Psychology 1230: Psychology of Adolescence Don Hartmann Fall 2005 © Lecture 23b: Adolescent Problems II

Quiz 3 Information A review session for Quiz 3 is scheduled for Rm. 604, BS at 10:30- 11:30 on Tuesday, December 3 rd Quiz 3 is scheduled for Wednesday during class time. Please be prompt, as I can not allow extra time for stragglers Approximately 80% of the multiple choice items will come from the study guides. The MC portion of the quiz will contain items (chapters 10-14, lectures #17-23, handouts, etc.) from the following sources: –4-6 questions from each chapter, –3-4 items from each lecture, and –0-1 questions from each handout. The essay portion will include 3-5 relatively brief essay questions taken from the study guides. You will have some choice over which questions you can choose to answer

WEB Discussion Process Group#3 due#4 due#5 due Whippets10/27 (10/26)11/14**Disbanded 4♀+1♂10/28 (10/28)11/18 (11/18)12/12 JusticeLeague11/15**Disbanded PithHelmets11/09 (11/09)11/28 MAJACS10/25 (10/25)11/11 (11/11)12/07 Psyched12/ Note: Anyone can contribute to any WEB discussion; group members are responsible to summarizing the discussion. The last day to contribute to any discussion is 3 days before the due date. Dates in parenthesis indicate the date handed in. Bolded dates indicate that material handed in was incomplete; more is required. **Where is the summary??

Handout Summary Handout WEB Date Date 40. Lect. #17: Autonomy11/ Handout: Supplemental Project #211/ Handout: Supplemental Project #311/ Lect. #17b: Family Conflict11/ Study Guide #1011/ Lect. #18: Peers11/ Lect. #19: Peers II: Pop. & Friendship11/ Lect. #20: Bullying11/ Study Guide #11 (corrected)11/ Lect. #21: Schools11/ Study Guide #1211/ Lect. #22a: Achievement11/ Study Guide #1311/ Study Guide #1411/ Lect. #23a: Adolescent Problems I12/ Lect. #23b: Adolescent Problems II12/ Quiz 3, Spring /02

Overview: Adolescent Problems I & II Introduction Risk, Resilience, and Pathways Intervention: Treatment & Prevention –Illustration involving drugs –Illustration involving teen suicide Overlaps with text, pp , , 536 Quiz 3 on Wednesday, Quiz 4 next Tuesday.

Primary Prevention & Drugs Background –About 40% of seniors have taken illicit drug in the past 30 days. Well below heyday in the late 70s –90+% licit drugs (nicotine and alcohol). –Except for diet pills, males exceed females.

Prevention of Drug Taking Agent intervention ‑‑ focus on the abused substance. Environment intervention ‑‑ Focuses on where the abuse takes place Host interventions ‑‑ focusing on the abusing (or potentially abusing) person Drug Taking Agent Envir. Host

Risk & Resilience Factors While each drug may have a unique set of risk & resilience factors, the following appear to be general to the class of drug taking: Resilience: religion, positive relationships with parents, limit setting by parents, parental involvement, positive regard for parents Risk: low parental involvement, peer pressure, associating with problem-behaving peers, drug- abusing parent, parent with low verbal reasoning skills and poor social-problem-solving skills

Prevention Factors Early intervention Senior peer-led programs Program Training social skills & peer- pressure coping skills Community-wide intervention

A lighter view…

Primary Prevention & Suicide Background (1) Utah's rate has remained among the highest in the nation for more than two decades For adolescent males, Utah rate almost twice national rate Majority of suicides are male (88%) Method – males, firearms were used in the majority of suicides (64%) –females, the most common method of suicide death is poisoning (39%) Nationally, in the past forty years, youth suicide rates have almost tripled. Between 1980 and 1996, suicide rates for ages 10 to 14 increased by over 100%.

Suicide: More Background Background (2) 1 in 4 high school students report feeling sad or hopeless for a period of at least 2 weeks 1 in 6 report having seriously considered suicide 1 in 8 actually made a plan to take their own life. 1 in 13 report actually having attempted suicide—4 out of 5 give clear warning (national statistics) Of those who did suicide: – 3% had psychotropic drugs in their system and 24% had an illicit drug in their system when they committed suicide –63% had previous contact with the juvenile justice system— truancy, possession, and aggressive behavior were common problems –65 % wer identified as having a psychiatric diagnosis

General Risk Factors Family family instability and unhappiness, lack of affection and support, high levels of control and pressure for achievement background of depression in family tree; Other involvement with the juvenile justice system Psychological problems (e.g., depression & drugs) behavior contagion (copycat suicides)

Signs that a teenager may be considering suicide may include Suicide Threats Writing notes/poems about death Change in eating and/or sleeping patterns Putting affairs in order Giving away prized possessions Personality changes Neglect of personal appearance Withdrawing from friends, family, and usual activities Changes in grades at school Trouble concentrating Drug or alcohol abuse Unstable emotional state Depression Running away from home Run-ins with the law

Interventions Through the Juvenile Justice System (Utah Youth Suicide Study) School-based Program—based upon materials provided by the Jason Foundation ( getting teachers, administrators, peers, and parents to ask the right questions and pick up on signs of depression or anxiety in teenshttp://

Barriers to Treatment Parents most frequently cited three factors: –their children believed nothing could help them, –they were reluctant to admit they had problems, and –they perceived seeking help as a sign of weakness Siblings and friends listed the same problems and added one more—the suicide completers did not know where to go for help

Prevention Factors Early intervention Senior peer-led programs Program Training social skills & peer- pressure coping skills Community-wide intervention

Final Words on Prevention So get out there and prevent! Where: Social Work & Community psychology programs

Summary: Adolescent Problems II Prevention vs. Treatment Drugs Suicide Go in Peace