Showing papers in "Journal of American College Health in 1983"

Heterosexuals' Attitudes toward Lesbianism and Male Homosexuality: Their Affective Orientation toward Sexuality and Sex Guilt

Abstract: This study sought to determine if there was a relationship between heterosexuals' attitudes toward lesbianism and male homosexuality and their affective orientation toward sexuality (erotophiliaerotophobia) and sex guilt. Subjects were 72 male and 57 female heterosexual college undergraduates. A self-report questionnaire was administered in a health education class and mailed to campus dormitories. The variables were measured by four scales: Attitudes Toward Lesbianism, Attitudes Toward Male Homosexuality, Sex Guilt Subscales, and modified Sexual Opinion Survery (erotophiliaerotophobia). Through a sample selection process involving randomization, the sample was made proportional to the university's undergraduate students by sex, class standing, and school. Affective orientation toward sexuality was established to be related to attitudes toward lesbianism for both sexes, and related to attitudes toward male homosexuality for female subjects only (all p<.05). Sex guilt was related to both sexes' at...

Predictors of Alcohol Use among College Students in New York State

Abstract: The prevalence and correlates of alcohol and other drug use were determined for students attending colleges in New York State. The New York State Division of Substance Abuse Services selected a representative sample of approximately 7,700 undergraduate students randomly selected from 22 colleges. Students were given a 10-page questionnaire dealing with patterns of alcohol and other drug use. The vast majority of both males and females reported alcohol use in the past 30 days; however, males (28%) were twice as likely as females (15%) to be classified in the heavier drinking category. White college students (25%) are far more likely to be heavier drinkers than are black students (5%) even after other factors are taken into account. Students attending colleges in Upstate New York areas (24%) have higher rates of heavier drinking than do those in New York City (15%). Multivariate statistical analyses were done to determine the relative importance of various social factors in determining drinking beh...

Brachial Plexus Stretch Injury

Abstract: Upper trunk brachial plexopathy is a significant injury. Five percent to ten percent of “burners” result in a neurologic deficit which may take several weeks for full recovery. Anatomy, pathophysiology, physical examination, criteria for return to play, and therapy are reviewed.

College students' attitudes toward shared responsibility in decisions about abortion: implications for counseling.

Abstract: College students' (112 males and 152 females) perceptions of the extent to which males should share in abortion decision making in seven situations of unplanned pregnancy were surveyed by questionnaire. Associations between gender, religious preference, level of religious activity, and students' attitudes toward extent of shared responsibility for abortion decision making were compared. Results indicate that many male students are more willing to assume decision-making responsibility than females, in some situations, are willing to allow.

The College Student and Marijuana: Research Findings Concerning Adverse Biological and Psychological Effects.

Abstract: Next to alcohol, marijuana is the most widely used drug among college students Recent surveys of high reliability indicate that within the college age group approximately 21 million have smoked marijuana, and several millions smoke it daily Research findings document clearly that marijuana has distinct adverse biological and psychological effects, even when smoked in moderate doses, and for short periods of time The short-term and long-term adverse effects of the drug have important implications for the college community—especially the effects on short-term memory and learning, on psychomotor coordination, on behavior, and on reproduction Moderate doses of marijuana impair intellectual functioning in several areas including the ability to read with comprehension, to acquire, to store and to recall information, and to communicate clearly Moderate doses also impair motor coordination—especially driving skills, concentration, and judgment—a significant finding in light of the high incidence of

Measles on campus.

Abstract: Campus outbreaks and campus-associated cases together accounted for 51.1% of all reported measles cases in the first 26 weeks of 1983. This proportion is of particular concern because measles is a more serious disease in adults than in schoolchildren. For a substantial number of highly mobile young adults, college may be the last opportunity to ensure protection against measles and other preventable infections. Unfortunately, immunization levels on campuses are difficult to assess because very few institutions require immunization records. Nevertheless, colleges and universities have an obligation to their students to provide a safe and healthy learning environment; they also have a need to avoid costly and disruptive outbreaks on their campuses. To break the remaining chains of measles transmission on campus, colleges and universities should require all students born after 1956 to present a complete and up-to-date immunization record for matriculation and registration. Incoming freshmen should b...

Gender preference toward providers of genital examinations and frequency of genital self-examination among college students.

