Youth, Volume 2, Issue 3 (September 2022) – 16 articles

The present study examined the relationship between adolescents’ efficacy beliefs (both personal and collective), climate anxiety (as measured with climate worry), group dynamics during an environmental intervention, and behavioral intentions in a setting where their agency was called upon. Data were collected in French-speaking Switzerland during and after four environmental education interventions during which adolescents developed climate-related projects or narratives in small groups. Questionnaire data (N = 150 adolescents) were matched with observations (from group dynamics) and interview data (from teachers). Self- and collective efficacy, climate anxiety, citing group work as a most interesting part of the intervention, and observed group attention were all positively related to stronger pro-environmental intentions. In addition, feeling involved in the group was also indirectly related to pro-environmental behaviors, through climate anxiety. Overall, our results suggest that being worried about climate change has the potential to translate into climate action. In addition, working in small groups has clear benefits for adolescents. Full article

Young adults in rural areas in many cases have limited educational opportunities. To obtain higher educational qualifications, rural youth often travel long distances. Therefore, many rural youths choose the “shorter” route and complete vocational training closer to home or drop out of their education prematurely. Against this background, this study examines the education policies of European countries and explores the extent to which these problems are addressed within their policy framework and what measures are taken to improve the situation. Using a unique dataset of policies of 31 European countries for the period 2010 to 2020, we examine more than 500 national and subnational policies that address formal and informal education and training. The results show that despite the sometimes high number of rural youths not in education, employment, or training (NEETs) and high early-school-leaving rates, only some countries have developed a respective policy strategy. The analysis presents the different measures implemented in the countries and furthermore shows that a high problem pressure in a country is not necessarily accompanied by a consideration in policy. Prospectively, there is a need for new policies that understand the multidimensionality of the issue and significantly improve the situation of rural youth. Full article

Public health measures adopted due to the COVID-19 pandemic made emergency remote learning the designated higher education delivery model under lockdowns, causing several transformations in the sector. Based on an online survey of 1009 students aged between 16 and 24 years old during 2021, this article examines the perceptions and experiences of distance education of a cohort dealing with the second lockdown in Portugal. It explores how young people perceived their student lives during the lockdown. More specifically, the study focuses on higher education experience, from learning conditions to pedagogical quality; expectations regarding academic life; and main concerns about academic (and professional) futures due to the lockdown’s effects. The results show that while some students adapted well to remote teaching, stressing its advantages in terms of time management and convenience, the majority disliked it because they had greater difficulty in following classes, not due to material and technical limitations, but rather for lack of socialisation and peer support. We discuss the value of a hidden curriculum for student engagement. Full article

The aim of the present study was to examine macro-determinants of the Not Engaged in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) rate with the country as the unit of analysis. Data from 40 countries were extracted from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) database. Linear mixed models were used to examine associations between the NEET rate and gross domestic product (GDP), population density, life expectancy, social spending, homicide rate, part-time employment, poverty, social inequality (GINI index), and education spending. As part of a sensitivity analysis, the analysis was repeated using open data from the World Bank Group. GDP and social spending were uniquely associated with the NEET rate after controlling for the effects of other factors. Social inequality, poverty, and education spending showed borderline significant associations with the NEET rate. The findings of the present ecological study showed associations between environmentally unfavourable conditions or harshness and the NEET rate at the country level and may inform appropriate policy measures to contain and promote a decrease in the NEET rate. Full article

Research that examines lived experience and how emerging adults seek to create wellbeing in their daily lives through nature is limited. This paper addresses this gap by providing unique insights into how emerging adults perceive and experience nature as a beneficial resource for their wellbeing. Data were collected using photo-elicitation interviews, where 18 emerging adults took photographs that represented their views on and experiences of wellbeing, and during the follow-up interviews discussed the meaning of their photographs. Without a priori mention, 14 participants identified contact with various elements of nature as important resources in supporting their wellbeing. It is the results of these 14 interviews that are discussed in this paper with a focus on (i) the elements of nature which these emerging adults identify as important resources for their wellbeing, (ii) experiences and the perceived pathways between these elements of nature and wellbeing. Thematic analysis revealed four distinct perceived pathways connecting nature to wellbeing, including symbiotic nurturing, building social glue, maintaining a positive outlook, and centreing yourself. Four elements of nature facilitated these pathways: domesticated fauna, domesticated flora, wild fauna and wild surrounding nature. The findings help build understanding of how emerging adults perceive elements of nature as resources for wellbeing and can inform the development of nature-oriented interventions. Full article

