A twenty-five year follow-up study of ten exceptionally creative adolescent girls

A 25-yr. follow-up of 10 women identified as highly creative during adolescence indicated that most believed they had actualized their creative potential to a moderately high degree. However, only one woman stated that creative expression was a dominant life theme and primary commitment. Factors that facilitate and inhibit creativity over a lifetime are discussed.     

Self-concepts of creative girls: a twenty-five year follow-up

The 25-yr. follow-up study of the self-concepts of a highly creative group of 10 adolescent girls showed both stability and change. In mid-life the group continued to describe themselves as both creative and intelligent; however, they also changed in that they now regard themselves as having a greater social interest.     

Risk factors for binge eating onset in adolescent girls: a 2-year prospective investigation.

Because little is known about the predictors of binge eating (a risk factor for obesity), a set of putative risk factors for binge eating was investigated in a longitudinal study of adolescent girls. Results verified that binge eating predicted obesity onset. Elevated dieting, pressure to be thin, modeling of eating disturbances, appearance overvaluation, body dissatisfaction, depressive symptoms, emotional eating, body mass, and low self-esteem and social support predicted binge eating onset with 92% accuracy. Classification tree analysis revealed an interaction between appearance overvaluation, body mass, dieting, and depressive symptoms, suggesting qualitatively different pathways to binge eating and identifying subgroups at extreme risk for this outcome. Results support the assertion that these psychosocial and biological factors increase risk for binge eating.     

Eating disorder examination questionnaire: norms for young adolescent girls

This paper reports young adolescent female norms for the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q). The standardization sample was comprised of 808 girls aged between 12 and 14 years from three single-sex schools (one private and two state schools). Means, standard deviations and percentile ranks for raw EDE-Q subscale scores are presented. Prevalence figures for key eating disorder behaviors over the previous two weeks were as follows: 4% self-induced vomiting; 1% laxative misuse; 0.4% diuretic misuse; and 8% regular binge eating.     

Developing internality and perceived competence: the empowerment of adolescent girls

A small group workshop, developed for Big Sisters of Colorado, Inc. to complement their traditional program, was evaluated to determine its effectiveness for working-class and underclass adolescent girls. The "Life Choices" program was successful with working-class Ss, resulting in increased internality and perceived competence for school success, social relationships and general life events. These Ss also increased their knowledge of both traditional and non-traditional career alternatives. However, the program did not succeed with underclass adolescent girls, who showed no increase in internality or knowledge of career alternatives and reported a significant decrease in perceived competence after completing the same program. It is suggested that the goals and strategies presented in such programs must be designed specifically for adolescents of different backgrounds if they are to result in empowerment of the participants.     

Self-esteem of adolescent girls as related to weight

The Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale was administered to 550 14- and 16-yr.-old (+/- 6 mo.) girls. Self-esteem scores were categorized by weight and weight by height. Scores on the Quetelet Index for obesity were correlated with self-esteem scores. Mean self-esteem of the low- and middle-weight by height group was significantly higher than the mean of the high-weight by height group. In analyzing weight alone, the self-esteem of the middle-weight group was significantly higher than the self-esteem of the high-weight group. The correlation of the obesity index and self-esteem indicated that as weight increased self-esteem decreased.     

A longitudinal study of pain sensitivity and blood pressure in adolescent boys: results from a 5-year follow-up.

A growing literature has observed a significant reduction in pain sensitivity among hypertensive animals and humans. It is uncertain whether a reduced sensitivity to pain can be observed in nonnotensive individuals who go on to develop high blood pressure. Blood pressure (BP) was reassessed in one hundred fifteen 19-year-old boys initially tested at age 14, when they were also presented with a pain stimulus (mechanical finger pressure). Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that information regarding pain tolerance improved prediction of changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure beyond that afforded by differences in BP at age 14, parental history of hypertension, and body mass index. These analyses suggest that pain sensitivity may be associated with physiological processes involved in the development of sustained high blood pressure.     

The practice of using makeup: A consumption ritual of adolescent girls

The consumption of makeup by teenage girls may represent a ritual critical to the rite of passage to adulthood. To explore this issue, depth interviews were conducted with 25 teenage girls in France, ages 14–18 years, about their makeup use. The data in this exploratory study suggest that putting on makeup is a ritual that plays a critical role for adolescent girls separating from their childhood and transitioning toward adulthood. Evidence of ritual dimensions (repetition, symbolic, codification, and dramaturgy) was found. The data further suggest that the traditional rite of passage associated with primitive societies is useful in identifying ritual teenage girls' makeup consumption in modern society, although with some differences. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Body image among adolescent girls and boys: a longitudinal study

This longitudinal study of adolescent girls and boys examined the contributions of social (peer appearance context), psychological (internalized appearance ideals and appearance social comparison), and biological (body mass) factors to the development of body dissatisfaction. Students (165 girls and 139 boys) completed questionnaires when they were either in 7th grade or 10th grade and again 1 year later. The results for the boys revealed a singular pathway to body dissatisfaction through internalized commitment to muscularity ideals. The prospective analyses of change in body dissatisfaction among the girls reflected the contributions of appearance conversations with friends, appearance social comparisons, and body mass. There was no evidence of mediation among the boys and limited support for it among the girls.     

Incarcerated adolescent girls: personality, social competence, and delinquency

The aim of this study was to gain greater insight into the relationship of delinquency to personality and social competence in incarcerated girls. It was hypothesized that agreeableness and conscientiousness would correlate negatively with delinquency, and that the sensation-seeking aspect of extroversion would correlate positively. Two theoretical views were used to predict the relationship between social competence and delinquency: (a) delinquency as an expression of lack of social competence (i.e., social deficit), and (b) delinquency as socially competent and rationally analyzed behavior. The first view implies a negative correlation between delinquency and social competence, while the second indicates a positive one. The participants were thirty-three 12- to 18-year-old incarcerated girls. An adaptation of the Self-Reported Delinquency Scale was used for measuring delinquency; personality was measured using the Five-Factor Personality Inventory; and the Scale for Interpersonal Behavior was used to measure social competence. Agreeableness was not found to correlate with the overall delinquency score or with any specific type of delinquency or crime. The more crimes the girls reported, the less conscientious they were, and the more neurotic and open they were. The correlation between delinquency and extroversion was not statistically significant. A higher level of delinquency was accompanied by higher social competence when negative self-assertion was required (i.e., a low level of tension was felt in expressing negative feelings that were appropriate to the situation). In other social situations, however, the girls reported more situation-inappropriate feelings of tension. It was concluded that some personality factors and aspects of social competence can predict delinquency.     

Daily and trait rumination: diurnal cortisol patterns in adolescent girls

Rumination is a maladaptive form of emotion regulation associated with psychopathology. Research with adults suggests that rumination covaries with diurnal cortisol rhythms, yet this has not been examined among adolescents. Here, we examine the day-to-day covariation between rumination and cortisol, and explore whether trait rumination is associated with alterations in diurnal cortisol rhythms among adolescent girls. Participants (N?=?122) provided saliva samples 3 times per day over 3 days, along with daily reports of stress and rumination, questionnaires assessing trait rumination related to peer stress, and diagnostic interviews assessing depression and anxiety. Greater rumination than usual during the day was associated with lower cortisol awakening responses the following morning, but this effect was not significant after accounting for wake time and an objective measure of adherence to the saliva sampling protocol. Trait rumination was associated with lower average cortisol levels at waking and flatter diurnal slopes, accounting for wake time, protocol compliance, and other factors. These patterns may help to explain why rumination is related to the development of psychopathology.