Abstract: Both male and female students who utilize Brandeis University Health Services for primary care were assessed regarding their preference as to the gender of providers of genital examinations, together with the frequency with which each sex and academic class performs genital self-examinations, during a two-month period of the 1981 Spring Semester, using a brief self-administered questionnaire. Among 234 undergraduate and graduate student men and women who returned questionnaires, women and men preferred to be examinated by same-sex examiners; less than half of the women and nearly none of the men would want a chaperone present during the examination, even when the examiner is not the same gender. An increasing percentage of these young women perform breast examinations as they get older, but there is no comparable rise in testicular self-examinations with increasing age among the men. It is important for physicians who care for adolescents and young adults in university health services to provide ...

The Effect of Health Beliefs on the Smoking Behavior of College Women

Abstract: Of the 953 women from four New England colleges who responded to a random-sample survey of smoking behavior, 30.5% were current smokers; 20.3%, former smokers; and 49.2%, non-smokers. Most had begun smoking in high school. They were concerned about their smoking and over three-fourths of them had made a serious effort to stop. Their motivations for smoking and for stopping were studied. Coping with stress was an important motivation for continuation; health effects, loss of control over their lives, and social effects were important for cessation. Discriminant analysis was used to determine the relative contribution of health beliefs to changes in smoking status.

College Student Behavior: A Ten-Year Look

Abstract: Lester and Perez1 have suggested that student behavior can be usefully construed in terms of a traditional-hedonic, implicit value system. They demonstrated that drug use and sexual activity provide simple behavioral anchors for this dimension, and observed an increasingly hedonic orientation among students. Ten years after their initial study, the student population at the same institution was again sampled using an anonymous questionnaire. The 1980 sample included 208 subjects, and these were compared with 688 subjects who responded to the 1970 survey. This comparison was supplemented by an intensive week-long study of 53 students within one campus living unit. Significant increases in pre-college sexual activity were noted for both men and women. Marijuana use in high school also increased for both men and women during this period, while alcohol use increased only among women. Previously observed differences between male and female pre-college sexual activity and marijuana use had largely disa...

Coping and living with herpes.

Abstract: “Epidemiology of Diarrhea in Travelers,” ROBERT STEFFEN, FRANZ VAN DER LINDE, KLAUS GYR, MEINRAD SCHAR. To investigate diarrhea in tourists on a worldwide scale, 16,568 passengers were interviewed during their flights home from 13 destinations in various climatic regions. Significant differences in diarrheal incidence were observed between individual destinations and also between hotels in the same area. The highest rates exceeded 50%. Younger persons were more often affected. Sex, travel characteristics, and a record of former tropical journeys influenced the incidence to a minor degree. Even in the tropics, diarrhea usually takes a short (average, 3.6 days) and mild (average of 4.6 stools per day) course. Prophylactic or therapeutic medication only slightly influenced these values. The various regions showed minor differences in chronology and symptomatology. This is consistent with quantitative rather than qualitative geographic variations in causative agents. The traditional nutritional recom...

Self-initiated smoking cessation in college students.

Abstract: Smoking cessation behaviors of college students using a university health service were examined. Forty successful and 32 unsuccessful quitters were interviewed through an open-ended questionnaire. Elements important in successful, self-initiated cessation were sought. Results demonstrated many similarities between the groups. Differences seemed related to techniques used to remain abstinent from cigarette smoking, expectations of ease or difficulties in quitting, and the influence of a boyfriend/girlfriend. These differences should be studied in a larger sample. Questions raised for further study include: examining the influence of the health service and physician; identifying differences in attitudes toward cessation between quitters and recidivists; and evaluating what use smokers make of the knowledge gained through previous cessation attempts. “Postprandial Glucose and Insulin Responses to Meals Containing Different Carbohydrates in Normal and Diabetic Subjects,” John P. Bantle, et al. To exa...

The teaching of hypnosis: outline and method.

Abstract: In the past several years there has been a significant increase in the number of training programs in clinical hypnosis. There appears to be little information available regarding the actual method and content of such coursework. The authors gave a number of professionals and paraprofessionals a training program that included lectures, clinical inductions, and an opportunity for limited use of these methods in a supervised setting. The methods used were presented in a step-by-step fashion, drawing upon not only the authors' experience and expertise, but also requiring the active participation of those learning these clinical methods. In all, there were ten sessions with some required reading outside of the class time. Typical problems of resistance, problem solving, and various perspectives were discussed and employed.

