Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #107897

Susan K. Riesch, DNSc¹, Lori S. Anderson, MS RN², and Heather Krueger, MS RN². (1) Nursing and Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1500 Highland Ave. Room 569, Madison, WI 53705-2280, 608-263-5977, skriesch@wisc.edu, (2) School of Nursing, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 600 Highland Ave., Madison, WI 53792

Evidence suggests that an alarming number of elementary school children have practiced behavior that could result in unintentional or intentional injury, engaged in early sexual behavior, have used tobacco, alcohol, and drugs, and do not possess health promoting sleep, diet, and exercise habits. Four conceptual approaches: the Bio-ecological Perspective on Human Development, Problem Behavior Theory, the risk, resiliency, and protective processes approach, and the Ecological Risk and Protective Theory contribute toward understanding the context and factors that account for or predict children's health risk behavior. Consistent among these approaches is an emphasis on the importance of establishing values, expectations, identity, problem solving abilities, and relationships, rules, and roles in families. Based upon the four conceptual approaches, the purpose of this paper is to identify and review the individual, family, and environment factors predictive of health risk behavior among children and to propose strategies that build family capacity as a mechanism to mediate those factors. The focus of this paper is upon children aged 9 to 11 years who transition from elementary to middle school. This developmental period immediately precedes documented increases in the prevalence of injury risk behavior, substance use, and sexual activity. This developmental period also constitutes a time when children experience increasing autonomy, peer influence, experimentation, and a shift in the parent-child relationship.

Learning Objectives:

• Define the risk and protective factors predictive of children's health risk behavior,
• Evaluate potential mediators to reduce health risk behaviors in the presence of factors that typically predict participation.

Keywords: Risk Behavior, Children and Adolescents

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation