Peer crowd affiliations as predictors of prosocial and risky behaviors among college students

The relationship between ostracism and negative risk-taking behavior: the role of ego depletion and physical exercise

Background

As a major public health problem globally, negative risk-taking behavior of college students may be related to their ostracism experience, but the reason for this association is unclear. Based on the limited resource theory, combined with the integrative model of athletic performance, we tested a moderated mediation model in which ego depletion mediated the association between ostracism and risk-taking, and physical exercise moderated the mediation process to examine the mechanisms underlying the association between ostracism and negative risk-taking behavior.

Methods

One thousand three hundred seven students (43% female) from four universities in China were recruited using cluster random sampling. The experience of being ostracized, ego depletion, physical exercise level, and negative risk-taking behavior were measured through an anonymous online questionnaire in "www.sojump.com."

Results

After controlling for gender and grade in college, ostracism was positively related to negative risk-taking behavior; ego depletion mediated this relationship; and physical exercise level attenuated these direct and indirect relationships.

Conclusion

The results highlight individual risk and protective factors associated with negative risk-taking behavior, and provide new perspectives on ways to prevent and reduce college students' negative risk-taking behavior.

Queer Peer Crowds on Campus: LGBT Crowd Affiliation as a Critical Correlate of College Students' Loneliness, Academic Well-Being, & Stress

The current study explored whether affiliating with an LGBT peer crowd on a college campus differentially predicts college adjustment (including loneliness, college belongingness, academic well-being, and stress), as opposed to affiliating with a non-LGBT peer crowd. Based on a sample of 692 students from a small liberal arts college in Southern California, factor and path analyses were carried out. Results indicated that, of all the crowd affiliations, affiliating with an LGBT peer crowd was the strongest predictor of loneliness, academic well-being, and stress. However, affiliating with an LGBT peer crowd was not the strongest predictor of college belongingness. Implications and applications of these results are discussed.

Psychographic segmentation to identify higher-risk teen peer crowds for health communications: Validation of Virginia's Mindset Lens Survey

Audience segmentation is necessary in health communications to ensure equitable resource distribution. Peer crowds, which are macro-level teen subcultures, are effective psychographic segments for health communications because each crowd has unique mindsets, values, norms, and health behavior profiles. These mindsets affect behaviors, and can be used to develop targeted health communication campaigns to reach those in greatest need. Though peer crowd research is plentiful, no existing peer crowd measurement tool has been formally validated. As such, we developed and validated Virginia's Mindset Lens Survey (V-MLS), a mindset-based teen peer crowd segmentation survey to support health communication efforts. Using an online convenience sample of teens (N = 1,113), we assessed convergent and discriminant validity by comparing the V-MLS against an existing, widely-used peer crowd survey (I-Base Survey^®) utilizing a multi-trait multi-method matrix. We also examined the V-MLS's predictive ability through a series of regressions using peer crowd scores to predict behaviors, experiences, and traits relevant to health communication campaign planning. The V-MLS demonstrated reliability and convergent and discriminant validity. Additionally, the V-MLS effectively distinguished teen peer crowds with unique health behaviors, experiences, and personal traits. When combined with appropriate information processing and campaign development frameworks, this new tool can complement existing instruments to inform message framing, tone, and style for campaigns that target at-risk teens to increase campaign equity and reach.