Health-risk behaviors among a sample of US pre-adolescents: Types, frequency, and predictive factors

Background: Children as young as 10 years old report curiosity and participation in health-risk behaviors, yet most studies focus upon adolescent samples. Objective: To document the types and frequencies of health risk behavior among pre-adolescents and to examine the child, family, and environment factors that predict them. Method: A sample of 297 pre-adolescents (mean age = 10.5, SD = 0.6) from two Midwestern US cities and their parents (child parent dyads) provided data about demographic characteristics, health risk behavior participation, child self-esteem, child pubertal development, child and adult perception of their neighborhood, and parent monitoring. Their participation was at intake to a 5-year clustered randomized controlled trial. Results: Pre-adolescents participated in an average of 3.7 health-risk behaviors (SD = 2.0), primarily those that lead to unintentional (helmet and seatbelt use) and intentional (feeling unsafe, having something stolen, and physical fighting) injury. Factors predictive of unintentional injury risk behavior were self-esteem, pubertal development, parent monitoring, and parent perception of the neighborhood environment. Boys were 1.8 times less likely than girls to use helmets and seatbelts. Pre-adolescents whose parents were not partnered were 2.8 times more likely than pre-adolescents whose parents were partnered to report intentional risk behavior. Recommendations: These data demonstrate trends that cannot be ignored. We recommend, focused specifically upon boys and non-partnered families that (a) developmentally appropriate, appealing prevention messages be developed and delivered for parents and pre-adolescents and community interventions targeting both parent and pre-adolescent together be provided to help them establish and monitor behavioral expectations and (b) organized nursing endorse policy in the US and globally that assures adequate family environments for children. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.