Provision of gender affirming care among medical and allied health practitioners: The influence of transnormative beliefs in working with gender diverse patients.

Gender diverse patients (including gender diverse, transgender, and non-binary people) deserve quality health care, which has been referred to as gender affirming care. Given that practitioners' attitudes and competence can influence their provision of gender affirming care, this study used a lens of transnormativity (Bradford & Syed, 2019; Johnson, 2016) to develop a measure of practitioners' transnormative beliefs. The aim of the study was to determine if these beliefs were related to practitioners' gender affirming attitudes and perceptions of competence in gender affirming practice. Survey data were collected from Australian medical and allied health practitioners (N = 95). Exploratory factor analysis was applied to items measuring transnormative beliefs, with the results supporting three higher order factors; conditional approval, narrative, and gender role beliefs. Conditional approval reflected belief in gender diverse identity as authentic and worthy of intervention. Narrative beliefs reflected understanding of common developmental experiences among gender diverse populations, specifically experiences of victimisation and nascence. Gender role beliefs reflected belief in the existence of gender roles. In models that regressed gender affirming attitudes and self-perceived competency on all transnormative beliefs, controlling for demographics and work history, practitioners higher in conditional approval were lower in gender affirming attitudes and practitioners higher in narrative beliefs were higher in gender affirming attitudes and competency. Conditional approval was not significantly associated with competency, and gender role beliefs were not significantly associated with attitudes or competency. Results indicate that practitioners' transnormative beliefs are related to their gender affirming attitudes and suggest that targeting these beliefs through training opportunities could bridge the gap between gender diverse people's healthcare needs and the ability of healthcare practitioners to provide high quality care.

The Impact of Social Network Site Use on Young Adult Development: Extending the Research Beyond Time Use and Considering the Role of Self-Disclosure Motivations.

Young adults spend a good deal of time using social network sites (SNSs), and the consequences of this activity have come under considerable scrutiny in research. There is some evidence that SNSs offer a context for young adults to engage in self-disclosure, and that such behavior may contribute to their development. In the current study, self-disclosure motivations were explored as a moderator of the relationship between SNS time use and indicators of adjustment. It was hypothesized that the relationships between SNS time use and three indicators of young adult adjustment (belonging, self-concept clarity, and flourishing) would be moderated by self-disclosure motivations. Data were collected using a cross-sectional survey of 524 young adults aged 17-25 years (Mean age = 19.75; SD = 2.16) who used at least one social network site daily (Mean hours of daily use = 3.25; SD = 1.67). The relationships between SNS time use and both belonging and flourishing were moderated by self-disclosure motivations. Specifically, when participants were low or moderately motivated to self-disclose (for relationship maintenance or self-presentation purposes) SNS time use was negatively related to belonging and flourishing. Whereas when participants were highly motivated to self-disclose there was no significant relationship between SNS time use and belonging and SNS time use and flourishing. Additionally, there was no significant moderation of the relationship between SNS time use and self-concept clarity. Based on these findings, we recommend that in order for young adults to reap potential benefits of spending time online they should endeavor to use SNSs for purposes that promote positive self and relational development.

What Predicts Online Disinhibition? Examining Perceptions of Protection and Control Online and the Moderating Role of Social Anxiety.

With the pervasive nature of social media and Internet use among young adults, researchers have begun to explore experiences of online disinhibition, defined as reductions in restraint in online versus face-to-face settings. In contributing to this literature, this study aimed to test whether perceptions of the Internet as a place where one has the ability to be invisible, anonymous, and exercise control over interactions promotes greater online disinhibition. A sample of Australian young adults (N = 687; 59.8 percent female; Mage = 19.45 years, SD = 2.07) were included in the study. The sample was split to enable exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses on the measures of Internet perceptions, with results finding two subfactors; (a) perceptions of the ability to be protected, invisible, or feel safe online (labeled protection), and (b) perceptions of control over interactions and self-presentation online (labeled control). Links between perceptions of protection and control, and online disinhibition were then examined, before testing social anxiety as a moderator of these links. Results demonstrated that perceptions of protection, but not control, significantly predicted online disinhibition in young adults. Furthermore, this relationship was moderated by social anxiety such that young adults high in both social anxiety and perceptions of protection reported the highest online disinhibition. This study highlights novel perceptions of online contexts, illustrates their links with online disinhibition, and demonstrates how social anxiety may interact with perceptions of protection in predicting online experiences.

