Dieting and weight worries on rise in teens

November 16, 2020

Science Daily/University College London

Significantly higher numbers of Generation Z boys and girls in the UK are dieting to lose weight, and are likely to overestimate their own weight, finds a new UCL-led study.

The research, published in JAMA Pediatrics, found that girls who are trying to lose weight are also more likely to experience depressive symptoms than in previous years.

In 2015, 42% of 14-year-old girls and boys said they currently were trying to lose weight, compared to 30% in 2005.

Lead author Dr Francesca Solmi (UCL Psychiatry) said: "Our findings show how the way we talk about weight, health and appearance can have profound impacts on young people's mental health, and efforts to tackle rising obesity rates may have unintended consequences.

"An increase in dieting among young people is concerning because experimental studies have found that dieting is generally ineffective in the long term at reducing body weight in adolescents, but can instead have greater impacts on mental health. We know, for instance, that dieting is a strong risk factor in the development of eating disorders."

The research team reviewed data from 22,503 adolescents in the UK, in three different decades, who are part of different cohort studies: the British Cohort Study (of people born in 1970; data was collected in 1986), the Children of the 90s study (born 1991-92, data collected in 2005), and Millennium Cohort Study (born 2000-02, data collected in 2015).

The adolescents were all asked questions about whether they were, or had been, trying to lose weight, whether they had dieted or exercised to lose weight, whether they perceived themselves to be underweight, about the right weight or overweight (which was compared to their actual height and weight measurements), and they filled out questionnaires that gauged depressive symptoms. The researchers found that in 2015, 44% and 60% of all participants had dieted or exercised to lose weight, respectively, compared to 38% and 7% in 1986.

The researchers say other evidence suggests that engagement in vigorous physical activity has remained relatively stable among adolescents over the past few decades.

Senior author Dr Praveetha Patalay (Centre for Longitudinal Studies and MRC Unit for Lifelong Health & Ageing, UCL) said: "It seems that young people are exercising for different reasons than they did before -- more adolescents seem to be thinking of exercise predominantly as a means to lose weight rather than exercising for fun, socialising and feeling healthy. We suspect that recent controversial calls to add 'exercise-equivalent' labels on food packaging may exacerbate this."

While girls have consistently been more likely to diet to lose weight, the researchers found a greater increase over the years among boys, who were also becoming more likely to be trying to gain weight.

Dr Patalay said: "Societal pressures for girls to be thin have been around for decades, but body image pressures on boys may be a more recent trend. Our findings underscore the impact that societal pressures and public health messaging around weight can have on children's health behaviours, body image and mental health."

Both girls and boys also became more likely to over-estimate their weight from 1986 to 2005, and even more so by 2015, which the researchers say adds to their concerns that increased efforts to lose weight are not necessarily due to increased obesity rates.

The reported weight-related behaviours and weight misperception were associated with depressive symptoms, and among girls, this relationship was becoming even stronger over the three decades examined in this study. The findings could possibly be part of the explanation for increases in adolescent depressive symptoms that have been observed in recent decades.

Dr Solmi said: "Media portrayals of thinness, the rise of the fitness industry and the advent of social media may all partly explain our results, and public health messaging around calorie restriction and exercise might also be causing unintended harm.

"Public health campaigns around obesity should consider adverse mental health effects, and ensure they avoid weight stigma. By promoting health and wellbeing, as opposed to focusing on 'healthy weight', they could have positive effects on both mental and physical health."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201116112855.htm

Children born extremely preterm are more likely to be diagnosed with depression

November 12, 2020

Science Daily/University of Turku

A study using extensive nationwide registry data showed that girls born extremely preterm, earlier than 28 weeks gestational age, were three times more likely to be diagnosed with depression than peers born close to the expected date of delivery. Increased risk of depression also applied to girls and boys with poor fetal growth born full-term and post-term. The effects of poor fetal growth were more evident with increasing gestational age.

All the results were adjusted for paternal psychopathology, paternal immigrant status, maternal psychopathology, maternal depression, maternal substance abuse, number of previous births, maternal marital status, maternal socio-economic status, maternal smoking during pregnancy, and the infant's birthplace.

