Title: Gender, Age, and Behavior Differences in Early Adolescent Worry
Abstract: Journal of School HealthVolume 76, Issue 8 p. 430-437 Gender, Age, and Behavior Differences in Early Adolescent Worry Stephen L. Brown, Stephen L. BrownSearch for more papers by this authorJames A. Teufel, James A. TeufelSearch for more papers by this authorDavid A. Birch, David A. BirchSearch for more papers by this authorVijaya Kancherla, Vijaya KancherlaSearch for more papers by this author Stephen L. Brown, Stephen L. BrownSearch for more papers by this authorJames A. Teufel, James A. TeufelSearch for more papers by this authorDavid A. Birch, David A. BirchSearch for more papers by this authorVijaya Kancherla, Vijaya KancherlaSearch for more papers by this author First published: 15 September 2006 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1746-1561.2006.00137.xCitations: 30 Stephen L. Brown, PhD, Assistant Professor ([email protected]); 2James A. Teufel, MPH, Doctoral Student ([email protected]); and 3David A. Birch, PhD, CHES, Professor ([email protected]), Department of Health Education, Southern Illinois University—Carbondale, Carbondale, IL 62901-4632; and 4Vijaya Kancherla, MS, CHES, Doctoral Student ([email protected]), Department of Epidemiology, 200 Hawkins Drive, Iowa City, IA 52242. This study was completed with funding help from the National Association of Health Education Centers and KidsHealth (the Nemours Foundation's Center for Children's Health Media). AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Abstract Abstract: Early adolescents in the United States are increasingly exposed to a culture of worrisome messages. A degree of adolescent worry is normal, but the likelihood of a young person being anxious or depressed increases with the perceived number of worries. This study examined the effect of age, gender, and worry behavior on frequency of 8 adolescent worries. Data were obtained from 1004 9- to 13-year-old students visiting 10 health education centers in 7 states. Students responded via individual, electronic keypads. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that boys worry more about the future, whereas girls worry more about being liked or being overweight. The oldest adolescents worry most about their appearance, being overweight, their friends, and problems at home. Adolescents who prefer talking to parents when worried are less likely to worry about being liked, while those who keep worries to themselves have more worries about grades. Those who turn to parents for information are less likely to worry about being liked, failure, their future, and their friends than those who turn to other sources (teachers, Internet, and friends). Recommendations are given to assist health educators and other school staff to recognize frequent worriers and plan school-based approaches to address their needs. (J Sch Health. 2006;76(8):430-437) References 1 Glassner B. The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things. New York, NY: Basic Books; 1999. 2 Muris P, Merckelbach H, Gadet B, et al. Fears, worries, and scary dreams in 4- to 12-year old adolescents: their content, developmental pattern, and origins. J Clin Child Psychol. 2000; 29: 43-52. 3 Muris P, Merckelbach H, Mayer B, et al. How serious are common childhood fears? Behav Res Ther. 2000; 38: 217-228. 4 Orton GL. A comparative study of adolescents's worries. J Psychol. 1982; 110: 153-162. 5 Henker B, Whalen C, O'Neil R. Worldly and workaday worries: contemporary concerns of early adolescents. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 1995; 23: 685-702. 6 Silverman WK, La Greca AM, Wasserstein S. What do adolescents worry about? Worries and their relation to anxiety. Child Dev. 1995; 66: 671-686. 7 Vasey MW, Crnic KA, Carter WG. Worry in childhood: a developmental perspective. Cognit Ther Res. 1994; 18: 529-549. 8 Lazarus RS. Psychological Stress and the Coping Process. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 1966. 9 Lazarus RS, Launier R. Stress-related transactions between person and environment. In: LA Pervin, M Lewis, eds. Perspectives in Interactional Psychology. New York, NY: Plenum Press; 1978: 287-327. 10 Glaze DG. Childhood insomnia: why Chris can't sleep. Pediatr Clin North Am. 2004; 51: 33-50. 11 Pryor-Brown L, Cowen E. Stressful life events, support, and adolescents' school adjustment. J Clin Child Psychol. 