Mindfulness, rejection, and recovery of positive mood and friendliness: A Cyberball study.

Experiencing stressful events that threaten feelings of social belonging can have far-reaching negative impacts on well-being, but there are individual differences in sensitivity to threat that might be explained by dispositional traits. In particular, naturally occurring dispositional mindfulness may be one trait that can explain such differences. To test this possibility, a pool of 495 young adults completed a measure of dispositional mindfulness and a subset of 90 (M = 19 years, SD = 1.3), selected to represent the full range of mindfulness scores, participated in an induced social rejection task (Cyberball). Threat appraisal was collected by asking about perceived exclusion and rejection post-Cyberball, and participants reported their mood and friendliness before, after, and at 3-mins of recovery, and their self-esteem and life meaning after Cyberball and at recovery. Participants higher in mindfulness reported better mood and less unfriendliness prior to Cyberball. Directly after playing Cyberball, a more heightened appraisal of threat, but not mindfulness, was associated with worse mood, less friendliness, lower self-esteem, and less life meaning. Mindfulness directly mitigated the negative effects of rejection on feelings of friendliness post rejection. When mindfulness and threat appraisal were considered in interaction, the association of perceived threat with pre- to post- changes in positive mood and friendliness was strongly negative when mindfulness was high relative to low. Further, mindfulness was associated with better recovery of mood and life meaning by 3-min after Cyberball, and these effects were additive rather than interactive. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The Horse as a Therapist: Effects of an Equine Program Without "Therapy" on the Attention and Behavior of Youth Disengaged from Traditional School.

Background: Equine-assisted therapy may promote positive behavior change in young people "at risk." However, it is not always clear what therapeutic content is involved and if a trained therapist is included. The therapeutic effects of the key part of the "therapy," the horse, are not understood. Objectives: To investigate the impact of an equine program without a therapist on attention and behavioral outcomes of young people "at risk." Design: A within subjects pre-post design. A small sample also completed a control period. Setting/location: A small riding center in a rural area of outer Brisbane, Australia. Subjects: Twelve- to 17-year olds (N = 50; 20 girls; mean age 13.88), attending nontraditional flexischool. Intervention: A 5-week program of 2-h long sessions of equine activities that did not include a trained therapist or specific therapeutic content. Outcome measures: Teacher-report measures of externalizing and internalizing behavior were reported before and after the program through the Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) and the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Results: A paired samples t test resulted in the statistically significant reduction of the BRIEF Global Executive Score between pre and post participation in the equine program (mean difference = -5.89), t(36) = -3.377, p = 0.002 and the SDQ Hyperactivity score (mean difference = -0.727), t(43) = -2.244, p = 0.030. Equine activities may reverse a trajectory of worsening problems. This may especially affect symptoms related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Conclusion: Equine programs may offer an alternative method to reduce poor behavior and improve attention in young people. Benefits in attention may occur even without specific therapeutic content or therapist involvement. It is proposed that some of these benefits come directly from the horse and the interactions with the horse; others are contextual.

A Qualitative Study of Barriers and Enablers of Physical Activity among Female Emirati University Students.

Interventions to promote physical activity participation should reflect social and culturally relevant influences of the target demographic. The aim of this study was to explore perceptions of barriers to and enablers of physical activity participation among female Emirati university students. Five semi-structured focus groups were conducted (n = 25). Participants were asked open-ended questions about benefits, barriers and enablers of physical activity, and recommendations to promote participation. Emergent themes were identified using Nvivo software. Commonly identified benefits included improved health, weight management, improved mood, and stress reduction. The main barriers were low family support, competing time demands from domestic and academic activities, lack of convenient access to women-only facilities, and hot weather. The main enablers and recommendations related to social support from family and friends, accessible and low-cost women-only facilities, and structured supervised sessions. Findings suggest that there are specific social-cultural influences of physical activity among female Emirati university students. Approaches to promote participation could include identifying benefits consistent with family and cultural values, using social media for education, support and modelling, on campus supervised physical activity sessions integrated with the academic timetable, low-cost women-only opportunities in the local residential area, and support for home-based activities.

Sport participation may protect socioeconomically disadvantaged youths with refugee backgrounds from experiencing behavioral and emotional difficulties.