Many adolescents with diverse sexual orientations lead happy and fulfilled lives. However, evidence consistently suggests elevated rates of mental health difficulties in this population relative to heterosexual peers, and internalization of stigma (i.e., self-stigma) is implicated in these elevated rates. This study aimed to understand and describe the lived experience of self-stigma with respect to participants’ sexual orientations. To do this, N = 21 semi-structured interviews were conducted with adolescents aged 14–18 who are attracted to the same gender, asking about how their stigma experiences affected their views of their sexual orientation, and themselves. A community reference group of young people with diverse sexual orientations was also consulted in the development of the study, and interpretation of the themes. Through thematic analysis of the self-stigma data and the consultation process, four themes were developed: (1) stigma is a precursor to self-stigma; (2) acceptance is a precursor to self-acceptance; (3) contents of self-stigma, characterized by two subthemes: (i) self-shame (comprised of feelings of abnormality, self-disgust and/or being a ‘bad’ person) and (ii) self-invalidation; and (4) self-stigma is painful and can be damaging. There is a contrast between the way that internalized homophobia is operationalized, and the way self-stigma was characterized in this study with young people, and conceptualizing and measuring self-stigma may need to be updated. Based on the analysis, we suggest four ways to address self-stigma and its impacts: (1) individual intervention; (2) increasing acceptance in families and communities; (3) providing respectful and normalizing sexuality education and information; and (4) overcoming community stigma. Full article

Takatāpui/LGBTIQ+ people’s housing experiences are poorly understood in Aotearoa, New Zealand, including those of young people. We use data from an online survey to investigate experiences of homelessness, involuntary mobility, and housing-related discrimination amongst Takatāpui/LGBTIQ+ youth (n = 334). Multiple linear regression analysis shows a significant relationship between homelessness scores and experience of state care, involuntary mobility, and housing discrimination. Furthermore, these young people had high rates of poverty (57% reporting an annual income below NZD 20,000), involuntary mobility (56%), housing-related discrimination (55%), and lifetime experiences of homelessness (31%). These findings highlight the difficulties that Takatāpui/LGBTIQ+ young people face in the housing market, emphasising the need for targeted programs and policies to meet their needs and prevent homelessness from occurring. Full article

In recent years, young people in Australia and abroad have taken to social media to express their concerns about the violent behaviour of their peers, and to share content that challenges the causes of gender-based and interpersonal violence. From launching policy-changing petitions to responding to and engaging with online campaigns, young people are pushing action and momentum from generational changes in feminist movements. Young people have their own contexts and influences that affect understandings and responses to gendered inequality and violence. This paper discusses the findings of nine focus groups with 32 young people who share content online about preventing gender-based violence, exploring their perceptions on their reasonings for using these tools and how they came to assumptions about gender inequality. It explores the contexts that young people in Australia draw upon to challenge existing gender inequalities and their reasonings for using social media to share ideas about preventing violence with others. The findings of this paper, thus, have implications for how young people are engaged in the primary prevention of gender-based violence, suggesting better use for social-media-campaign content engagement. Full article

Musculoskeletal fitness (MF) is a multidimensional construct that combines muscle strength, endurance, and power to allow for the performance of tasks against one’s own body weight or an external resistance. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of school-based programs on promoting MF in children aged 6 to 10. PubMed and Web of Science databases were used as searching tools. A total of 16 studies were included in a systematic review with primary school-based program interventions measuring at least one variable related to musculoskeletal fitness. Parameters for measuring explosive power, especially standing broad jump (SBJ), have a large potential for development throughout school-based programs. Long-lasting interventions did not necessarily improve MF; however, there were shorter interventions that caused the improvement in a larger number of parameters. Our findings imply that increased physical activity during a school week, together with improved lesson content, is crucial for MF development in this age group. Full article

Bourdieu’s theory of practice is a useful tool to understand people’s everyday behaviours, dispositions and habits. However, this theory struggles to explain how some people diverge from the social norms that structure their habitus. This article proposes an extension of Bourdieu’s theory of practice by incorporating Freire’s conscientisation, that is, a theory of how individuals develop a critically conscious awareness through engagement with the world around them. Here, we use young people’s engagement in activism as a case study to show how these two theories can work together. We analysed previous youth activism research articles to explore how the theory of practice and conscientisation can explain the representations made of young people’s activism. Combining the two theories allows an explanation of how and why the young people in the studies that we reviewed took pathways of alternative actions from within their habitus. We argue that by adding Freire’s conscientisation to Bourdieu’s theory of practice, young people’s activism can be understood as the development of a generational radical habitus. Full article

Violence in adolescent intimate relationships poses a real threat to adolescent well-being and is a risk factor for recurrent violent patterns in adult marital relationships. The present study aimed to understand the relationship between different dimensions of childhood trauma and dating violence perpetration and the mediating role of temperament. The sample was composed of 3497 adolescents (n = 1549 boys, n = 1948 girls; M = 1.56, SD = 0.497) aged between 10 and 22 years (M = 15.15, SD = 1.83). Instruments used in this study included the Social Desirability Scale, the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), and the Early Adolescent Temperament Questionnaire (EATQ). The results show that temperament plays a mediating role in the relationship between dating violence perpetration and emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. Furthermore, the results suggest that adolescents who have been abused in childhood tend to demonstrate more temperamental problems and a greater susceptibility to the perpetration of teen dating violence, but only in the more severe dimensions of childhood trauma. Full article

