Theory and research highlight the mismatch between puberty-associated challenges and personal coping resources among youth with early actual or perceived pubertal timing. This study (N = 167; M[subscript age] = 12.41 years; 51.5% female; 77.8% White American) examined whether coping resources provided by mothers (maternal socialization of coping)…

The importance of body change during the adolescence has been well documented within the literature. In this study, gender differences were investigated in the use of adolescents' perceptions of all body images, body parts and functions, and strategies of coping with body image. Data were collected from 710 first-year students from different high…

The present study investigated the development of global and domain-specific self-representations in the transition from late childhood to early adolescence and tested whether gender, puberty, and school transition help explain individual differences in change. The study was based on three measurement occasions over 2 years and included 248…

The developmental significance of youths' racial identities during adolescence is well established. It is less clear how puberty, a normative process, influences the relationship between racial identity and adjustment outcomes during adolescence. This study examined whether puberty moderates the relationship between racial identity dimensions and…

Youth in Western countries are exposed to many messages that sexualize women. We selectively review the literature on sexualization with the goal of clarifying and integrating theories, constructs, and models of the pathways and mechanisms via which exposure to such messages may affect youth. In the first section of the article, we define…

Physical activity may benefit mental health, yet the potentially protective role of elementary school physical education (PE) on childhood mental health is unknown. The aim of the current study was to determine the effect of a specialist-taught PE program on indicators of childhood mental health. In this cluster-randomized controlled trial,…

Purpose: We tested the moderating role of physical self-perceptions in the relationship between physical maturity and physical self-worth (PSW). Method: Students in Grades 5 through 8 (N = 241; 57% females; M[subscript age] =12.30 years) completed a questionnaire assessing physical self-perceptions (i.e., perceived sport competence, conditioning,…

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the school-based "My Body and I" program which was designed to help girls and boys to cope better with inevitable pubertal body changes. Method: Using a pre-post treatment-control design with 25 treatment and 17 control classes from schools in Germany and France (484 boys, 485 girls;…

Given the short-and long-term health implications associated with overweight and obesity plus the likelihood of overweight or obesity to continue into adulthood, addressing the causes of overweight and obesity in childhood is a significant public health concern. One underlying cause of overweight and obesity is insufficient physical activity. The…

We investigated longitudinal predictors for disordered eating from early adolescence to young adulthood (12-34 years) across gender and different developmental phases among Norwegian young people. Survey data from a population-based sample were collected at four time points (T) over a 13-year time span. A population-based sample of 5,679 females…

The often observed decline in students' self-perceptions across transition to secondary school after grade 6 is often attributed to students' entry to puberty. This study aims to examine whether lowered self-perceptions can be observed after transition in Germany which occurs after grade 4 and thus takes place before puberty. Fifth graders (N =…

Self-esteem and body image are central to coping successfully with the developmental challenges of adolescence. However, the current knowledge surrounding self-esteem and body image is fraught with controversy. This study attempts to clarify some of them by addressing three questions: (1) Are the intraindividual developmental trajectories of…

Despite substantial evidence that women suffer from depression at twice the rate of men, the etiology for this difference remains unclear. Prior to puberty, the difference in depression is negligible; however, when adolescence begins, a precipitous rise in female depression occurs that persists across the lifespan. While no definitive biological…

The aim of this study was to investigate associations between specific mental health problems and pubertal stage in (pre)adolescents participating in the Dutch prospective cohort study TRAILS (first assessment: N = 2230, age 11.09 [plus or minus] 0.56, 50.8% girls; second assessment: N = 2149, age 13.56 [plus or minus] 0.53, 51.0% girls). Mental…

An accumulating body of literature has shown a link between early pubertal maturation and internalizing problems, particularly among girls. Our knowledge is, however, limited with regard to what accounts for this association. Based on a hypothesis that early maturing girls have heightened stress sensitivity that increases the risk of internalizing…