INTRODUCTION: Youth with refugee backgrounds experience social and socioeconomic difficulties that arise following resettlement. Research has found that sport participation generally provides youth with a protective milieu that is especially beneficial for the most disadvantaged youth. Accordingly, the current study examines whether sport participation is related to positive psychosocial outcomes for resettled adolescent refugees, and if these effects are greater for those living in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. METHOD: Data were from a large, nationally representative cohort of refugees recently resettled in Australia (Building New Life in Australia study, BNLA). Self-reported social and emotional well-being was collected from 415 youth who entered the country as refugees (Mage = 14.04, SD = 1.99) at three years post settlement were used. RESULTS: A moderated regression analysis indicated that refugee youth living in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods who participated in sports reported significantly better outcomes compared to those refugee youth in economically similar neighborhoods who did not participate in sport. In contrast, refugee youth residing in more socioeconomically advantaged communities had better developmental outcomes, regardless of sport participation. CONCLUSIONS: Sport participation is a protective factor for youth with refugee backgrounds. Community socioeconomic disadvantage moderates this relationship, whereby stronger effects were observed for adolescents in more disadvantaged communities. Protecting the most disadvantaged in our society is a human rights imperative, and the current study indicates that sport participation could contribute to these efforts among resettled refugee populations.

Ambulatory Assessment of Adolescent Coping: It's a Complicated Process.

Scholars have long-called for researchers to treat coping as a process that is measured over an arc of time. Ambulatory assessment (AA) offers an appealing tool for capturing the dynamic process of adolescent coping. However, challenges in capturing the coping process are not altogether circumvented with AA designs. We conducted a scoping review of the AA literature on adolescent coping and draw from 60 studies to provide an overview of the field. We provide critiques of different AA approaches and highlight benefits and costs associated with various types of measurement within AA. We also speak to considerations of participant burden and compliance. We conclude with recommendations for developmental scholars seeking to deploy AA to capture this quintessential process among adolescents.

Assessing emotional and social health using photographs: An innovative research method for rural studies and its applicability in a care-farming program for youth.

A framework for assessing photographs for the emotional and social health of young people (SHAPE) is described and tested, within the context of a rural program. Two independent raters assessed the photographs of participants. To assess inter-rater reliability, Cohen' K and Kendall's W were calculated. The two reviewers' assessments of photographs were in agreement. The assessment of emotional/behavioural display showed 82% agreement. Agreement between reviewers' judgements of proxemics (W = .866), interaction (W = .722), engagement (W = .932) and overall impression (W = .804) were all significant (p < .005). The method yielded results indicating that participants found gardening immediately engaging but their approach to equines exhibited a change from fascination to confidence during the program. The visual-diary method is a useful and sensitive method for research: where resources are limited; to complement traditional measures; for use with people who lack appropriate verbal communication or literacy skills to complete questionnaires; young children; other underrepresented groups.

Finding what fits: Breadth of participation at the transition to high school mitigates declines in self-concept.

Extracurricular activities represent a key setting for prevention and promoting positive youth development. However, to date, a crucial aspect of activity participation-activity breadth (participation in a variety of extracurricular settings)-has been largely overlooked as a resource for bolstering adolescents' long-term adjustment, especially the development of self-concept. To examine the long-term psychosocial effects of involvement in multiple extracurricular settings, this study modeled latent trajectories of general, social, and academic self-concept and intensity and breadth of participation across 5 years (Grades 8-12) for 1,146 Australian youth (55% female; agewave 1 12-14). We investigated multivariate change in self-concept and breadth of participation, while concurrently modeling intensity of participation. Self-concept and breadth followed a quadratic trajectory, declining across the early to-middle high school years and increasing during the final high school years. Intensity was also quadratic, but increased early on, followed by steep declines. Notably (and controlling for intensity), wider breadth of participation at the transition to high school predicted less-steep declines in general and academic self-concept across the early to-middle high school years. Findings support the potential for breadth of participation as a promising avenue for stimulating adolescents' adjustment by buffering against early declines in their views of self. (PsycINFO Database Record

Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Adolescents with Elevated Externalizing Symptoms Show Heightened Emotion Reactivity to Daily Stress: An Experience Sampling Study.

Numerous theories assert that youth with externalizing symptomatology experience intensified emotion reactivity to stressful events; yet scant empirical research has assessed this notion. Using in-vivo data collected via experience sampling methodology, we assessed whether externalizing symptoms conditioned adolescents' emotion reactivity to daily stressors (i.e. change in emotion pre-post stressor) among 206 socioeconomically disadvantaged adolescents. We also assessed whether higher externalizing symptomology was associated with experiencing more stressors overall, and whether adolescents' emotional upheavals resulted in experiencing a subsequent stressor. Hierarchical linear models showed that adolescents higher in externalizing symptoms experienced stronger emotion reactivity in sadness, anger, jealously, loneliness, and (dips in) excitement. Externalizing symptomatology was not associated with more stressful events, but a stress-preventative effect was found for recent upheavals in jealousy among youth low in externalizing. Findings pinpoint intense emotion reactivity to daily stress as a risk factor for youth with externalizing symptoms living in socioeconomic disadvantage.