Background: The multifactoriality of Anorexia Nervosa (AN) and the specificity of the treatment that provides for the compliance of parents (caregivers) is consolidated in the scientific literature. Caregivers’ burden, in addition to negatively affecting parents’ Quality of Life (QoL), can act as a maintenance factor for the disorder itself. Aim: Within a much broader research project, this work focuses on a preliminary analysis of the presence and level of burden in couples of parents of adolescents with Eating Disorders (EDs) and related variables. Methods: At a clinic dedicated to EDs, three couples of parents (mean age = 47.50; SD = 2.73) of three female patients with AN (mean age = 16; SD = 1.78), prior to taking charge, which includes protocol, psychoeducation, and family psychotherapy meetings. Caregivers completed a questionnaire consisting of standardized screening tests for assessing psychological assets: (a) Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), (b) Family Strain Questionnaire—Short Form (FSQ-SF), (c) Resilience Scale (RS), and (d) semi-structured interview. Results: High levels of anxiety (18 ± 6.9), stress (13.33 ± 10.26), and depression (12 ± 6.9) are found in mother caregivers, while father caregivers are more resilient (57.33 ± 8.5). A high level of caregivers’ burden was associated with being unemployed (3.33 ± 2.51), being a mother (4.33 ± 1.52), and with a highly pathological patient to care for (3 ± 4.24). Conclusions: Evaluating family caregivers of ED patients for risk factors of burden allows them to offer care and reduce the perceived stress of care. Full article

Background: All over the world, the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children’s and adolescents’ mental health has been observed. The conducted research aims to verify whether returning to school, to education inside the classroom in the company of their peers, improved or undermined the students’ mental health. Methods: The study was carried out on a sample of students inhabiting rural areas in a borderland region. The research sample was collected using purposive sampling and consisted of 552 respondents from the seventh and eighth grades of primary school. An auditorium questionnaire was used to gather the research material. Results: Three months after returning to school, the students were in a poor mental state; 61% of the respondents were satisfied with their lives, while 52% showed symptoms of depression as measured with the WHO-5 index, whereas 85% of the respondents have average and high stress levels as measured with the PSSC scale. Higher levels of mental disorders were observed among female respondents and in those students living in villages and evaluating their financial status as worse. Conclusions: Returning to school failed to have a positive impact on the students’ mental health. Disorders occurring on a large scale will have a negative influence on the students’ performance and hinder their re-adaptation to the school environment. Educational authorities should immediately provide the students with support and monitor the situation over the coming months. Full article

Youth with disabilities have a higher risk of experiencing mental health problems than their non-disabled peers. In part, this results from their social exclusion and dearth of social networks. An intervention informed by positive psychology principles and peer mentoring approaches was developed and evaluated with 12 youths with disabilities who had musical interests and talents as musicians. It included the real-world experience of applying the training in a school-based music project with over 200 typically developing pupils aged nine years in four schools. Evaluation data were obtained from project staff, self-ratings by the mentors and through group interviews with them, as well as from reactions of school pupils and interviews with six teachers. The study confirmed the benefit of music and peer mentoring as a means of promoting the self-esteem and self-confidence of youth with disabilities. Further research is needed to determine the longer-term mental health benefits musically based interventions can offer to youth with disabilities and, more generally, to young children in schools. Full article

During tertiary education, students embark on a journey of role exploration and decision-making about their future, to define who they want to be in their adult lives. Psychological services for students may be needed to help students gain better awareness of their mental health. The purpose of this systematic literature review is to analyze psychological interventions for university students in Europe. The review was conducted per the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Studies were identified using the Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, ProQuest Psychology Journals, PsycINFO, and PsycARTICLES databases. The results were classified into seven categories: counseling and group counseling (eight papers); psychodynamic interventions (six papers); cognitive–behavioral interventions (fifteen papers); other psychological interventions (eighteen papers); mindfulness (nine papers); online interventions (seventeen papers); and app and mobile interventions (ten papers). Student psychological services are becoming one of the most important sources of support for students, and the number of approaches offered is expanding. Our results suggest the need to further investigate and promote the provision of psychological care for university students, explore long-term treatment options, and invest in professionally trained staff. Full article

The current study explored how young females who compete in aesthetic sports adopt self-presentation strategies on social media. Data from semi-structured interviews with 10 collegiate female trampolinists (aged 19–24 years) were analyzed through reflective thematic analysis, and six themes were generated; self-analysis, the best you, emotional consequences, judgment, social media perceptions, and acceptance. Framed around these themes, creative nonfiction techniques were employed to present the results as an ethnodrama. Findings illustrated how participants demonstrated a high need to present their “best self”, as failure to do so results in fear of judgment, extreme self-criticism, and, subsequently, post-prevention. Moreover, participants used upward social comparisons, and when they felt they did not match the ‘thin ideal’, often made negative associations between weight gain and attractiveness. This study contributes to body image literature by demonstrating a more detailed understanding of how social media influences one’s need to alter their self-presentation to fit in with highly pressured societal ideals. In addition, the ethnodrama provides an educational tool to stimulate reflection about the extremity of this issue in today’s modern world. Full article