Journal of Adolescence最新文献

Introduction: Developing students' transversal skills, such as creativity, alongside strong academic foundations, has become an increasing priority for education systems worldwide. However, most existing research on mindsets and achievement has focused on general intelligence growth mindsets or growth mindsets in academic domains, particularly mathematics, leaving the role of mindsets in transversal skill development largely unexplored.

Methods: This study examines how growth mindset about general intelligence and domain-specific growth mindsets in mathematics, reading, and creativity are associated with achievement in mathematics, reading, and creative problem solving using data from 471,971 students across 64 education systems, drawn from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022. We extend prior research, which has largely focused on general intelligence or mathematics mindsets in single-country contexts, by analyzing multi-domain and cross-national patterns. To address unobserved individual-level confounders, we leverage within-student, between-domain variation in mindsets and achievement, providing a more rigorous assessment of domain-specific associations. We additionally estimated models separately by gender, socioeconomic background, immigrant status, and OECD versus non-OECD systems to examine how associations vary across student and system contexts.

Results: Growth mindsets vary systematically across domains, with mathematics showing the lowest prevalence and general intelligence beliefs the highest. Domain-specific growth mindsets are positively associated with domain-congruent achievement in mathematics and reading, but not in creativity. Associations vary by student background, being stronger for girls, advantaged students, and those in OECD countries.

Conclusions: Findings suggest that growth mindsets are domain-bound rather than universal, with implications for theory, measurement, and the design of interventions tailored to academic and transversal skill domains.

Introduction: Seeking social approval and recognition is a major driving force for adolescents to engage in social interactions. Mianzi ("" in Chinese) is an indigenous concept related to the social perception of one's prestige or admiration. The goal of this 2-year longitudinal study was to examine the moderating role of social preference in the relations between self-reported concern for mianzi and adjustment in Chinese adolescents.

Methods: Participants in this study included junior high school students (N = 938; 461 boys) initially in seventh grade (Mage = 12.41 years) in urban and rural areas of China. Students completed a self-report measure of concern for mianzi, peer assessments of social preference, prosociality, and aggression. Head teachers in each classroom rated each student in the class on their behavioral problems and learning problems.

Results & conclusions: Adolescents' concern for mianzi was found to negatively predict later aggression, behavioral problems, and learning problems for students who had high initial social preference. Concern for mianzi also positively predicted later aggression for students, particularly boys, who had low initial social preference. The results suggested that concern for mianzi might be a sensitivity factor in adolescents' social-behavioral and school adjustment and highlighted the role of context in shaping the relations.

Background: Adolescents must plan their educational and occupational futures in a context shaped by globalization, social inequalities, and environmental crises. Although career guidance increasingly emphasizes sustainable and inclusive development, empirical interventions integrating social justice, sustainability, and critical consciousness within established career frameworks remain limited. Drawing on the life design paradigm and the psychology of working theory, this study evaluates a school-based career intervention aimed at enhancing career adaptability, perceptions of decent work, and critical consciousness among adolescents.

Methods: Using a quasi-experimental design, participants were 266 Italian 12th-grade students (Mage = 17.20 years, SD = 0.50; 77 males, 189 females) attending public high schools in northern Italy. Classes were assigned to an intervention group (n = 145) or a no-treatment control group (n = 121). The intervention consisted of 5 weekly 2-h didactic units delivered during school hours and focused on globalization, technology, inclusion, sustainability, and future career planning. Measures were collected at pre-test and post-test for both groups, with a 6-month follow-up for the intervention group. Data were analyzed using linear mixed models.

Results: Compared with controls, students in the intervention group showed greater improvements in career adaptability (concern, curiosity, and collaboration), more future-oriented perceptions of decent work, higher critical consciousness, and increased career decisiveness and internality. Improvements were sustained at 6-month follow-up.

Conclusions: Findings support the efficacy of a life design-based career intervention integrating sustainability and social justice, highlighting the potential of career education to foster agency and critical awareness for inclusive and sustainable career development.

Introduction: A cancer diagnosis during childhood and adolescence, together with intensive treatment, imposes significant psychosocial challenges. Alienation is a key yet underexplored component of this experience and may adversely affect physical well-being, mental health, and social adjustment. This review aimed to systematically synthesize qualitative evidence on alienation experienced by children and adolescents with cancer.

Methods: We conducted a systematic search of PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, EMBASE (Ovid), the Cochrane Library (Wiley), and CINAHL (EBSCO) from inception to 28 May 2025. Eligible studies were qualitative or mixed-methods research exploring the experience of alienation among children and adolescents with cancer. Two reviewers independently screened records, appraised methodological quality using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Critical Appraisal Checklist for Qualitative Research and extracted data. A meta-synthesis using the JBI meta-aggregation approach was undertaken.