Self-reported incidence of physical violence in college students.

Abstract: A survey of a college student population indicates that physical abuse is prevalent in our society. The self-reported data were found to be similar to that occurring in the literature on parent-reported child abuse, documenting that approximately one-third of college students had a history of moderate abuse and 5 to 10% had a history of a severe abuse during their developmental years. Through an awareness of its high prevalence, the health care provider will question a history of physical violence when evaluating a student with a medical or psychosocial complaint and appropriately plan a management program including therapeutic counseling to decrease the effect of the prior or current physical abuse.

Preenrollment immunization policies of american colleges: An assessment of the need for policy implementation

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine: (1) the preadmission immunization policies of American colleges and universities; (2) the disease occurrence on campuses for 1979–1981; and (3) the validity of self-report of immune status. Ninety-three institutions completed a questionnaire distributed at the 1981 American College Health Association meeting. Sixty-two percent of the respondents stated that they require a preadmission immunization record. Of those who require a record, 86% require it for tetanus, 72% require it for diphtheria, and 70% for polio. Only 40% require it for measles and 56% for rubella. Reports of disease incidence at the same colleges and universities, however, revealed that there were no cases of tetanus and only one case of diphtheria in the preceding two years. In contrast, the diseases reported with greater frequency on those campuses during this time were measles and rubella. Serologic titers in a group of 46 medical and nursing students indicated that 59% were immune t...

Cigarette Smoking among First-Year Medical Students in Yugoslavia and Their Academic Success

Abstract: The prevalence of smoking among 317 first-year medical students was estimated to be 259% The freshmen were interviewed about their smoking habits and followed for a period of two years Academic success was assessed in terms of regularity of studying and the mean grade The results of this cohort study did not reveal any significant association between smoking and the indicators of success either for men or women

Aerobics for all ages: a broadband approach to a diverse university population.

Abstract: “Does Coffee Raise Serum Cholesterol?” Dag S. Thelle, Egil Arnesen, and Olav H. Forde. We examined the relation between coffee consumption and levels of serum total cholesterol, high-density-lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and triglycerides in a population of 7213 women and 7368 men between the ages of 20 and 54 years. Coffee consumption was positively associated with levels of total cholesterol and triglycerides in both sexes and was inversely associated with levels of HDL cholesterol in women. The coffee-cholesterol relation remained strong and statistically significant (P < 0.0001 in a covariance analysis) after adjustment for age, logarithm of body-mass index, physical activity in leisure time, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption. After adjustment for all covariates, the total cholesterol level was 5.56 ± 0.05 mmol per liter (mean ± S.E.) in men drinking less than one cup of coffee a day, as compared with 6.23 ± 0.03 mmol per liter in those consuming more than nine cups a day. The corre...

Survey of DSM-III use.

Abstract: “The Risks Associated with Teenage Abortion,” Willard Cates, Jr., Kenneth F. Schulz, and David A. Grimes. The risks of morbidity and mortality affect a teenager's choice between termination of a pregnancy through induced abortion and continuation of the pregnancy. To identify these risks, we analyzed information from two separate sets of data collected by the Centers for Disease Control: that of the Joint Program for the Study of Abortion, a multicenter prospective study of nearly 165,000 legally induced abortions; and that of a national surveillance of abortion-related mortality. The rates of major complications associated with abortions in teenagers were 1 to 3 per 1000 suction-curettage procedures and approximately 13 per 1000 saline-administration procedures. The death-to-case rate for teenage women was 1.3 per 100,000 procedures. When the data on procedures were adjusted according to gestational age, teenagers generally had lower rates of morbidity and mortality from induced abortion than ol...

DSM-III and the College Mental Health Setting: The University of Massachusetts Experience.

Abstract: A quality assessment study was conducted at a university mental health service to review the diagnostic practices of staff members using the DSM-III as well as to develop standards in recordkeeping practices. The DSM-III was adopted as the standard diagnostic system within the agency to provide a shared conceptual framework and a uniform standard in diagnoses, for quality assessment purposes. Conditions Not Attributable to a Mental Disorder and Adjustment Disorders were the most frequently used categories on Axis I while Dependent Personality traits were most frequently recorded on Axis II. The results are in keeping with a developmental perspective for young adults and with a short-term treatment approach. However, the results may also be viewed as reflecting the conservatism of staff members in their use of psychiatric nomenclature for record-keeping purposes. “Oral Contraceptive Use and the Risk of Endometrial Cancer,” THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL CANCER AND STEROID HORMONE STUDY. Use of co...