1989; 18: 214-220. 12 Brosschot JF, Van Der Doef M. Daily worrying and somatic health complaints: testing the effectiveness of a simple worry reduction intervention. Psychol Health. 2006; 21: 19-31. 13 United States Surgeon General Mental health: a report from the Surgeon General. Available at: http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/home.html. Accessed December 22, 2005. 14 Costello EJ, Egger H, Angold A. 10-year research update review: the epidemiology of child and adolescent psychiatric disorders: I. Methods and public health burden. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2005; 44: 972-986. 15 Insel TR, Fenton WS. Psychiatric epidemiology: it's not just about counting anymore. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2005; 65: 590-592. 16 American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 4th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association; 1994. 17 Rickels K, Rynn M. Overview and clinical presentation of generalized anxiety disorder. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2001; 24: 1-17. 18 Weems CF, Silverman WK, La Greca AM. What do children referred for anxiety problems worry about? Worry and its relation to anxiety and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2000; 28: 63-72. 19 Chorpita BF, Tracey SA, Brown TA, et al. Assessment of worry in the adolescents and adolescents: an adaptation of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire. Behav Res Ther. 1997; 35: 569-581. 20 Essau C, Petermann F. Depressive Disorders in Children and Adolescents: Epidemiology, Risk Factors, and Treatment. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson Inc; 1999. 21 Laugesen N, Dugas MJ, Bukowski WM. Understanding adolescent worry: the application of a cognitive model. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2003; 31: 55-64. 22 Fournier S, Freeston MH, Ladouceur R, Dugas MJ, Guevin MC. Excessive worry and anxiety in junior and senior high school students. Poster session presented at the biannual convention of the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada; 1996 August. 23 Common Core of Data. National Center for Educational Statistics; 2002-2003. Available at: http://nces ed.gov/globallocator. Accessed November 2, 2004, 24 Digest of Educational Statistics. National Center for Educational Statistics; 2001. Available at: http://nces. ed.gove/programs/digest/d01. Accessed November 2, 2004. 25 Gazzaniga M, Ivry R, Mangun G. Cognitive Neuroscience: The Biology of the Mind. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Inc; 1998: 467-469. 26 Vander Zanden JW. Human Development. 6th ed. New York, NY: McGraw Hill; 1997. 27 Hunt M. The Story of Psychology. New York, NY: Doubleday; 1993. 28 Santrock JW, Yussen SR. Child Development. 5th ed. Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown Publishers; 1992. 29 Coughlin JW, Heinberg LJ, Marinilli AS, et al. Body image dissatisfaction in adolescents: prevalence and parental influence. Healthy Weight J. 2003; 17: 56-59. 30 Adler P, Kless S, Adler P. Socialization to gender roles: popularity among elementary school boys and girls. Sociol Educ. 1992; 65: 169-187. 31 Carlson Jones D, Vigfusdottir T, Lee Y. Body image and the appearance culture among adolescent girls and boys: an examination of friend conversations, peer criticism, appearance magazines, and the internalization of appearance ideals. J Adolesc Res. 2004; 19: 323-339. 32 Bonica C, Daniel JH. Helping adolescents cope with stress during stressful times. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2003; 15: 385-390. 33 Tomb M, Hunter L. Prevention of anxiety in children and adolescents in a school setting: the role of school-based practitioners. Children Schools. 2004; 26: 87-101. 34 Cunningham EG, Brandon CM, Frydenberg E. Enhancing coping resources in early adolescence through a school-based program teaching optimistic thinking skills. Anxiety Stress Coping. 2002; 15: 369-381. Citing Literature Volume76, Issue8October 2006Pages 430-437 ReferencesRelatedInformation
Publication Year: 2006
Publication Date: 2006-10-01
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref', 'pubmed']
Access and Citation
Cited By Count: 59
AI Researcher Chatbot
Get quick answers to your questions about the article from our AI researcher chatbot