of evidence-based interventions for preventing drug dependence in Spain. The evolution of the perception that the Spanish have of the problem and how this has influenced prevention efforts is described. An analysis is made of how programs designed to prevent drug use have been translated from the field of experimental research to implementation. The characteristics of evidence-based programs developed in Spain are outlined, analyzing their efficacy and the adaptations of programs from other countries to the Spanish context. Most have been school based, although some family and leisure-time based programs also have been developed. The processes for translation and cultural adaptation of evidence-based programs are described. Finally, pending aspects of the adaptation of research in drug dependence within Spain are discussed.