Childhood depression can be addressed preventively

Depression is a common psychiatric disorder that has been reported to affect 1-2 percent of preschool and prepubertal children and 3-8 percent of adolescents. However, childhood depression is a severe disorder and its prevention can be advanced with the identification of at-risk groups.

"The study highlights the need for preventive interventions for high-risk infants and support programmes for parental mental health during pregnancy and neonatal care, especially for extremely preterm infants and growth-retarded full-term infants. Follow-up care practices should include psychosocial screening and developmental testing for children born preterm and their families, with appropriate support for sound mental health," says researcher Subina Upadhyaya from the Research Centre for Child Psychiatry, University of Turku.

"Future studies should examine the risk associated with preterm birth and infant long-term outcomes in the present era of family centered neonatal care practices," she continues.

The study included 37,682 children born in Finland between January 1987 and December 2007 and diagnosed with depression. They were compared with 148,795 matched controls without depression.

The study is part of a larger body of research that investigates the associations between antenatal risk factors and major psychiatric disorders.

"The results are significant both for understanding the risk factors for psychiatric disorders and for prevention, notes the primary investigator," Professor Andre Sourander.

The study belongs to the INVEST Research Flagship funded by the Academy of Finland Flagship Programme. INVEST aims at providing a new model for the welfare states that is more equal, better targeted to at risk groups, more anticipatory as well as economically and socially sustainable.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201112103511.htm

When kids watch a lot of TV, parents may end up more stressed

November 10, 2020

Science Daily/University of Arizona

There's bad news for parents who frequently plop their kids in front of the TV to give themselves a break: It might actually end up leaving moms and dads more stressed.

Why? Because the more television that kids watch, the more they're exposed to advertising messages. The more advertising they see, the more likely they are to insist on purchasing items when they go with their parents to the store -- and perhaps make a fuss if told "no." All that, researchers say, may contribute to parents' overall stress levels, well beyond a single shopping trip.

The findings come from a University of Arizona-led study, published in the International Journal of Advertising, that explores the potential effects of children's television watching habits on their parents' stress levels.

"The more advertising children see, the more they ask for things and the more conflict is generated," said lead study author Matthew Lapierre, an assistant professor in the UArizona Department of Communication in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. "What we haven't looked at before is what the potential effect is on parents. We know kids ask for things, we know it leads to conflict, but we wanted to ask the next question: Could this be contributing to parents' overall stress?"

The study suggests that it could.

There are a few things parents can do, perhaps the most obvious of which is limiting screen time.

"Commercial content is there for a reason: to elicit purchasing behavior. So, if this is a problem, maybe shut off the TV," Lapierre said.

Of course, that can be easier said than done, he acknowledged.

Another thing parents can try, especially as advertising geared toward children ramps up around the holidays: Consider how they talk to their kids about consumerism.

The researchers looked at the effectiveness of three types of parent-child consumer-related communication:

-- Collaborative communication is when a parent seeks child input on family purchasing decisions -- for example, saying things such as, "I will listen to your advice on certain products or brands."

-- Control communication is when a parent exhibits total control in parent-child consumer related interactions -- for example, saying things such as, "Don't argue with me when I say no to your product request."

-- Advertising communication is when parents talk to their children about advertising messages -- for example, saying things such as, "Commercials will say anything to get you to buy something."

They found that, in general, collaborative communication is associated with less parent stress. However, the protective effect of collaborative communication decreases as children's purchase initiation and coercive behaviors -- such as arguing, whining or throwing temper tantrums -- increase.

Both control communication and advertising communication are associated with more purchase initiations and children's coercive behavior, the researchers found, suggesting that engaging less in those communication styles could be beneficial.

However, when children have higher levels of television exposure, the protective effect of engaging in less advertising communication decreases.

"Overall, we found that collaborative communication between parents and children was a better strategy for reducing stress in parents. However, this communicative strategy shows diminishing returns when children ask for more products or engage in more consumer conflict with parents," said study co-author Eunjoo Choi, a UArizona doctoral student in communication.

