Students in the foster care system tend to have lower educational outcomes than their peers, including more frequent disciplinary events. However, few studies have explored how transitions into and out of foster care placements are associated with educational outcomes. Using longitudinal data from four California school districts, this study…

Objective, Participants, & Methods: The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated mental health challenges of university students, staff, and faculty alike. We used linear mixed models to examine demographic predictors of, and change over time in, self-reported depression and anxiety symptoms of a cohort of university students and staff/faculty…

Objective: College students play a major role in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the viral agent responsible for COVID-19. We aim to understand risk perceptions, self-efficacy, and adoption of prevention behaviors in this population to inform prevention strategies. Participants: Undergraduate students attending a large public university. Methods:…

Although scholars are attuned to the particular transitional dilemmas faced by middle school students, inquiry into middle school breaktimes is largely limited to research on bullying and peer victimization. This study interrogates the geography of middle school breaktime to expand understanding of student safety and recognize the ways that the…

Mental health struggles in college students have been steadily increasing in recent years. In an effort to slow the trend, scholars have searched for methods and tools to help students manage their mental health. One such tool that has shown to be correlated with less stress, anxiety, and symptoms associated with depression is mental toughness.…

Purpose: This study sought to investigate how secondary agriculture teachers' characteristics influence their perceived ability to teach students decision-making skills. Design/Methodology/Approach: We used a cross-sectional survey research design and distributed the instrument to secondary agriculture teachers in the U.S. via Facebook. We…

The current study examined the Five Cs model of positive youth development (PYD; Lerner et al., 2005) in U.S. Mexican-origin youth (N = 674, 50% female) and tested the extent to which ethnic pride, familismo, and respeto, as an index of cultural orientation, predicted PYD across midadolescence. PYD was modeled using a bifactor structure, which…

To assess the self-reported professional identity of healthcare majors at a large public university, and to understand the degree to which the students perceive their healthcare programs support the development of this identity. An online, modified version of the Professional Identity Five-Factor Scale (Tan, Van der Molen, and Schmidt [2017]. 'A…

Girls, more than boys, experience a decrease in the severity of autism symptoms during childhood. It is unclear, however, which specific autistic behaviors change more for girls than for boys. Trajectories of autism symptoms were evaluated using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-calibrated severity scores (ADOS-CSS). Change in the…

This study examined relations between student engagement and drug use using data obtained from the statewide biennial California Healthy Kids Survey. Latent variable modeling with confirmatory factor analysis indicated four conceptually distinct and psychometrically sound factors capturing academic motivation, school connectedness, caring…

Objective: Racial/ethnic minorities experience disproportionately greater risk to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). This study examined racial/ethnic discrimination--as a psychosocial stressor--in a path model and its associations with CVD health risk factors among undergraduate students of color (SoC). Participants: The sample included 404 SoC…

Growth mindset plays an important role in students' motivation for learning. Students who believe that their abilities are malleable are more likely to set mastery goals and to persist when encountering difficulties. Design-based makerspace -- or a makerspace structured with design-based learning components -- has many features known to improve…

Given the chronic stress that families experienced during the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic accompanied by school closures, many parents were vulnerable to parental burnout as they supervised their children's remote learning in addition to other roles. According to self-determination theory (SDT), when parents' basic needs are met, they…

Food insecurity is widespread among college students in the United States. CalFresh food benefits, known federally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, can help students in California pay for food, but may not reach all eligible students. To better measure student participation in CalFresh, the California Policy Lab (CPL)…

Food insecurity is widespread among college students in the United States. CalFresh food benefits, known federally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, can help students in California pay for food, but may not reach all eligible students. To better measure student participation in CalFresh, the California Policy Lab (CPL)…