Antisocial peer behavior and low parental knowledge of adolescents' activities are key interpersonal risk factors for adolescent substance use. However, how the magnitude of associations between these risk factors and substance use may vary across adolescence remains less well understood. The present study examined the age-varying associations of…

This longitudinal study aimed to differentiate between acculturative and developmental processes by (a) comparing levels and change rates in victimization among ethnic German immigrants and native German adolescents in Germany and Russian Jewish immigrants in Israel, and (b) testing whether interindividual differences in victimization among…

Recent advances in positive youth development theory and research explicate complex associations between adaptive functioning and risk behavior, acknowledging that high levels of both co-occur in the lives of some adolescents. However, evidence on nuanced overlapping developmental trajectories of adaptive functioning and risk has been limited to 1…

A developmental cascade model for adolescent substance use beginning in infancy was examined in a sample of children with alcoholic and nonalcoholic parents. The model examined the role of parents' alcohol diagnoses, depression and antisocial behavior in a cascading process of risk via 3 major hypothesized pathways: first, via parental…

This study examined the associations between sibling intimacy and conflict and youths' reports of risky behavior in a sample of adolescents ages 11-20. Participants were mothers, fathers, and sibling dyads in 393 families who were interviewed annually for 3, 4, or 5 years. Multivariate multilevel models tested longitudinal links between sibling…

The current longitudinal study examined changes in Latino adolescents' (N = 323, M age = 15.31 years) self-esteem and depressive symptoms across the high school years. Differences in trajectories were examined by gender and perceived ethnic discrimination. Findings revealed that self-esteem increased across high school for both male adolescents…

This study investigated how early experience with racial discrimination affected the subsequent risky sexual behaviors of a diverse sample of African American youths (N = 745). The analyses focused on 3 risk-promoting factors thought to mediate the hypothesized discrimination--risky sex relation: negative affect, affiliation with deviant peers,…

The current study tested sex-specific pathways to early puberty, sexual debut, and sexual risk taking, as specified by an integrated evolutionary-developmental model of adolescent sexual development and behavior. In a prospective study of 238 adolescents (n = 129 girls and n = 109 boys) followed from approximately 12-18 years of age, we tested for…

This study examines the predictive significance of late adolescent substance use groups (i.e., abstainers, experimental users, at-risk users, and abusers) for early adult adaptation. Participants (N = 159) were drawn from a prospective longitudinal study of first-born children of low-income mothers. At 17.5 years of age, participants were assigned…

The creation and cultivation of an imaginary companion is considered to be a healthy form of pretend play in early childhood, but there tends to be a less positive view of older children who have them. To test the extent that having an imaginary companion in middle school is associated with positive or negative outcomes, an ethnically diverse…

Tested model of gender's moderating effects on behavior problems among early adolescents. Found that increasing girls' internalizing symptoms were partly explained by greater stability in girls' interpersonal vulnerabilities and greater magnitude in coefficients linking girls' relationships with parents and peers and internalizing problems. Boys'…

Examined the extent to which risk factors for concurrent binge drinking in adolescence can predict changes during transition to young adulthood. Found that being male, possessing low self-efficacy, and drinking primarily "to get drunk" were unconditional risk factors for increased binge drinking over time. Other adolescent risk factors…

Introduces this special theme issue examining the roles of socialization, biology, and culture as they affect adaptive and maladaptive developmental outcomes. Problems of adolescence addressed include antisocial behavior, depressive symptoms, substance abuse, low achievement, and eating problems. Considers factors implicated in successful…