The study is based on survey data from 433 parents of children ages 2 to 12. The researchers focused on younger children because they have less independent purchasing power and spend more time shopping with their parents than older kids, Lapierre said.

In addition to answering questions about their communication styles, the parents in the study also responded to questions designed to measure:

-- How much television their child watches in a day.

-- How often their child ask for or demands a product during shopping trips, or touches a product without asking.

-- How often their child engages in specific coercive behaviors during shopping trips.

-- Parent stress levels.

Advertisers Find a Way

Lapierre acknowledged that the way people consume entertainment is changing. With the rise of the DVR and streaming services, many viewers are no longer being exposed to the traditional advertising of network or cable TV. However, advertisers are finding creative ways around that, through tactics such as product placement and integrated branding -- incorporating product or company names into a show's narrative -- Lapierre said. And advertising toward children remains a multibillion-dollar industry.

"In general, more television exposure means more exposure to commercialized content. Even if I'm streaming, if I I'm watching more of it, I'm likely seeing more integrated branding," Lapierre said.

Advertising aimed at children -- which often features lots of bright colors, upbeat music and flashy characters -- can be especially persuasive, since, developmentally, children aren't fully capable of understanding advertising's intent, Lapierre said.

"Advertising for kids is generated to makes them feel excited. They do a lot of things in kids' advertising to emotionally jack up the child," Lapierre said. "Children don't have the cognitive and emotional resources to pull themselves back, and that's why it's a particular issue for them."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201110151154.htm

Trees set sixth-graders up for success

November 9, 2020

Science Daily/University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences

The transition to middle school is undeniably tough for many sixth-graders, even in the best of times. Mounting academic demands, along with changes in peer dynamics and the onset of puberty, result in a predictable and sometimes irreversible slump in academic performance.

A new University of Illinois study suggests an unexpected but potentially potent remedy: trees.

"Hundreds of studies show a positive link between contact with nature and learning outcomes, but the studies on nature near schools focus on young children or older learners. We wanted to make sure the same pattern was true in this vulnerable and overlooked population," says Ming Kuo, associate professor in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences at Illinois.

It was. Even after taking a whopping 17 variables into account including student demographics, school resources, and neighborhood characteristics, Kuo and her co-authors found that the more tree cover around a school, the better its standardized test scores in both math and reading. The study included 450 middle schools and nearly 50,000 students in urban, suburban, and rural communities in Washington State.

But why would trees boost test scores? Kuo's previous work points to a cause-and-effect relationship between nature and learning, with more exposure to nature resulting in improved concentration, greater classroom engagement, and less disruptive behavior. No surprise, then, that greener schools perform better.

Samantha Klein, a master's student who worked with Kuo on the study, made a point to compare different kinds of vegetation at different distances from schools.

"We wanted to offer concrete guidance to landscape architects, principals, and school boards interested in putting the greenness-achievement link to work, giving them clues as to what should be planted, and where," Klein says.

Kuo, Klein, and their team were able to differentiate tree cover from grass and shrubs using satellite imagery. "From a practical standpoint, trees cost more to install than grass. So if school districts could get away with just putting grass everywhere, that would be really helpful to know," Klein explains.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Trees were far and away more impactful for test scores than other types of vegetation. Still, Kuo emphasizes that compared with other school resource investments planting trees around a schoolyard is still an incredibly cheap and effective intervention. But it could take a sea change before school districts accept school greening when other demands seem so much more pressing.

"I think school boards have always been faced with distributing very limited funds, especially in the poorest areas. They might think that, with all the other pressing needs for funding, school landscaping is the least of their concerns. Little do they suspect that a treeless schoolyard may actually be contributing to poor school performance," Kuo says.

The satellite images also helped Kuo's team pinpoint where tree cover mattered most. They compared the importance of greenness in different buffer zones around schools, within 250 meters (around two blocks) and 1000 meters. It turned out trees closer to the schools made all the difference, even when controlling for greenness at farther distances. In other words, even if the larger neighborhood was leafy, students were no better off if the schoolyard wasn't.