Measles and rubella on college campuses: the need to act.

Abstract: The lack of immunization requirements at the nation's colleges and universities threatens the maintenance of the interruption of indigenous measles in the United States. The high susceptibility rates in some college populations coupled with the high mobility of college students who may travel to countries where measles is endemic or epidemic increases the potential for measles outbreaks. Preventing measles in college-age populations is particularly important because the disease can be more serious in adults. In view of the importance of preventing measles in college students, the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (ACIP) of the U.S. Public Health Service has recommended that officials strongly consider immunization requirements for college entry. The ultimate goal of rubella immunization is the protection of a future fetus against damage from intrauterine infection. Although rubella cases are reported routinely on college campuses, most colleges make no effort at controlling these outbreak...

Motivational Factors Affecting Patient Attrition in a Weight Reduction Program

Abstract: The study hypothesizes that the greater the satisfaction of a patient's basic motivational needs, the greater the likelihood that the patient will complete the program. Patients were given a self-report questionnaire to assess the strength of their basic motivational needs as they entered the program; and a Likert-type questionnaire concerning satisfaction of needs as they left the program. The results show that those who completed the program experienced greater satisfaction of needs than those who did not complete the program. Analysis of covariance of completion of the program and need satisfaction was significant (p < .01) thus supporting the hypothesis. “Long-term Oral Contraceptive Use and the Risk of Breast Cancer,” THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL CANCER AND STEROID HORMONE STUDY. Using oral contraceptives for long periods or using them when one has other risk factors has been hypothesized to increase the risk of breast cancer. To study these issues, we analyzed data from a multicenter, ca...

Reacting to the Uncooperative, Severely Disturbed Student: A Survey of Health Center Policies

Abstract: All members of the Pacific Coast College Health Association were surveyed to determine their policies for evaluating and restricting the attendance of severely disturbed students who were not cooperative with mental health intervention. One hundred of the 135 institutions returned questionnaires. Fifty-eight percent of the respondents reported that they medically exclude or otherwise restrict students due to their emotional condition. Privately funded schools were more likely to restrict than were tax supported schools. The more residential the campus, the more probable the students were to be restricted. The mean number of students excluded during one academic year was 3.15 (range = 0–25). Despite general recognition of the difficulties involved in responding to uncooperative, severely disturbed students, only 7% of the restrictive schools had written policies which detailed the procedures to be followed when considering restricting students for mental health reasons. The need to develop clear p...

Emerging issues for college students in the 1980s.

Abstract: This paper considers the emerging themes of the current era and reviews data on topics which will affect students during their lives. These include the choice to remain single, to marry, or to be childless. The impact of maternal employment on children, the determinants of sex roles, and emerging lifestyles including dual-career families and single parent families are also considered. The author emphasizes the complexity of the changes in current society and the need for maintaining a perspective which takes account of multiple variables when drawing conclusions, e.g., maternal work is not the same as maternal deprivation. For those who counsel students this paper is an important source of information about the concerns of students now and for the future.

Conducting a needs assessment of university psychological services: a campaign of telephone and mail strategies.

Abstract: This study compared telephone and mail survey approaches in assessing psychological needs perceived by university students. Subjects were students who responded by mail and students contacted by telephone. Both groups of respondents approximated the student population regarding age, sex, and race. The questionnaire was a 52-item inventory listing a wide range of psychological needs relevant to students, preferred method of service delivery, and a few questions for demographic data. Respondents were asked to rate each item on a scale of one to five (not important to extremely important). A comparison of the mean ratings across all items revealed that telephone respondents rated needs higher than did mail respondents. Nevertheless, a high positive correlation was found for the groups on item ratings. It appears that the telephone and mail techniques each have merit as a technique for assessing psychological needs among university students and that they provide similar rankings of students' ratings ...

The Emotional Problems of Medical Students: Support Groups as a Preventive Mental Health Measure

Abstract: (1983). The Emotional Problems of Medical Students: Support Groups as a Preventive Mental Health Measure. Journal of American College Health: Vol. 32, No. 1, pp. 44-45.