Thwarted Belonging and Perceived Burdensomeness During Middle and Older Adulthood: The Role of Generativity.

Using a sample of middle-aged and older adults, this research explores associations between generativity and two key risk factors for suicide: thwarted belonging (T.B.) and perceived burdensomeness (P.B.). These variables are typically studied as predictors of suicide; the current study is unique in examining their psychosocial correlates. Erikson described, generativity as a psychosocial construct that characterizes adult well-being in mid-life, conceptualized as the sense one has successfully guided and contributed to the younger generation through mentoring. Using the Midlife in the United States Survey (MIDUS), the current analyses indicate that generativity is associated with lower levels of P.B. and T.B., even after accounting for measures of hopelessness, depressive symptoms, financial stability, perceived neighborhood quality, chronic health conditions, and respondent's demographic characteristics including gender and age. Results are discussed in terms of applications for suicide-risk prevention, and with regard to the promotion of positive psychosocial development across the lifespan.

Developmental Changes in the Relation between Youth Disclosure and Parenting Behavior: A Cohort-sequential Analysis.

To address a gap in the literature regarding the development of youth disclosure across the transition to adolescence, the current research uses a cohort-sequential approach to study youth disclosure from middle childhood through adolescence. Longitudinal data from three cohorts of parents were utilized (N = 1359; children at T1 were in grades 2 [M = 8.00 years, SD = 0.57 years, 45% female], 4 [M = 10.12 years, SD = 0.60 years, 45% female], and 9 [M = 15.19 years, SD = 0.57 years, 48% female]). Parents were assessed annually over a 3-year time period. The focal analyses explored contemporaneous associations between characteristics of the parent-youth relationship (specifically, parental rejection and parental consistent discipline) and youth disclosure after accounting for person-specific trajectories of disclosure. Associations of gender, age, and socioeconomic status with disclosure were also assessed. Regarding trajectories of youth disclosure, results indicate that youth disclose less information to their parents about their daily lives as they get older; this trend was consistent across gender and socioeconomic status. In terms of associations with youth disclosure, when parents provided more consistent discipline or engaged in less rejection of their child, youth disclosure increased, even after accounting for their own trajectory of disclosure across time. In addition, the association of consistent discipline with youth disclosure became stronger with increased youth age. Results are discussed in terms of implications for understanding youth autonomy development, and the dyadic and developmental impact of parenting behaviors over time.

The Impact of Widely Publicized Suicides on Search Trends: Using Google Trends to Test the Werther and Papageno Effects.

The objective of this study was to examine the impact of widely publicized suicides on the Werther and Papageno Effects using internet search trends. A list of widely publicized suicides from 2010 through 2018 was compiled along with dates of death for each of these individuals. Google.com/trends data were then collected for searches for "how to suicide" and "suicide prevention" for 14 days prior to a widely publicized suicide/14 days after a widely publicized suicide and 7 days prior to a widely publicized suicide/7 days after a widely publicized suicide. Comparisons were then made between these time periods for "how to suicide" and "suicide prevention." Some celebrities, such as Robin Williams (2014) and Aaron Hernandez (2017) were associated with increased searches. However, for many there was no increase in search trends. Limited support was found for the impact of widely publicized suicides on internet search trends with one case supporting a Werther Effect and one case supporting a Papageno Effect. The finding that only some celebrities were associated with increased searches may be a byproduct of the impact of celebrity status on these effects, with more prominent celebrities having the greatest impact.

Sources of social support and gender in perceived stress and individual adjustment among Latina/o college-attending emerging adults.

OBJECTIVES: We explored the role of particular sources of social support (friends, romantic partners, family) as moderators and mediators in the associations between perceived stress and individual well-being (loneliness, depressive symptoms, and self-rated physical health). We also tested the possible moderating effect of gender to ascertain whether women and men are differentially impacted by social support's diverse sources. METHOD: Participants were 163 Latina/o emerging adults attending college (85% women; Mage = 20.2 years, range: 18-25). RESULTS: Holding perceived stress constant, friend support was negatively associated with loneliness, romantic partner support was negatively related to depressive symptoms, and family support was positively associated with self-rated physical health. Friend or romantic partner support moderated the relationships between perceived stress and loneliness, and self-rated physical health, but not depressive symptoms. Perceived stress and loneliness were indirectly and positively associated through lower friends and romantic partner supports, perceived stress and depressive symptoms were indirectly and positively related through lower romantic partner support, and perceived stress and self-rated physical health were related indirectly and negatively through lower family support. Gender moderated the relationships between family and friend support and self-rated physical health, and between friend support and depressive symptoms. Particular sources of support mediated the associations of perceived stress with well-being. CONCLUSIONS: Results highlight how social support helps Latina/o youth cope with stress and mitigate challenges associated with their college transition. Social support implications for physical and psychological health differ for male and female Latina/o college-attending emerging adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

A longitudinal examination of social connectedness and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among adolescents.