These findings extend previous discoveries in Chicago public schools. Kuo's work there showed the importance of tree cover near schools in low-income urban districts. But since her current study includes 450 schools across a wide spectrum of populations, she's confident her results apply more broadly.

"One of the nice things about this study is not only the sheer number of schools and students we're looking at, but the huge range in Washington State. We've captured everything from extremely urban to totally rural areas; rich schools and poor schools; schools with predominately white, Hispanic, Black, or American Indian student bodies; and every level of greenness represented within each of those samples," Kuo says. "The fact that the greenness-achievement link is true here is encouraging to me. It gives us some confidence that our recommendations apply to a whole variety of schools."

How does all this apply against the backdrop of remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic? School greenness won't make much of a difference if kids aren't leaving the house. But whether they are physically in school or not, Kuo thinks contact with nature could be critical right now.

"I think the need for trees is more acute at this time. One of the big benefits of greenery, and one of the reasons we think it affects academic achievement, is it's a really potent stress reliever. Kids are aware that things are weird and that a lot of adults are kind of freaked out. And so having access to nature might be even more important than usual."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201109124724.htm

Study finds surprising diversity in early child care

Seven pathways to kindergarten identified in one state

November 9, 2020

Science Daily/Ohio State University

A new study of kindergarteners in one Midwestern state identified seven different pathways the children took in their early education and care before arriving at school.

The researchers were surprised by the diverse experiences that kids brought with them to kindergarten: While some received care only in their home or mainly in a child care center, others switched back and forth between different types of care, or had other arrangements.

This study is one of the few that has looked at kids' child care experiences all the way from birth to kindergarten, which allowed the researchers to capture the broad range of pathways, said Nathan Helsabeck, lead author of the study and a graduate research associate in educational studies at The Ohio State University.

"There are more nuanced differences in children's experiences before kindergarten than we originally thought," said Helsabeck, who is also an associate of Ohio State's Crane Center for Early Childhood Education and Policy.

"Looking at how children get to kindergarten could help us better consider what they need when they are entering school."

The study was published online in the journal Early Education and Development.

The study is part of a larger federally funded project designed to improve understanding of what happens in classrooms from pre-school to third grade. Data was collected from two large, suburban school districts including 25 schools, 152 classrooms and 3,472 students. A subsample of 568 students was used in this study.

One part of the study involved having parents complete questionnaires about their children's education and care from birth to 5 years old.

The researchers found that the largest group of children -- 44% -- received care only in the home over the first five years of life.

About 10% spent their first two years at home and in the third year became increasingly likely to be in center-based care. Another 7% spent these early years mostly in center-based care.

Those were the three pathways that the researchers had hypothesized would occur before they conducted the study, said Kelly Purtell, co-author of the study and associate professor of human sciences at Ohio State and faculty associate at the Crane Center.

But they found four other pathways as well: The second-largest group, 21%, were at home most of the early years, but were enrolled in a preschool or pre-kindergarten program in the last year before kindergarten. Other groups included children mostly cared for in informal settings (5%); those who went between home and informal care (8%); and those had both home and center care through the whole 5 years (5%).

Why were there so many different pathways?

"It reflects the patchwork availability of child care in this country," Purtell said.

"Child care for infants and young kids is expensive, so there are not a lot of affordable options for parents. Parents have to find different ways to take care of their kids while they work."

Helsabeck said he was particularly struck by the children whose care shifted from year to year, often from home to informal care, as their parents' situations changed.

"There was more than I expected in this category," he said.

"We need to realize that some kids face a lot of instability and their child care situations may change a lot. That may affect how they do in school."

The study also looked at how children who took different pathways did in kindergarten.

Findings did not show differences in test scores between children from different pathways. That was surprising, because most studies show an advantage to kids who spent more time in center-based care, Helsabeck said.

But he cautioned against making too much of that finding. It could be that there were not enough children in each of the seven groups to reveal differences in this study.

Results confirmed other studies that found children who spent most of their time in center-based care during their first five years had more teacher-reported social and behavioral problems in kindergarten.

That may be because these kids are already comfortable in school-like settings and are not as shy about acting out, Purtell said. They may also be more easily bored because for them, the experience is not novel.