Results: A total of 30 studies were included. Four synthesized findings and thirteen categories were identified: environmental alienation (e.g., locked up in hospital, being away from home, stuck in adult wards), self-alienation (e.g., caught in identity paradox, feeling like a stranger, walking alone in the shadow of fear), interpersonal alienation (e.g., they just don't get it, staying on the sidelines, trapped in my body, losing my place), and social alienation (e.g., life on pause, stuck between worlds, stamped with scars).

Conclusions: Alienation in the pediatric oncology context is a profound and multi-dimensional phenomenon. Understanding and addressing this experience is crucial for improving the quality of life and promoting social integration. Findings should be interpreted in light of variability in study quality and contextual diversity.

Introduction: Many LGBTQ+ youth seek support from adults at school, which can include advisors of Gender-Sexuality Alliances (GSAs; clubs affirming LGBTQ+ youth). Little research has considered how efficacious advisors feel to support LGBTQ+ GSA members, or how advisors' efficacy contributes to LGBTQ+ youth's school experiences.

Methods: We examined advisors' self-efficacy to support and advocate for LGBTQ+ youth (n = 30 advisors in 30 schools/GSAs; M_age = 44.74 years, SD = 10.55; 63% LGBQ+ ; 90% cisgender; 77% White). Utilizing three waves of data from 310 LGBTQ+ youth in these GSAs (M_age = 15.11 years, SD = 1.60; 98% LGBQ+ ; 55% trans/nonbinary; 50% youth of color), we analyzed three-level multilevel models to test whether LGBTQ+ youth in GSAs whose advisors reported greater LGBTQ+ self-efficacy reported more positive experiences within their GSA and in school over 6 months.

Results: Advisors felt competent supporting LGBTQ+ youth, though responses on individual items covered the full range. LGBTQ+ youth in GSAs whose advisors reported greater LGBTQ+ self-efficacy at the beginning of the study felt that their advisors were more responsive to their needs, perceived a more open and respectful climate in their GSA, and felt greater school belonging over the study period. Advisor LGBTQ+ self-efficacy did not predict youth's reported levels of victimization over the study period.

Conclusions: Findings highlight that efficacious GSA advisors could promote safe and inclusive GSAs and schools for LGBTQ+ youth at a time when LGBTQ+ youth face heightened structural oppression, while indicating the need for professional development to enhance advisor efficacy.

Background: Positive youth development (PYD) is a strength-based approach that promotes positive outcomes to support the well-being of youth. With digital technology becoming central to adolescents' lives, understanding how PYD is related to internet behaviors is crucial. The current study addresses this growing need by systematically reviewing the studies that examined how PYD-related constructs are associated with youth internet behaviors over time.

Method: This systematic review synthesized findings from 10 longitudinal studies identified from 794 screened records that examined the association between PYD-related variables and youth internet behaviors. Following PRISMA guidelines, the methodological quality of the studies was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist for cohort studies. A narrative synthesis approach was employed to integrate findings.

Result: Findings indicate that high PYD attributes, developmental assets, and school assets were shown to negatively predict problematic internet behaviors, including internet addiction, internet gaming disorder, and cyberbullying victimization, both concurrently and longitudinally. Importantly, these associations were rarely direct. Positive mediators and moderators strengthened the protective effects of PYD, whereas adverse psychological states and contextual risks weakened these associations.

Conclusion: This review highlights that PYD functions mainly as a protective developmental resource operating through indirect and conditional pathways in digital contexts. However, the literature remains heavily focused on risk-oriented internet outcomes, with limited attention to positive forms of digital engagement. Conceptual inconsistencies in PYD operationalization and a strong geographic concentration of studies further underscore the need for more robust, theoretically integrated, and cross-cultural longitudinal research.

Introduction: Adolescents' experiences of autonomy can promote either thriving or stress, depending on whether autonomy is supported or thwarted. Drawing from Self-Determination Theory, we examined whether autonomy satisfaction and autonomy frustration are empirically distinguishable constructs and how they differentially predict adolescents' learning behaviors, academic achievement, and school burnout. We also explored the mediating roles of persistence and procrastination and examined gender differences in these relationships.

Methods: Participants were 1639 10th-grade students (mean age = 15.37 years; 45.3% male) from a public high school in Southwest China. Students completed validated self-report questionnaires assessing autonomy satisfaction, autonomy frustration, persistence, procrastination, and school burnout. Academic achievement was indexed by standardized semester exam scores in three core subjects. Structural equation modeling and multigroup analysis were used to test hypothesized relationships and gender differences.

