Few sexual health studies have examined subgroup differences in youth risk behaviors that sufficiently account for sexual orientation and gender identity. This study used 2017 New York City Youth Risk Behavior Survey data (N = 10,191), a stratified cluster-sampled survey, to examine descriptive differences in the prevalence of risky sexual…

Little is known about the implications of cannabis legalization on adolescent health behaviors. This study sought to examine the relationship between recreational cannabis legalization and adolescent sexual risk behaviors. Data on 371,487 respondents who have ever had sexual intercourse from 41 states in the 2005 to 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey…

Research has indicated that early sexual intercourse in high school is associated with poor health outcomes such as unintentional pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). What is lacking in the research is an understanding of the relationship between even earlier sexual initiation (i.e., before the age of 13) and alcohol, tobacco, and…

Cyberbullying is a serious problem, and research on associations between different types of interpersonal violence and cyberbullying victimization is limited. The purpose of this study was to examine how the frequency of physical dating violence (PDV), sexual dating violence (SDV), and forced sexual intercourse (FSI) is associated with…

Background: Early sexual reproductive health (SRH) education is linked to a reduction in risky sexual behaviors. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are rising at alarming rates. Risky sexual behaviors, including initiation of sex before age 13, having more than four sexual partners, and lack of use of condoms, increase the chance of infection…

Suicide continues to be a considerable health risk among adolescents and is the second leading cause of death among adolescents between the ages of 10 and 24. Middle school-aged adolescents may be at a heightened risk for suicide, as middle school can be rife with intrapersonal and interpersonal stressors. One such stressor may be sexual activity…

Background: School-based human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) education can reach most adolescents, but inconsistencies exist in state-level content policies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the associations between state-level high school HIV education policies and adolescent HIV risk behaviors. Methods: This was a cross-sectional…

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is an epidemiologic surveillance system that was established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems that can occur during…

Background: Sexting is common among adolescents and is associated with numerous health risk behaviors and negative psychosocial constructs. This study examined the relationships between high school students' experiences with sexual violence victimization, dating violence victimization, and engagement in risky sexual behaviors with experiences of…

Objective: To quantitatively measure psychometric impact associated with changes to sexual and gender identity survey questions included on the National College Health Assessment (NCHA). Participants: Respondents included all iterations (31) of the NCHA between the years of 2000 and 2015 (N=1,202,582). Methods: Secondary analysis using complete…

The aim of this study was to identify independent risk and protective factors associated with self-reported suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) among young adolescents by examining self-report data on mental health, substance abuse, violence involvement, social and economic challenges and supports, physical health and demographics in relation to…

Objective: To examine the association of multiple health behaviors to mental health functioning in male and female collegiate athletes. Participants: Prospective National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I athletes (n = 183) completed a health and wellness survey in the summer prior to joining the athletic program. Methods: Health…

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is an epidemiologic surveillance system that was established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health, but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems that can occur during…

Homelessness threatens the well-being of over 1.3 million school children in the United States. Many more students are believed to experience homelessness each year, but they go unrecognized. This report provides new estimates of student homelessness in high school, and the experiencing accompanying it, based on data from the 2019 Youth Risk…

This study explores the links between cyberbullying victimization and a set of health risk behaviors associated with juvenile delinquency (cigarette smoking, marijuana usage, alcohol usage, and sexual frequency). These links are examined with data from the 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (n = 9,122). Using cluster analysis, respondents are…