Behavioral Sciences

288 KiB

Open AccessReview

Sexuality (and Lack Thereof) in Adolescence and Early Adulthood: A Review of the Literature

by Marie-Aude Boislard, Daphne Van de Bongardt and Martin Blais

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010008 - 17 Mar 2016

Cited by 99 | Viewed by 23267

Youth sexuality has been primarily studied with a focus on its potential public health issues, such as sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies, and its comorbidity with other risky behaviors. More recently, it has been studied as a normative step in romantic partnerships, [...] Read more.

Youth sexuality has been primarily studied with a focus on its potential public health issues, such as sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies, and its comorbidity with other risky behaviors. More recently, it has been studied as a normative step in romantic partnerships, either pre- or post-marital, as well as outside the context of romantic involvement. In this paper, we review the extensive literature on sexuality in adolescence and early adulthood both within and outside romantic relationships (i.e., casual sexual relationships and experiences; CSREs). Furthermore, the recent recognition of youth sexuality as a developmental task has led to a renewed interest from scholars in youth who abstain from sexual encounters, whether deliberately or not. A brief overview of the literature on cultural differences in sexuality, and sexual-minority youth sexual development is also provided. This paper concludes by suggesting future directions to bring the field of youth sexuality and romantic relationships forward. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adolescent Romantic Relationships and Sex: Development and Behavior)

387 KiB

Open AccessReview

Dating Violence among High-Risk Young Women: A Systematic Review Using Quantitative and Qualitative Methods

by Lauren E. Joly and Jennifer Connolly

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 7; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010007 - 29 Jan 2016

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 7819

Abstract

Our systematic review identified 21 quantitative articles and eight qualitative articles addressing dating violence among high risk young women. The groups of high-risk young women in this review include street-involved, justice-involved, pregnant or parenting, involved with Child Protective Services, and youth diagnosed with [...] Read more.

Our systematic review identified 21 quantitative articles and eight qualitative articles addressing dating violence among high risk young women. The groups of high-risk young women in this review include street-involved, justice-involved, pregnant or parenting, involved with Child Protective Services, and youth diagnosed with a mental health issue. Our meta-analysis of the quantitative articles indicated that 34% (CI = 0.24–0.45) of high-risk young women report that they have been victims of physical dating violence and 45% (CI = 0.31–0.61) of these young women report perpetrating physical dating violence. Significant moderator variables included questionnaire and timeframe. Meta-synthesis of the qualitative studies revealed that high-risk young women report perpetrating dating violence to gain power and respect, whereas women report becoming victims of dating violence due to increased vulnerability. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adolescent Romantic Relationships and Sex: Development and Behavior)

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132 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Acknowledgement to Reviewers of Behavioral Sciences in 2015

by Behavioral Sciences Editorial Office

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 6; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010006 - 25 Jan 2016

Viewed by 4221

Abstract

The editors of Behavioral Sciences would like to express their sincere gratitude to the following reviewers for assessing manuscripts in 2015. [...] Full article

185 KiB

Open AccessConcept Paper

The Evolution of the Classification of Psychiatric Disorders

by Alina Surís, Ryan Holliday and Carol S. North

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010005 - 18 Jan 2016

Cited by 65 | Viewed by 18287

Abstract

This article traces the history of classification systems for mental illness and then reviews the history of the American diagnostic system for mental disorders. The steps leading up to each publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) are described including leaders, timelines, [...] Read more.

This article traces the history of classification systems for mental illness and then reviews the history of the American diagnostic system for mental disorders. The steps leading up to each publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) are described including leaders, timelines, pre-publication meetings, and field trials. Important changes in the purpose of the manuals are described with a focus on events leading to the manual’s third edition (DSM-III), which represented a paradigm shift in how we think about, and use, the classification system for mental illness. For the first time, DSM-III emphasized empirically-based, atheoretical and agnostic diagnostic criteria. New criticisms of the DSM-III and subsequent editions have arisen with a call for a new paradigm shift to replace diagnostic categories with continuous dimensional systems of classification, returning to etiologically-based definitions and incorporating findings from neurobiological science into systems of diagnosis. In the foreseeable future, however, psychiatric diagnosis must continue to be accomplished by taking a history and assessing the currently established criteria. This is necessary for communication about diseases and education of clinicians and scientists in medical fields, as well as advancement of research needed to further advance the diagnostic criteria of psychiatry. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Psychiatric Diagnosis Past, Present and Future)

223 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Longitudinal Study of Sexual Entitlement and Self-Efficacy among Young Women and Men: Gender Differences and Associations with Age and Sexual Experience

by Gillian Hewitt-Stubbs, Melanie J. Zimmer-Gembeck, Shawna Mastro and Marie-Aude Boislard

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010004 - 18 Jan 2016

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 8276

Abstract

Many scholars have called for an increased focus on positive aspects of sexual health and sexuality. Using a longitudinal design with two assessments, we investigated patterns of entitlement to sexual partner pleasure and self-efficacy to achieve sexual pleasure among 295 young men and [...] Read more.

Many scholars have called for an increased focus on positive aspects of sexual health and sexuality. Using a longitudinal design with two assessments, we investigated patterns of entitlement to sexual partner pleasure and self-efficacy to achieve sexual pleasure among 295 young men and women aged 17–25 years attending one Australian university. We also tested whether entitlement and efficacy differed by gender, and hypothesized that entitlement and efficacy would be higher in older participants and those with more sexual experience. A sense of entitlement to sexual partner pleasure increased significantly over the year of the study, whereas, on average, there was no change in self-efficacy over time. At Time 1 (T1), young women reported more entitlement than young men. Age was positively associated with T1 entitlement, and experience with a wider range of partnered sexual behaviors was concurrently associated with more entitlement and efficacy and was also associated with increased entitlement to partner pleasure and increased self-efficacy in achieving sexual pleasure at T2 relative to T1. A group with the least amount of sexual experience was particularly low in entitlement and efficacy when compared to groups with a history of coital experience. There was no evidence that any association differed between young men and young women. Limitations of the study include a sample of predominantly middle class, Caucasian students at one university and the possibility that students more interested in sex and relationships, and with more sexual experience, chose to participate. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adolescent Romantic Relationships and Sex: Development and Behavior)

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Open AccessReview

Traumatic Brain Injury in United States Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) Hispanic Veterans—A Review Using the PRISMA Method

by Vanessa D. Arriola and Jeffrey W. Rozelle

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010003 - 12 Jan 2016

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 6905

Abstract

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is commonly defined by Menon et al. as an “alteration of the brain function, or other evidence of brain pathology, caused by an external force.” TBI can be caused by penetrating trauma to the head in which the magnitude [...] Read more.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is commonly defined by Menon et al. as an “alteration of the brain function, or other evidence of brain pathology, caused by an external force.” TBI can be caused by penetrating trauma to the head in which the magnitude of the injury is dependent on the magnitude of the forces that are applied to the head. The consequences of TBI can range from minimal to severe disability and even death. The major objectives of this systematic review are to survey the current literature on Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) Hispanic veterans with TBI. To complete this analysis, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and MetaAnalysis (PRISMA) identified 875 articles in common and retrieved a total of 34 articles that met the inclusion criteria, consisted of OEF/OIF Hispanic veterans, reported quantitative data, and were conducted with adult U.S. veterans living in the United States. Since TBI diagnosis was unclear in most articles, only five articles that used the VATBIST instrument were analyzed. The results suggested that there is a lack of research on OEF/OIF Hispanic veterans and Hispanic subgroups. Future studies need to be conducted to consider minority groups while analyzing data involving TBI. Full article

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1097 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Emotion Evaluation and Response Slowing in a Non-Human Primate: New Directions for Cognitive Bias Measures of Animal Emotion?

by Emily J. Bethell, Amanda Holmes, Ann MacLarnon and Stuart Semple

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010002 - 11 Jan 2016

Cited by 36 | Viewed by 10734

Abstract

The cognitive bias model of animal welfare assessment is informed by studies with humans demonstrating that the interaction between emotion and cognition can be detected using laboratory tasks. A limitation of cognitive bias tasks is the amount of training required by animals prior [...] Read more.

The cognitive bias model of animal welfare assessment is informed by studies with humans demonstrating that the interaction between emotion and cognition can be detected using laboratory tasks. A limitation of cognitive bias tasks is the amount of training required by animals prior to testing. A potential solution is to use biologically relevant stimuli that trigger innate emotional responses. Here; we develop a new method to assess emotion in rhesus macaques; informed by paradigms used with humans: emotional Stroop; visual cueing and; in particular; response slowing. In humans; performance on a simple cognitive task can become impaired when emotional distractor content is displayed. Importantly; responses become slower in anxious individuals in the presence of mild threat; a pattern not seen in non-anxious individuals; who are able to effectively process and disengage from the distractor. Here; we present a proof-of-concept study; demonstrating that rhesus macaques show slowing of responses in a simple touch-screen task when emotional content is introduced; but only when they had recently experienced a presumably stressful veterinary inspection. Our results indicate the presence of a subtle “cognitive freeze” response; the measurement of which may provide a means of identifying negative shifts in emotion in animals. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Animal Cognition)

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203 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Adolescent Pornography Use and Dating Violence among a Sample of Primarily Black and Hispanic, Urban-Residing, Underage Youth

by Emily F. Rothman and Avanti Adhia

Behav. Sci. 2016, 6(1), 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs6010001 - 23 Dec 2015

Cited by 32 | Viewed by 24225

Abstract

This cross-sectional study was designed to characterize the pornography viewing preferences of a sample of U.S.-based, urban-residing, economically disadvantaged, primarily Black and Hispanic youth (n = 72), and to assess whether pornography use was associated with experiences of adolescent dating abuse (ADA) [...] Read more.

This cross-sectional study was designed to characterize the pornography viewing preferences of a sample of U.S.-based, urban-residing, economically disadvantaged, primarily Black and Hispanic youth (n = 72), and to assess whether pornography use was associated with experiences of adolescent dating abuse (ADA) victimization. The sample was recruited from a large, urban, safety net hospital, and participants were 53% female, 59% Black, 19% Hispanic, 14% Other race, 6% White, and 1% Native American. All were 16–17 years old. More than half (51%) had been asked to watch pornography together by a dating or sexual partner, and 44% had been asked to do something sexual that a partner saw in pornography. Adolescent dating abuse (ADA) victimization was associated with more frequent pornography use, viewing pornography in the company of others, being asked to perform a sexual act that a partner first saw in pornography, and watching pornography during or after marijuana use. Approximately 50% of ADA victims and 32% of non-victims reported that they had been asked to do a sexual act that their partner saw in pornography (p = 0.15), and 58% did not feel happy to have been asked. Results suggest that weekly pornography use among underage, urban-residing youth may be common, and may be associated with ADA victimization. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Youth Aggression and Violence: Causes and Consequences)

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Behav. Sci., Volume 6, Issue 1 (March 2016) – 8 articles

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