ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT
REQUIRED READINGS -
ARTICLES
Krabbenborg, M.A.M., Boersma, S.N., van der Veld, W.M., van Hulst, B.,
Vollenbergh, W.A.M., & Wolf, J.R.L.M. (2016). A cluster randomized controlled trial
testing the effectiveness of Houvast: A strengths-based intervention for homeless
young adults. Research on Social Work Practice, 1-15.
Abstract
Objective:
To test the effectiveness of Houvast: a strengths-based intervention for homeless young adults.
Method:
A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted with 10 Dutch shelter facilities randomly allocated
to an intervention and a control group. Homeless young adults were interviewed when entering the
facility and when care ended. Repeated-measures analyses and logistic regression analyses were
conducted by the principle of intention-to-treat framework (N = 251).
Results:
Improvements were demonstrated on quality of life; satisfaction with family relations, finances, and
health; employed or in school; depression; care needs; autonomy; competence, and resilience in both
conditions. A higher proportion of homeless young adults who received care according to Houvast were
still receiving care at follow-up and successfully completed the trajectory compared to those who
received care as usual.
Conclusion:
Homeless young adults seem to benefit from service provision in general. Further research on the
effectiveness of Houvast is needed after sufficient model fidelity has been achieved.
Barman-Adhikari, A., Rice, E., Bender, K., Lengnick-Hall, R., Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., & Rhoades, H. (2016).
Social networking technology use and engagement in HIV-related risk and protective behaviours among
homeless youth. Journal of Health Communication, 21, 809-817.
Abstract
Preliminary studies with homeless youth have found surprisingly pervasive social media use and suggest that
youth’s online interactions may be associated with their HIV-related risk and protective behaviours. As homeless
youth are transient and difficult to engage in place-based services, social media may represent a novel venue for
intervention. A critical 1st step in intervention development is gaining greater understanding of how homeless
youth use social media, especially as it relates to who they connect to and around what topics. Given the salience
of social networking sites in the lives of these otherwise difficult-to-reach adolescents, and their potential to
disseminate prevention interventions, this study assessed associations between online social networking
technology use and HIV risk behaviours among homeless youth in Los Angeles, California. Homeless youth ages 13
through 24 (N = 1,046) were recruited through 3 drop-in centers and surveyed about their social media use and
, self-reported HIV-related risk behaviours. Results suggest that social media use is widely prevalent among this
population, and the content of these online interactions is associated with whether youth engage in risk or
protective behaviours. Implications for interventions and further research are discussed.
Barzilay, S., Feldman, D., Snir, A., et al. & Wasserman, D. (2015). The interpersonal theory of suicide and
adolescent suicidal behaviour. Journal of Affective Disorders, 183, 68-74.
Highlights
• Interaction between belongingness and burdensomeness increase suicidal ideation.
• Depression mediates the association between interpersonal problems and ideation.
• Ideation and self-harm behaviours are independently related to suicide attempts.
• Results support the conceptualization of a two-pathway model of suicide.
Abstract
Background
Joiner’s interpersonal theory of suicide (IPTS) proposes that suicide results from the combination of a perception
of burdening others, social alienation, and the capability for self-harm. The theory gained some empirical support,
however the overall model has yet to be tested. This study aimed to test the main predictions of IPTS in a large
community sample of Israeli adolescents.
Method
1196 Israeli Jewish and Arab high-school pupils participating in the SEYLE project completed a self-report
questionnaire measuring perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, health risk behaviours, and non-
suicidal self-injury (risk variables), and suicidal ideation and suicide attempts (outcome measures). The data were
tested in cross-sectional regression models.
Results
Consistent with IPTS, perceived burdensomeness was found to interact with thwarted belongingness, predicting
suicidal ideation. Depression mediated most of the effect of thwarted belongingness and perceived
burdensomeness on suicidal ideation. Acquired capability for self-harm, as measured by health risk behaviours
and direct non-suicidal self-injurious behaviours, predicted suicide attempt. However, this mechanism operated
independently from ideation rather than in interaction with it, at variance with IPTS-based predictions.
Limitations
The cross-sectional design precludes conclusions about causality and directionality. Proxy measures were used to
test the interpersonal theory constructs.
Conclusion
The findings support some of the IPTS predictions but not all and imply two separate pathways for suicidal
behaviour in adolescents: one related to internalizing psychopathology and the other to self-harm behaviours.
This conceptualization has clinical implications for the differential identification of adolescents at risk for suicidal
behaviour and for the development of prevention strategies.
Brausch, A.M. & Gutierrez, P.M. (2010). Differences in Non-Suicidal Self-Injury and suicide attempts in adolescents.
Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39, 233–242. doi: 10.1007/s10964-009-9482-0