Results: Bifactor CFA confirmed the empirical distinction between autonomy satisfaction and frustration. Autonomy satisfaction predicted higher persistence and lower procrastination, leading to better academic achievement and lower school burnout. In contrast, autonomy frustration predicted lower persistence and higher procrastination, which contributed to poorer achievement and increased burnout. Direct effects also showed that autonomy frustration strongly predicted burnout, while autonomy satisfaction buffered against it. In addition, the protective effects of autonomy satisfaction on persistence and procrastination were stronger for boys.

Conclusions: Autonomy satisfaction and frustration are distinct and uniquely predictive of Chinese adolescents' academic and psychological outcomes. Differentiating these constructs is crucial for understanding student motivation and informing interventions. Gender-sensitive strategies may enhance effectiveness in supporting student autonomy and reducing school burnout.

Introduction: This study critically evaluates the statistical methodologies employed in analyzing Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBS) data from 2015 to 2019, specifically focusing on health outcomes for sexual minority youth (SMY). The YRBS is a crucial source of public health data, and robust analytical approaches are essential for generating reliable insights.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review of existing literature utilizing YRBS data and performed empirical analyses to assess the impact of various statistical techniques. Our primary focus was on identifying discrepancies arising from the application, or lack thereof, of sampling weights, a critical component of YRBS methodology. We also examined the variability in statistical modeling approaches and software used across different studies.

Results: Our findings reveal significant discrepancies between weighted and unweighted analyses, underscoring the imperative of adhering to established guidelines for incorporating sampling weights to ensure data validity. We observed instances where failing to account for survey design led to biased estimates of health disparities among SMY. Furthermore, we identified concerns regarding the inconsistent application of modeling approaches and statistical software, which introduces variability and potentially affects the robustness and comparability of results across studies.

Conclusion: This research highlights the complexities inherent in public health data analysis, particularly with complex survey data like the YRBS. Adhering to appropriate statistical techniques and standardizing software applications are crucial for improving the validity and applicability of findings. Addressing these methodological challenges will ultimately support the development of more effective and targeted public health policies and interventions designed to improve the health and well-being of SMY.

Introduction: Recent studies have indicated that sleep is fundamental for adolescents' physical and mental health. Although it is known that context influences sleep, the impact of school climate on sleep duration remains understudied.

Methods: Using a large, diverse, population-based sample of adolescents attending California high schools (N = 277,954; data collection: 2018-2019) and applying two statistical methods suggested for quantitative research using an intersectionality approach (linear regressions with interaction terms and Exhaustive Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection [ECHAID]), this study examined associations between school climate and sleep duration among adolescents at the intersection of multiple social positions.

Results: Similar proportions of participants were assigned male and female at birth. The sample was racially and ethnically diverse (54.1% Latina/x/o). The large majority of participants were straight (85.4%) and cisgender (97.7%). On average, participants slept 6.75 h/night. Positive school climate was associated with longer and adequate sleep duration; however, this association varied across social positions, such that the effects of school climate on sleep duration were attenuated among adolescents who held some minoritized social positions. ECHAID results indicated that those reporting the lowest averages of sleep duration not only perceived school climate as negative but also held multiple minoritized identities. In contrast, those who perceive their school climate as positive are overrepresented among those who reported the highest averages of sleep duration.

Conclusion: Findings underscore the impact that schools have on adolescents' sleep health. Our study indicates that adolescents with multiple minoritized social positions face additional challenges impacting their sleep. Future interventions should focus on strategies to improve school climates, given that they would benefit a large number of students.

Introduction: For young people in Europe, European identity can serve as an important source of solidarity and belonging, especially in times of growing societal polarization. This study investigates European identity development during adolescence with two aims: (1) to identify European identity profiles, their associations with civic and solidarity-related attitudes, and profile changes over time; and (2) to examine the role of school-based experiences in predicting profile membership and transitions.

Methods: Drawing on longitudinal data from German 9th graders collected at the beginning and end of one school year (N = 1,206; MAge = 14.39 years; 51.7% female), Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) and Latent Transition Analysis (LTA) were used to examine stability and change of European identity profiles. Based on recent process-oriented models, European identity captured the processes of commitment, in-depth exploration, and reconsideration. Civic and solidarity-related correlates of status profile encompassed EU-related attitudes, tolerance, and intentions for civic engagement; school-based predictors included students' supportive relationships and pluralistic learning climate.

Results: Analyses revealed four distinct profiles reflecting different levels of identity consolidation, meaningfully associated with civic- and solidarity-related attitudes (i.e., tolerance, intentions for civic engagement). A more pluralistic climate was associated with more elaborate identity profiles at the beginning of the school year, while supportive student-teacher relationships were linked to forms of early closure. Yet, school experiences hardly predicted profile change across time.

Conclusions: The findings underscore adolescence as a formative period for developing European identity and highlight both the potential and limitations of schools in supporting youth identity formation.