BACKGROUND: This study examines the relationship between three different types of social connectivity and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. METHODS: Using the Add Health dataset, three domains of social connection were explored: parental connection, school connection, and social integration. Logistic regression was used to examine whether changes over time in connectedness predicted suicidal thoughts and behavior. RESULTS: Youth whose difference scores on social integration and parental connectedness increased were less likely to experience suicidal ideation. Increases in difference scores for perceived school connectedness protected youth who reported ideation from engaging in a suicide attempt. CONCLUSIONS: Perceptions of social connection are key factors in understanding adolescent suicidal thoughts and behaviors. It is important to consider social connection across different relationship contexts.

Loneliness, Stress, and Social Support in Young Adulthood: Does the Source of Support Matter?

Social support protects individuals against adversity throughout the lifespan, and is especially salient during times of intense social change, such as during the transition to adulthood. Focusing on three relationship-specific sources of social support (family, friends, and romantic partners), the current study examined the stress-buffering function of social support against loneliness and whether the association between social support and loneliness with stress held constant would vary by its source. The role of gender in these associations was also considered. The sample consisted of 636 ethnically diverse college youth (age range 18-25; 80 % female). The results suggest that the stress-buffering role of social support against loneliness varies by its source. Only support from friends buffered the association between stress and loneliness. Further, when stress was held constant, the association between social support and loneliness differed by the sources, in that support from friends or romantic partners (but not from family) was negatively associated with loneliness. Regarding gender differences, the adverse impact of lower levels of familial or friends' support on loneliness was greater in females than in males. This research advances our understanding of social support among college-aged youth; implications of the findings and directions for future research are discussed.

Educational aspiration-expectation discrepancies: relation to socioeconomic and academic risk-related factors.

This study examines whether disconnection between educational aspirations and expectations is associated with socioeconomic status, academic performance, academic risk-related behaviors and related psychosocial factors in an ethnically and economically diverse sample of early adolescents from a public middle school (N = 761). Results suggest that students who aspire to achieve more than they expect to achieve also are likely to have more economically disadvantaged backgrounds and poorer academic performance. These students also show a variety of academic and social risks. Specifically, students whose aspirations exceeded their expectations reported lower levels of school bonding, higher levels of test/performance anxiety, and elevated behavioral/emotional difficulties. Results are discussed in terms of social-cognitive theory as well as applications for promoting student social and academic success.

Adolescents' aggressive and prosocial behavior: associations with jealousy and social anxiety.

The authors examined how relational aggression, physical aggression, and proactive prosocial behavior were associated with jealousy and social anxiety in a diverse sample of 60 middle school students. After the authors controlled for gender and race, jealousy predicted relational aggression and proactive prosocial behavior, but it did not predict physical aggression. Additionally, social anxiety predicted proactive prosocial behavior. Adolescents who were more jealous in their peer relationships also tended to engage in relational aggression and proactive prosocial behavior, and adolescents who were more socially anxious also tended to be proactively prosocial. The authors discuss the implications of these findings and suggest directions for future research.

Developmental issues in school-based aggression prevention from a social-cognitive perspective.

Contemporary research on the development and prevention of aggressive behavior in childhood and adolescence emphasizes the importance of social-cognitive factors such as perceptual biases, problem-solving skills, and social-moral beliefs in the maintenance of aggression. Indeed, school-based social-cognitive intervention approaches have been identified as best practices by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, because child age is an important covariate of both intervention effectiveness and social-cognitive ability, school-based prevention program designers should keep in mind a number of issues identified through developmental research. In this paper, we review the social-cognitive model of aggressive behavior development as applied to prevention programming. We then discuss some of the ways in which the broader developmental research base can inform the design of aggression prevention programs. EDITORS' STRATEGIC IMPLICATIONS: Educational administrators and policy makers will find evidence in this review that school-based programs that employ a social-cognitive model represent a strategy that works for preventing violence. Prevention researchers will also benefit from the authors' insights regarding theoretical mediating processes and the importance of a developmental view.