"This is a real challenge for kindergarten teachers to navigate children who are brand new to this setting with those kids who are already familiar with the classroom setting," she said.

The researchers said that the seven pathways to kindergarten found in this study may not be the same everywhere.

"We looked at only two school districts in one state. That's not going to represent the whole country," Helsabeck said.

"But what we can take away from this is the wide range of experiences kids bring to kindergarten. It is going to affect how they do in school."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201109152239.htm

Conflicts in kindergarten can reduce children's interest in reading and math

November 6, 2020

Science Daily/University of Eastern Finland

Teacher-perceived conflict predicts lower interest and pre-academic skills in math and literacy among kindergarteners, a new study from Finland shows.

Kindergarten represents a crucial context in which children develop school-related skills and patterns of engagement that form the basis for the development of later competencies important for academic success. Kindergarten achievement has been found to be highly predictive of later academic skills.

Given the long-lasting effects that kindergarten experiences have on later schooling, it is important to understand the factors associated with children's learning and motivation during this time. The quality of teacher-student interaction has been found to be important in terms of many different academic and socio-emotional outcomes. However, much of the previous work in the field has focused on children in later grades in elementary school and has been conducted in the United States. Fewer studies have been conducted in other educational contexts and in kindergarten specifically.

Researchers from the University of Jyväskylä, the University of Eastern Finland and New York University of Abu Dhabi investigated bidirectional links between the quality of teacher-child relationships and children's interest and pre-academic skills in literacy and math in Finland. Participants were 461 Finnish kindergarteners (6-year-olds) and their teachers (48). The study is part of the Teacher Stress Study, led by Professor Marja-Kristiina Lerkkanen and Associate Professor Eija Pakarinen at the University of Jyväskylä.

The results indicated that teacher-perceived conflict predicted lower interest and pre-academic skills in both literacy and math. It is possible that when children experience conflict with teachers, the negative emotions attached to these conflicts are harmful for children's engagement in learning and diminish their interest in academic tasks. It is also possible that children experiencing conflicts are missing out on time on learning literacy and math, either because they are disengaged from instructional activities or because teachers have to spend more instructional time on behavioural management.

The findings highlight the importance of kindergarten teachers being aware of how their relationships with children can in?uence children's later schooling. It would be important to develop pre-service and in-service programmes and interventions to assist teachers in building supportive, low conflict relationships with children. Teacher education programmes may also benefit from educating teachers not only about academic content and pedagogical practices but also in strategies that build supportive relationships with children.

"Compared to daycare, kindergarten introduces children to a more structured learning environment. The experiences children gain in this environment may have long-term consequences on the development of their academic motivation and competencies. Therefore, it is essential that our teachers are aware of the power their interaction with children may have, and that they are supported in finding optimal ways to interact with each child, while taking individual strengths and needs into consideration," Professor Jaana Viljaranta from the University of Eastern Finland says.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201106093037.htm

Teens who participate in extracurriculars, get less screen time, have better mental health

November 2, 2020

Science Daily/University of British Columbia

A new study from UBC researchers finds that teens, especially girls, have better mental health when they spend more time taking part in extracurricular activities, like sports and art, and less time in front of screens.

The study, published in the journal Preventive Medicine, found that spending less than two hours per day of recreational screen time (such as browsing the internet, playing video games, and using social media) was associated with higher levels of life satisfaction and optimism, and lower levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms, especially among girls, the researchers found. Similarly, extracurricular participation was associated with better mental health outcomes.

"Although we conducted this study before the COVID-19 pandemic, the findings are especially relevant now when teens may be spending more time in front of screens in their free time if access to extracurricular activities, like sports and arts programs is restricted due to COVID-19," says the study's lead author Eva Oberle, assistant professor with the Human Early Learning Partnership in the UBC school of population and public health. "Our findings highlight extracurricular activities as an asset for teens' mental wellbeing. Finding safe ways for children and teens to continue to participate in these activities during current times may be a way to reduce screen time and promote mental health and wellbeing."

