New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development最新文献

This study examined the effects of group art therapy on self-concept and peer relationships among adolescents using a mixed-method approach. Twelve recruited adolescents from a high school in Northern Taiwan attended weekly 2-h group art therapy sessions for 8 weeks. Through a discovery-oriented approach incorporating focus group interviews and individual interviews, qualitative results revealed that the participants started getting to know themselves better and were able to explore their inner selves while noticing their own emotions. Their self-concept also became more positive along with reduced negative self-concept, increased positive self-concept, and clearer visions towards future goals. Furthermore, the therapy modified adolescents' negative peer relationships by reducing their social anxiety and adjusting their complicated experiences. Participants were found to experience trustable, allied, and compassionate positive peer relationships while having reduced loneliness and improved social skills at the same time. Besides, the participants answered self-concept and peer relationship scales at pre- and post-interventions as well as a 12-month follow-up thereafter. Friedman test on the longitudinal data showed participants reporting consistently higher self-concept and peer relationship at post-intervention and 12-month follow-up than at the pre-intervention stage. Taken together, the findings duly support art therapy in boosting adolescents' self-concept and peer relationships.

The present study examined how maltreatment experience was associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children under institutional care. The key caregivers of children and adolescents aged 6 to 18 years who were under institutional care in Nagano prefecture, Japan were asked to answer the background questionnaire, ADHD-Rating Scale, and the Japanese children's version of the Autism-Spectrum Quotient. A total of 378 valid responses were obtained, of which 222 reported maltreatment experience prior to institutionalization. Both hyperactive/impulsive and inattentive scores were significantly higher in the maltreated group. Maltreatment experience was significantly associated with the presence of hyperactive/impulsive symptoms (p = 0.003) and inattentive symptoms (p = 0.027). Particularly, those who had experienced physical abuse were significantly more likely to have hyperactive/impulsive symptoms (p = 0.012) and autistic trait (p = 0.002). Thorough assessment of neurodevelopmental symptoms should be performed when placing children with maltreatment experience into institutional care.

Given the significant amount of time that refugee and asylum-seeking children (RASC) spend in schools, these institutions play an important role in their lives and represent an ideal environment in which to help them to adapt to their host society. The present study aimed to draw attention to the possibility of transferring intervention methods designed for children with ASD to formal education settings welcoming newly arrived RASC to support their adaptation to their new school environment. For this purpose, a systematic review was undertaken to assess the feasibility of implementing three specific ASD intervention methods (i.e., TEACCH, PECS, and PMI) in schools welcoming RASC. While the review did not reveal previous attempts to implement and evaluate ASD intervention methods with newcomer RASC, 21 records were uncovered providing preliminary evidence in support of this idea. Hypothesized strengths and limitations, as well as considerations about implementation, are discussed.

This research aims to understand how children conceptualise lying and how they associate it with moral reasoning within a narrative that contains everyday moral transgressions. This study also explores whether children are willing to lie when they are asked to do so by close adults, such as mothers, fathers and teachers, even after declaring that lying is wrong. We interviewed children (N = 146) from first to fourth grade on these themes, and discovered a developmental trend in the concept of lying, which is associated with other moral reasoning dimensions. Most children could define lying in a reasonable and accurate manner, and considered it inappropriate behaviour, but half admitted to lying after a close adult requested it.

Although dating violence poses a serious threat to adolescents' health and well-being around the globe, little evidence is available for Europe in general and Switzerland in particular. Also, evidence on the role of cognitive predictors related to a more general justification of aggressive behavior and gender-based violence is lacking. Therefore, this two-wave longitudinal study conducted with Swiss adolescents (N = 646) examined moral neutralization of aggression and justification of violence against women as predictors of physical dating violence perpetration and monitoring. As expected, higher moral neutralization of aggression predicted a higher likelihood of perpetrating physical dating violence and monitoring among both female and male adolescents. Justification of violence against women was positively associated with physical dating violence perpetration among males, but negatively among females. Also, a negative relationship was found with monitoring among females. The role of gender and implications of these findings for research, practice, and policy are discussed.

Teen dating violence (TDV) and school violence (SV) are two major social problems in adolescence. Until recently, the antecedents of both TDV and SV have been analyzed largely independently of each other. This study analyses and compares the determinants of both TDV and SV, with a focus on physical violence. Based on a comprehensive survey of ninth-grade adolescents at the average age of 15 years (N = 3,800) conducted in the German federal state of Lower Saxony, the findings showed that there is a significant but low correlation between both physical TDV and SV (r = 0.21). Concerning the determinants, we found that males carry out physical SV significantly more often, but physical TDV significantly less often than female respondents. Acquaintance with violent friends shows a stronger correlation with SV but not with TDV. Low self-control and violent media consumption are determinants of both TDV and SV. Empathy as a protective factor and parental violence as another risk factor were found to be only weak and sometimes not significantly correlated with both TDV and SV.

Compared to Western literature, little is known about teen dating violence perpetration (DVP) in Turkey. One risk factor of physical teen DVP may lie within teens' witnessing interparental physical violence perpetration and subsequent accepting attitudes toward physical partner violence as a risk factor. Informed by the intergenerational transmission (IGT) of violence theory, we investigated attitudes toward physical partner violence as a likely mechanism that might account for the association between witnessing interparental physical violence perpetration and physical teen DVP. In a sample of 242 Turkish teens, the prevalence of teen DVP was 32.0% for females and 28.4% for males, with no significant gender difference. The results of the moderated mediation analyses confirmed the hypothesized model for men only. IGT of violence theory offers good guidance in understanding the etiology of physical teen DVP. For prevention practices, accepting attitudes toward physical partner violence seems a hurdle that needs to be breached.

Violence in adolescent relationships is a common problem with numerous negative short- and long-term consequences. Because most of the evidence on teen dating violence (TDV) synthesized in reviews comes from North American studies, this review aimed to compile evidence on prevalence rates of TDV based on studies identified for Europe only. Specifically, we considered different forms of TDV victimization and perpetration, gender differences, and its measurement. A systematic literature search of the most popular databases Ebsco and PubMed yielded a total of N = 34 studies, with most of the studies identified for Spain, and only a few studies in other European countries. In sum, the results revealed a great variability in prevalence rates across and within the European countries, a common pattern of gender differences, and a wide range of applied measures, corresponding with the evidence from the North American studies. Implications for future research and policy were discussed.