Predicting protected sexual behaviour using the Information-Motivation-Behaviour skills model among adolescent substance abusers in court-ordered treatment.

The Information-Motivation-Behavioural skills model (Fisher & Fisher, 1992) was used to predict condom use among adolescents residing in a court-ordered inpatient substance abuse treatment programme (N = 271; 181 male and 90 female, primarily of minority ethnicity). In a predictive structural equation model, demographic variables, HIV transmission knowledge, and motivational variables of pro-condom norms and attitudes, and perceived susceptibility predicted condom use skills and condom use self-efficacy. Along with the other variables in the model, condom skills and condom self-efficacy were hypothesized to predict condom use over a three-month period. It was found that condom skills were predicted by greater age, pro-condom attitudes and greater perceived susceptibility. Condom self-efficacy was predicted by gender, pro-condom norms and condom attitudes. Condom use was significantly predicted by pro-condom norms and stronger condom self-efficacy. Both condom skills and knowledge did not significantly predict condom use. Significant demographic predictors of condom use included greater age and gender. Results suggest that changing personal attitudes about condoms and reinforcing the power of pro-condom beliefs among significant others will encourage condom use among adolescents who are at high risk for HIV and other STDs.

Shades of meaning: skin tone, racial attitudes, and constructive memory in African American children.

For many decades, researchers have argued that white racism affects African American children's racial attitudes and self concept. To examine the effects of negative majority-culture stereotypes of race on young African American children's intra-racial attitudes, elementary school-age children (N = 56) were asked to recall information embedded in stories that was either consistent or inconsistent with cultural stereotypes of lighter- versus darker-complexioned African Americans. To test the importance of individual differences and cognitive variables, children were later given measures of interracial attitudes, self-perceived skin tone, skin tone selection, and classification skill. As predicted, children showed better memory for stereotypic than counterstereotypic information about skin tone. Individual differences in the extent to which this memory bias was evident varied in relation to children's (a) endorsement of negative majority-culture views of African Americans and (b) self-ratings of skin color. The research has important theoretical implication for understanding racial attitude and identity development, and has applied implications for the design of multicultural programs for African American, as well as Euro-American, children.