Mobile Phones in the Bedroom: Trajectories of Sleep Habits and Subsequent Adolescent Psychosocial Development.

Mobile phones are an essential part of an adolescent's life, leading them to text, phone, or message into the night. Longitudinal latent growth models were used to examine relations between changes in adolescent night-time mobile phone use, changes in sleep behavior, and changes in well-being (depressed mood, externalizing behavior, self-esteem, and coping) for 1,101 students (43% male) between 13 and 16 years old. Both night-time mobile phone use and poor sleep behavior underwent positive linear growth over time. Increased night-time mobile phone use was directly associated with increased externalizing behavior and decreased self-esteem and coping. Changes in sleep behavior mediated the relation between early changes in night-time mobile phone use and later increases in depressed mood and externalizing behavior and later declines in self-esteem and coping.

The Role of Online Social Identity in the Relationship Between Alcohol-Related Content on Social Networking Sites and Adolescent Alcohol Use.

Social networking sites (SNSs) are social platforms that facilitate communication. For adolescents, peers play a crucial role in constructing the self online through displays of group norms on SNSs. The current study investigated the role of online social identity (OSI) in the relationship between adolescent exposure to alcohol-related content posted by peers on SNSs and alcohol use. In a sample (N = 929) of Australian adolescents (Age M = 17.25, SD = 0.31) higher levels of exposure to alcohol-related content on SNSs was associated with higher levels of alcohol use. Importantly, the association was stronger when the participants reported higher OSI particularly when also reporting low or moderate amount of time spent on SNS. The findings can be explained by social identity literature that demonstrates individuals align their behaviors with other members of their social group to demonstrate, enact, and maintain social identity. The results of this study reflect the importance of considering the construction of the "self" through online and offline constructs.

Tracking Effects of Problematic Social Networking on Adolescent Psychopathology: The Mediating Role of Sleep Disruptions.

Concerns are growing about adolescents' problematic social networking and possible links to depressed mood and externalizing behavior. Yet there remains little understanding of underlying processes that may account for these associations, including the mediating role of sleep disruption. This study tests this putative mediating process and examines change in problematic social networking investment and disrupted sleep, in relation to change in depressed mood and externalizing behavior. A sample of 874 students (41% male; 57.2% Caucasian; baseline M age = 14.4 years) from 27 high schools were surveyed. Participants' problematic social networking, sleep disruption, and psychopathology (depressed mood, externalizing behaviors) were measured annually over 3 years. Longitudinal mediation was tested using latent trajectories of problematic social networking use, sleep disruption, and psychopathology. Both problematic social networking and sleep disruption underwent positive linear growth over time. Adolescents who increasingly invested in social networking reported increased depressed mood, with around 53% of this association explained by the indirect effect of increased sleep disruptions. Further, adolescents who increasingly invested in social networking also reported increased externalizing behavior; some of this relation was explained (13%) via increased sleep disruptions. However an alternative model in which increased externalizing was associated with increased social networking, mediated by sleep disruptions, indicated a reciprocal relation of similar magnitude. It is important for parents, teachers, and psychologists to minimize the negative effects of social networking on adolescents' psychopathology. Interventions should potentially target promoting healthy sleep habits through reductions in social networking investment and rescheduling usage away from bedtime.

Participation in Organized Activities Protects Against Adolescents' Risky Substance Use, Even Beyond Development in Conscientiousness.

Adolescents are at a significant risk for binge drinking and illicit drug use. One way to protect against these behaviors is through participation in extracurricular activities. However, there is a debate about whether highly conscientious adolescents are more likely to participate in activities, which raises the concern of a confound. To disentangle these relationships, we tested the latent trajectories of substance use and personality across 3 years, with participation in activities and sports as time-varying predictors. We surveyed 687 adolescents (55 % female, 85.4 % Caucasian) in Western Australia schools across 3 years. At Time 1, the students were in Year 10 1 (mean age 15 years). The results showed that participation in activities and conscientiousness are related, but each uniquely predicts slower growth in substance use. Across waves, participation in activities predicted less risky substance use a year later, over and above conscientiousness development. These results suggest that there may be unique benefits of participation in activities that protect against risky substance use.

