The 2013 North Carolina Youth Risk Behavior Survey (NCYRBS) was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and adapted by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) to monitor health-risk behaviors and to measure progress toward achieving Healthy North Carolina 2020 objectives. The survey, administered in…

Objective: Heightened nocturnal blood pressure (BP) may be attributed to the disruption of sleep, a condition worsened by alcohol ingestion. This study investigated the effects of acute alcohol ingestion on hemodynamics and sleep architecture in a young, healthy cohort of male. METHODS: Subjects (n = 17) underwent acute alcohol ingestion reaching…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of curricular-based interventions housed within first-year success courses on alcohol expectancies and high-risk drinking behaviors. Specifically, we longitudinally assessed 173 students enrolled in one of ten first-year success courses, including five that received the alcohol intervention and…

The presence of a college or university in a community can greatly enrich the lives of long-term residents, intellectually, culturally, and financially. But students who live, work, and play in nearby neighborhoods can sometimes create enormous problems, putting a strain on campus and community relations and compromising the health and safety of…

Considering that current trends in sexual behavior and alcohol use among adolescents pose a significant public health risk, more research is needed in this area. Using a cross-sectional design, this study examined sex and alcohol behaviors among middle school and high school students in southeastern North Carolina. The findings suggested that…

Objective: This study examined the association between restricting calories on intended drinking days and drunkenness frequency and alcohol-related consequences among college students. Participants: Participants included a random sample of 4,271 undergraduate college students from 10 universities. Methods: Students completed a Web-based survey…

Purpose: Alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other drugs use typically increases in prevalence and frequency during middle and late adolescence. School health instruction often focusses on providing facts and rarely provides tools for addressing the psychosocial risk factors needed to prevent substance use. The purpose of this paper is to report about…

This article shows that the traditional narrative of Black-White high school graduation gaps is inverted among economically disadvantaged female students. Two nationally representative surveys and statewide administrative data demonstrate that low-income White females graduate at rates 5 to 6 percentage points lower than Black peers despite having…

Objective: To examine associations between two body image constructs (body appreciation and body satisfaction) and five health behaviors (diet, physical activity, weight management, tobacco exposure, and alcohol intake) associated with risk for chronic disease, controlling for self-esteem. Participants: Three hundred and forty-four college…

The present study examines the influence of economic and family stress processes on change in drug and alcohol use in a cohort of 478 Mexican American youth (50.8% female) followed longitudinally beginning in Grade 5 when the youth averaged 10.4 years of age. Adolescents, their mothers (median age 36 at Grade 5), and their fathers (median age 39…

A survey of 10,259 North Carolina 7th-12th grade students revealed: alcohol, tobacco and marijuana were the most commonly used drugs; males and Whites were more frequent users than females and Blacks; almost 20 percent of 11th and 12th graders reported coming to school drunk. Results suggest considerations for drug prevention campaigns. (IAH)

The randomized response technique ensures that individual item responses, denoted as true item responses, are randomized before observing them and so-called randomized item responses are observed. A relationship is specified between randomized item response data and true item response data. True item response data are modeled with a (non)linear…

This case study focused on the perceptions of faculty and staff of mental health services at the elementary level in a rural district. Mental health services provided in elementary school settings can ultimately change the outcome of individuals' lives. Many districts in North Carolina lack the funds to hire mental health counselors, and must rely…

This paper summarizes the development and evaluation of an assessment instrument for children ages 7-12. The CHILD CARRE measure is a semi-structured interview with 7 domains. Children from the USA and Argentina (N = 134) completed baseline and follow-up assessments. Substance use occurred at an average age of 8. Almost 33% of the children were…

New analytical tools have facilitated the exploration of the trajectories of alcohol use; however, there are a limited number of studies that explore early adolescence. A sample of 5,903 youths followed from sixth through eighth grade was used to (1) examine the trajectories of alcohol use and (2) determine the degree to which common correlates…