Data for this study was drawn from a population-level survey involving 28,712 Grade 7 students from 365 schools in 27 school districts across B.C. The researchers examined recreational screen time such as playing video games, watching television, browsing the internet, as well as participating in outdoor extracurricular activities such as sport and art programs after school. They then compared its association with positive and negative mental health indicators.

Highlights of the study's findings include the following:

• Adolescents who participated in extracurricular activities were significantly less likely to engage in recreational screen-based activities for two or more hours after school

• Taking part in extracurricular activities was associated with higher levels of life satisfaction and optimism, and lower levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms

• Longer screen time (more than two hours a day) was associated with lower levels of life satisfaction and optimism, and higher levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms

• Differences among boys and girls, with longer screen time negatively affecting girls' mental health more significantly than boys

• Among both boys and girls, however, mental health was strongest when teens both participated in extracurricular activities and spent less than two hours on screen time

Oberle says further research is needed to examine why the negative effects of screen time were more detrimental for girls than for boys. She also hopes to focus future research on the effects of different types of screen time.

"We do know that some forms of screen time can be beneficial, like maintaining connections with friends and family members online if we cannot see them in person, but there are other types of screen time that can be quite harmful," she says. "There are many nuances that are not well understood yet and that are important to explore."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201102124849.htm

Starting kindergarten on the right foot

November 2, 2020

Science Daily/University of Montreal

Everything you ever really needed to know you learned back in kindergarten -- that old saying gets some scientific support in a new study by researchers at Canada's Université de Montréal and Université Sainte-Anne.

"We've known for years that getting off to a good start in kindergarten leads to better achievement over the long-term," said lead author Caroline Fitzpatrick, an assistant professor of psychology at USA, in Nova Scotia.

"But now with our study we can really lock in the idea that early childhood skills help you achieve success and adopt a healthier lifestyle in emerging adulthood. And that's promising for society as a whole."

The study was published today in Pediatrics.

"Many children begin kindergarten inadequately prepared to benefit from classroom instruction," said senior author Linda Pagani, a professor at UdeM's School of Psycho-Education.

"Those who go in unprepared risk struggling throughout their academic journey. They arrive without the necessary tools in terms of cognitive skills, social skills and motor skills from physical activity," added Pagani, who is also Senior researcher at CHU Sainte-Justine pediatric hospital in Montreal.

Math skills important

Fitzpatrick and Pagani examined associations between kindergarten readiness and academic, psychological and health risks that mainfested themselves when a child reached the end of high school.

"Kindergarten math skills contributed to better end-of high-school achievement and a lower dropout risk, and that was supported by observations from teachers, who also noted a reduced risk of substance abuse later on, said Fitzpatrick.

"Kindergarten classroom engagement also predicted involvement in physical activity and a 65-per-cent drop in the risk of a child being overweight by age 17," added Pagani, who worked on the study with UdeM postdoctoral researcher Elroy Boers.

The authors came to their conclusions after examining Institut de la statistique du Québec data from a cohort of 2,000 children born in 1997 or 1998 who were part of the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development .

At age 5, trained examiners assessed each child's knowledge of numbers and their receptive vocabulary. Each spring, teachers reported kindergarten classroom engagement, such as how a child did tasks, followed directions and worked with others. At age 17, participants reported on their academic grades, their feelings of connectedness, whether they abused drugs or alcohol, their involvement in physical activity, and their height and weight. The drop-out risk was also estimated for each participant based on their grades retention and engagement at school.

Confounding factors discarded

The researchers then analyzed the data to identify any significant link between kindergarten readiness and academic, psychological and health risks by the end of high school. They attempted to discard possible confounding factors by adjusting their analyses for key indicators in the children (their sex, weight per gestational age, non-verbal IQ and internalizing and externalizing behaviors) and in their families (parental involvement, maternal depression, immigration status, family configuration and socioeconomic status).

"Early childhood readiness forecasts a later protective edge in emerging adulthood and suggests that youngsters who begin school with the right preparedness gain a lifestyle advantage," said Fitzpatrick. "Our findings show a way to eliminate the established link between underachievement and disease by providing children with the conditions that will promote kindergarten readiness."