Adolescent Problematic Social Networking and School Experiences: The Mediating Effects of Sleep Disruptions and Sleep Quality.

An important developmental task for adolescents is to become increasingly responsible for their own health behaviors. Establishing healthy sleep routines and controlling media use before bedtime are important for adequate, quality sleep so adolescents are alert during the day and perform well at school. Despite the prevalence of adolescent social media use and the large percentage of computers and cell phones in adolescents' bedrooms, no studies to date have investigated the link between problematic adolescent investment in social networking, their sleep practices, and associated experiences at school. A sample of 1,886 students in Australia aged between 12 and 18 years of age completed self-report data on problematic social networking use, sleep disturbances, sleep quality, and school satisfaction. Structural equation modeling (SEM) substantiated the serial mediation hypothesis: for adolescents, problematic social networking use significantly increased sleep disturbances, which adversely affected perceptions of sleep quality that, in turn, lowered adolescents' appraisals of their school satisfaction. This significant pattern was largely driven by the indirect effect of sleep disturbances. These findings suggest that adolescents are vulnerable to negative consequences from social networking use. Specifically, problematic social networking is associated with poor school experiences, which result from poor sleep habits. Promoting better sleep routines by minimizing sleep disturbances from social media use could improve school experiences for adolescents with enhanced emotional engagement and improved subjective well-being.

Binge drinking trajectories across adolescence: for early maturing youth, extra-curricular activities are protective.

PURPOSE: To describe adolescent binge drinking trajectories across grades 8-11 and examine their associations with pubertal timing, socioeconomic status (SES), and structured activity and sport involvement. METHODS: Longitudinal data were analyzed from the Youth Activity Participation Study (YAPS), an annual survey of youth in 39 schools across Western Australia (N = 1,342). RESULTS: Latent class growth analysis revealed four binge drinking trajectory groups: Accelerating (early onset, increased frequency), Steep Increase (delayed onset, rapid escalation), Slow Growth (delayed onset, gradual increase) and Stable Low (abstinence). Accelerating was characterized by early pubertal timing, low SES, and more sport involvement in grade 8, relative to Stable Low. The groups did not significantly differ in their grade 8 activity participation. However, for early maturers, greater grade 8 activity participation was associated with a decreased probability of belonging to Steep Increase relative to Stable Low. CONCLUSIONS: Early pubertal timing and sports participation increased the odds of belonging to a problematic binge drinking trajectory. For youth at-risk due to early pubertal timing, structured activities appear to be protective against a problematic developmental course of binge drinking.

Emotional intimacy power predicts different sexual experiences for men and women.

Those who are more emotionally invested in relationships have less power than their partners. Furthermore, less powerful individuals may attempt to equalize power imbalances by offering rewards to their partner and using sex and condom use as exchange resources. Australian young adults reported their condom use and pressured sex experiences in both romantic (n = 708) and casual (n = 118) relationships. Results showed that greater power (lower relative emotional investment) predicted more condom use among those wanting to use condoms. In casual relationships, an interaction with gender showed that women in particular used condoms more when they had more power. Power also interacted with gender for pressured sex and, unexpectedly, men who had more power experienced more pressured sex. The possibility that condom use and pressured sex have different meanings for men and women is explored.

Mapping developmental precursors of cyber-aggression: trajectories of risk predict perpetration and victimization.

Technologically mediated contexts are social arenas in which adolescents can be both perpetrators and victims of aggression. Yet, there remains little understanding of the developmental etiology of cyber aggression, itself, as experienced by either perpetrators or victims. The current study examines 3-year latent within-person trajectories of known correlates of cyber-aggression: problem behavior, (low) self-esteem, and depressed mood, in a large and diverse sample of youth (N = 1,364; 54.6% female; 12-14 years old at T1). Findings demonstrate that developmental increases in problem behavior across grades 8-10 predict both cyber-perpetration and victimization in grade 11. Developmental decreases in self-esteem also predicted both grade 11 perpetration and victimization. Finally, early depressed mood predicted both perpetration and victimization later on, regardless of developmental change in depressed mood in the interim. Our results reveal a clear link between risky developmental trajectories across the early high school years and later cyber-aggression and imply that mitigating trajectories of risk early on may lead to decreases in cyber-aggression at a later date.