Purpose: Collective motives for alcohol consumption represent a nascent field, with individual-level attributes, peer pressure and broad-level environmental elements being at the forefront of research. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of friendships in the context of alcohol consumption and determine what group-level motives exist…

Purpose: Young people drinking to extreme drunkenness is a source of concern for policy makers and health promoters. There are a variety of community groups who appear to respond to the alcohol-related problems. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the working practices and relationships among local community groups as part of the…

Purpose: Public perception has been found to be influenced by the words used to describe those with behavioral health disorders, such that using terms like "substance abuser" can lead to higher levels of stigma. The purpose of this paper is to identify additional stigmatizing and empowering terms that are commonly used by different…

Purpose: Introductory anatomy and physiology provide a core knowledge base to students within clinical health science courses. Increased student numbers, as well as reduced access to laboratory-based cadaveric resources, have created a need for enhanced learning approaches to support learning. The streamlining of courses has also resulted in the…

Purpose: Whole-school approaches emphasising pupil participation are recognised as being conducive for building social capital, yet how participatory health educational processes relate to different types of social capital remains unclear. The purpose of this paper is to explore which mechanisms within a participatory health educational process…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present the findings from an evaluation of an intervention (Moving Parents and Children Together (M-PACT+)) aiming to address the effects of parental substance misuse (PSM) in school settings. The paper considers the evidence of effectiveness, and goes on to explore how schools were involved with the…

Purpose: Emotional distress, which includes stress, anxiety and depression, is considered a substantial mental health problem among university students because of its effects on academic achievement and well-being. The purpose of this paper is to examine levels of emotional distress, self-esteem, social support and coping methods and predicted…

Purpose: Alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other drugs use typically increases in prevalence and frequency during middle and late adolescence. School health instruction often focusses on providing facts and rarely provides tools for addressing the psychosocial risk factors needed to prevent substance use. The purpose of this paper is to report about…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how the content and approach of parent-adolescent communication about sexuality were associated with three adolescent sexuality variables (sexual attitudes, combination of all behaviors and advanced behaviors). Design/methodology/approach: Survey research with adolescents was conducted in classrooms…

Purpose: Osteoporosis is a metabolic bone disease and a growing global health problem. It is estimated that about 200m people are suffering from this disease in the world. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the perceptions and factors influencing the intention to do regular physical activities in order to prevent osteoporosis in Iranian…

Purpose: Over the years, efforts to ensure equal participation of girls in school in Nigeria have been met with some setbacks, amidst significant progress in mobilising communities for gender equality and mainstreaming. The purpose of this paper is to explore a number of features associated with sexual maturation that affect girls' non-enrolment,…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to assess the socioscientific issue (SSI) method as a way of improving seventh graders' nutrition know-how on dietary supplements (DS), and to describe how students experience learning nutritional issues through the SSI method. Design/methodology/approach: Participants were seventh graders from three different…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how the psychological constructs volition and motivation influence successful and unsuccessful weight maintainers' experiences during the difficult period following an intensive lifestyle intervention. Design/methodology/approach: Post lifestyle intervention semi-structured interviews with 11…

Purpose: Health literacy is a key international public health goal. Conceptualising health literacy as an asset highlights the importance of fostering a health literate youth for the benefit of future generations, yet research has predominantly focused on examining adults' and older adolescents' health literacy. This presents a gap for…

Purpose: Nutrition education plays a significant role in inculcating lifelong healthy dietary behaviours among adolescents. The purpose of this paper is to understand the opinions of parents and teachers regarding nutrition education in private Indian secondary schools. Design/methodology/approach: A cross-sectional, self-administered, paper-based…