Added Pagani: "Promoting kindergarten readiness seems, over the long-term, to help reduce the lifestyle risks generated by dropping out of high school. Therefore, policies to promote and preserve children's early skills, such as providing stimulating childcare and diminishing family adversity, may thus represent a valuable policy strategy for governments to invest in."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201102072909.htm

Positive student-teacher relationships benefit students' long-term health

Positive peer relationships don't show the same long-term health benefits, according to the research

October 29, 2020

Science Daily/American Psychological Association

Teens who have good, supportive relationships with their teachers enjoy better health as adults, according to research published by the American Psychological Association. Perhaps surprisingly, although friendships are important to adolescents, the study did not find the same link between good peer relationships and students' health in adulthood.

"This research suggests that improving students' relationships with teachers could have important, positive and long-lasting effects beyond just academic success," said Jinho Kim, PhD, an assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at Korea University and author of the study. It was published in the journal School Psychology. "It could also have important health implications in the long run."

Previous research has suggested that teens' social relationships might be linked to health outcomes in adulthood -- perhaps because poor relationships can lead to chronic stress, which can raise a person's risk of health problems over the lifespan, according to Kim. However, it is not clear whether the link between teen relationships and lifetime health is causal -- it could be that other factors, such as different family backgrounds, might contribute to both relationship problems in adolescence and to poor health in adulthood. Also, most research has focused on teens' relationships with their peers, rather than on their relationships with teachers.

To explore those questions further, Kim analyzed data on nearly 20,000 participants from the Add Health study, a nationally representative longitudinal study in the United States that followed participants for 13 years, from seventh grade into early adulthood. The participant pool included more than 3,400 pairs of siblings. As teens, participants answered questions such as, "How often have you had trouble getting along with other students?" "How much do you agree that friends care about you?" "How often have you had trouble getting along with your teachers?" and "How much do you agree that teachers care about you?" As adults, participants were asked about their physical and mental health. Researchers also took measures of physical health, such as blood pressure and body mass index.

Kim found that, as expected, participants who had reported better relationships with both their peers and teachers in middle school and high school also reported better physical and mental health in their mid-20s. However, when he controlled for family background by looking at pairs of siblings together, only the link between good teacher relationships and adult health remained significant.

This could be because previously reported links between peer relationships and physical health could actually reflect other, underlying factors about students' family background.

The results suggest that teacher relationships are even more important than previously realized and that schools should invest in training teachers on how to build warm and supportive relationships with their students, according to Kim.

"This is not something that most teachers receive much training in," he said, "but it should be."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201029105030.htm

Safe sex or risky romance? Young adults make the rational choice

October 16, 2020

Science Daily/Association for Psychological Science

Eros, the fabled Greek god of love, was said to bring confusion and weaken the mind. New research, however, suggests that young adults are instead quite rational when it comes to selecting potential sexual partners.

A study published in the journal Psychological Science found that young adults -- contrary to how they are sometimes portrayed in the media -- tend to make highly rational decisions when it comes to selecting potential romantic partners.

This is not to say that young adults make risk-free choices, but they appear to consider both the risks and benefits of their sexual behavior in a highly consistent and thoughtful manner.

"There is a tendency to view sexual decision making in young adults as a highly variable and somewhat random process, more influenced by hormones or impulsivity than rational processes," said Laura Hatz, a doctoral candidate at the University of Missouri and lead author of the study. "Our study suggests, however, that young adults are highly consistent in their choices, balancing potential partners' level of attractiveness against the potential risk for sexually transmitted infection."

The research involved presenting 257 participants with hypothetical "sexual gambles" in which a photo of a potential partner's face was shown alongside an associated, though purely hypothetical, risk of contracting a sexually transmitted infection. Nearly all participants in the study made consistently rational choices, as defined by established models of psychological behavior. Prior research has shown that, in general, individuals tend to use what are known as heuristic decision strategies -- cognitive shortcuts that may ignore some information -- to make choices in life.

Hatz and her colleagues found that even individuals who could be identified as classic heuristic decision makers for monetary-based choices became rational decision makers when similar choices were framed as sexual choices.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201016132012.htm