Nellie León

Abstract

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that despite health promotion efforts, adolescents continue to engage in behaviors that put them at risk for morbidity and mortality. Alcohol consumption, illicit drug use, smoking, and risky sexual behaviors are among the behaviors that contribute to leading causes of morbidity and mortality in youth; these four behaviors were explored in this study. An observational cross-sectional design was utilized. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was utilized to assess the prevalence of the four risk behaviors among high school students in Jalisco, Mexico. Items constructed based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) (intention, attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control) were included in the questionnaire to determine factors that contribute to engagement in these practices. Questions pertaining to moral norms (guilt, shame, and wrongfulness) were also included in the questionnaire to investigate further predictive power by this construct. Interactions between moral norms and the TPB constructs were also explored for moderating effects.

Data was entered into an SPSS (version 15.0) database. Descriptive statistics were conducted for prevalence rates. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to assess predictive power of the theoretical constructs. Prevalence rates of the behaviors were additionally compared to American Hispanic high school students in the United States using chi-squared tests of independence. Alcohol consumption was the most practiced behavior, followed by cigarette smoking, sexual activity, and illicit drug use. Attitude was the strongest predictor for alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking intention. Attitude and subjective norms additionally predicted illicit drug use intention; and all the constructs of the theory were significant predictors of sexual activity intention, all with similar predictive power. Moral norms only predicted sexual activity intention. Interactions of moral norms with the constructs were found for illicit drug use, cigarette smoking, and sexual activity intention suggesting moderating effects. Differences in prevalence were found when compared to Hispanic American adolescents. Alcohol consumption was greater and illicit drug use lower in Jalisco. Implications for the use of the theory of planned behavior in health education practice are discussed.

School

School of Public Health

First Advisor

Naomi Modeste

Second Advisor

Jerry W. Lee

Third Advisor

Clara Jorge Ramirez

Degree Name

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)

Degree Level

Ph.D.

Year Degree Awarded

2009

Date (Title Page)

3-2009

Language

English

Library of Congress/MESH Subject Headings

Health Behavior -- in adolescence; Risk Factors; High school students -- Conduct of life -- Mexico; High school students -- Conduct of life -- United States; Cross-Cultural Studies

Type

Dissertation

Page Count

xiii; 147

Digital Format

PDF

Digital Publisher

Loma Linda University Libraries

Usage Rights

This title appears here courtesy of the author, who has granted Loma Linda University a limited, non-exclusive right to make this publication available to the public. The author retains all other copyrights.

Collection

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Collection Website

http://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/etd/

Repository

Loma Linda University. Del E. Webb Memorial Library. University Archives

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