Discusses video games as an emerging addiction among students. Describes the appeal of the games, their impact on students, and measures passed in some cities to curb adolescent involvement. Counselors must be prepared to anticipate and ameliorate potentially negative side effects. (JAC)

Studied 15 adolescent runaways in an inpatient long-term treatment setting. Results showed that more runaways were male, and most were away only a short time. In many cases, behavior improvement resulted. Impulsive behavior and anxiety were related to the short time and distance of elopement. (Author/JAC)

Investigated rates of birth, divorce, marriage, and unemployment for subgroups in Canada and the United States and their effects on suicide rates. In Canada, domestic integration and the economy predicted youth suicide rates more accurately than they did adult rates. The United States had less variation in predictors for age groups. (RJM)

This report presents national and Colorado data relevant to Colorado youth. These topics are covered: (1) drug education issues, which notes that there is a move towards abstinence as well as consistent reports of extensive use of alcohol and increasing use of some drugs; (2) tobacco, alcohol, and other drug risk factors; (3) sex-related issues,…

Responses of secondary students (N=478) indicate track position (college-bound versus non-college-bound students) is negatively associated with school misconduct and youth deviance. This pattern obtains when sex and social class are introduced as statistical controls and suggests that students may become involved in deviance as a result of a low…

Parenting and growing up are both becoming increasingly difficult. Today's teenagers are faced with pressures new to this era, such as AIDS and easy drug availability. Other consequences of our technical, fast-changing society are manifested in increasing competition, conformity, and divorce. Characteristics of a normal, well-adjusted adolescent…

Alcohol and drug use among high school and college students was investigated in a sample of suburban high school (N=1,274) and college (N=468) students. Alcohol consumption was very high (78%), with more than half of those using alcohol doing so on at least a weekly basis. While alcohol use was pronounced, 96% of those surveyed reported that…

Explored relationship between perceived control and treatment outcome with adolescents exhibiting internalizing or externalizing behavior problems. Externalizing offenders experienced better treatment outcomes when they acknowledged their problem and credited themselves with success. Internalizing offenders, who attributed failures to themselves…

Cigarette smoking is a behavior with profound biomedical and psychosocial consequences across the life span. Although it is advertised in terms of youth, beauty, sexual appeal, success and independence, smoking is intimately linked with addiction, disease and death. Smoking has been shown to be a leading contributer to several kinds of cancer,…

Surveys of drug and alcohol use conducted with 4,367 Mexican-American and 3,790 White non-Hispanic eighth and twelfth graders from similar communities find generally higher rates of substance use by Mexican Americans based on lifetime prevalence and last reported use and higher frequency of high risk drug behaviors. (SLD)