Do preschool children understand what it means to "diet," and do they do it?

OBJECTIVE: The current study determined what preschool children understand about dieting and the extent to which they report engaging in dieting behaviors. METHOD: Forty-two children (mean age = 5.2 years) were interviewed about their understanding of the word "diet" and about food restraint behaviors. Children's height and weight were recorded. RESULTS: Only 17% of the children provided an accurate definition of the word diet (i.e., an answer having to do with the foods a person eats). None of the children mentioned weight loss in their definition. Children reported occasional use of restraint behaviors. Girls and heavier children reported more use of restraint. DISCUSSION: Children did not have a clear understanding of the word diet. Thus, the use of the word diet should be avoided when assessing eating behaviors in preschool children. Individual differences in reported dieting behaviors were in the expected directions, suggesting validity in these reports and early emerging social pressures to diet.

Parents, peers, and problem behavior: a longitudinal investigation of the impact of relationship perceptions and characteristics on the development of adolescent problem behavior.

This study examined longitudinal relations among adolescents' family relationships, peer relationships, and problem behavior. Participants were 1,357 African American and European American adolescents who were interviewed at 3 time points: 7th grade (mean age = 12.7 years), the summer after 8th grade (mean age = 14.2 years), and 11th grade (mean age = 17.1 years). For all racial and gender groups, 7th-grade family characteristics (youth perceptions of autonomy and warmth) predicted a risky peer context during 8th grade, which in turn predicted problem behavior during 11th grade. Additionally, problem behavior in the 7th grade predicted 11th-grade problem behavior, directly as well as indirectly through the peer context. Racial and gender differences are discussed, as are implications for future research.

Body size stigmatization in preschool children: the role of control attributions.

OBJECTIVE: The current study assessed preschool-age children's control attributions for weight and the relationship of these attributions to attitudes and behavioral intentions toward children of different body sizes. METHODS: Forty-two children (mean age = 5.2 years) were interviewed about the adjectives they attributed to figures of different sizes, their preference for size in playmates, and their beliefs about children's ability to control their own weight. RESULTS: Adjective ratings for obese figures were the most negative, with no differences found for thin and average figures; the heaviest figure was also chosen less often than other figures to be a playmate. Internal attributions of control for weight were related to less positive adjective ratings for the heavier figure but not to children's friendship selections. CONCLUSION: Results suggest that the relationship between body size stigmatization and control attributions are consistent with attribution theory for young children. Practical implications of these results and possible interventions are discussed.

Adolescents' outcome expectancies about relational aggression within acquaintanceships, friendships, and dating relationships.

Adolescents' (N = 292) relational aggression and outcome expectancies for relational aggression in three different relationship contexts (acquaintanceship, friendship, and dating) were assessed. With respect to each type of relationship, adolescents were questioned about the emotional and dyadic consequences of relational aggression, and about whether the victim of relational aggression would retaliate. It was also of interest to assess whether adolescents' personal involvement in relational aggression was associated with these judgments. The results suggest that adolescents' involvement in relational aggression and outcome expectancies for relational aggression often varies by gender, age, relationship context, and type of relational aggression. Additionally, in several instances, adolescents' personal involvement in relational aggression was associated with outcome expectancies for relational aggression. For example, after gender and age had been accounted for, participants' own relational aggression predicted beliefs about whether the victim of relational aggression would want to continue a friendship and a dating relationship. Implications of the results and future directions for research are discussed.

Exposure to "low-level" aggression in school: associations with aggressive behavior, future expectations, and perceived safety.

Examined associations with witnessing and being victimized by "low-level" aggressive acts (e.g., pushing, gossip) and three indicators of psychosocial functioning in a sample of 771 elementary school students from one urban and one suburban school district. Results indicated that exposure to low-level aggression appears to relate to psychosocial functioning in ways similar to more severe forms of aggression. Students who were exposed to higher levels of both witnessing and victimization by low-level aggression reported the highest levels of engagement in aggression, the lowest levels of positive expectations for the future, and the lowest levels of perceived safety. Findings are discussed in the context of research on exposure to aggression in general, with suggestions offered for future studies. Implications of the findings for school-based intervention programs are raised.