Comparison of Paper-and-Pencil Versus Tablet Administration of the 2021 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS)

PURPOSE

As part of efforts to modernize the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is moving from paper-and-pencil instrument (PAPI) administration to electronic administration using tablets. This study aimed to examine differences in demographic characteristics and the reporting of health behaviors and experiences between the PAPI- and tablet-administered 2021 national YRBS questionnaire.

METHODS

High school students (grades 9-12) in classrooms from 57 schools participating in the 2021 national YRBS were assigned randomly to complete the survey using PAPI (n = 4,684 students) or using tablets (n = 3,645 students). Eighty-nine behavior and experience items were examined to compare the missingness in reporting and the prevalence estimation (i.e., proportions) by administration mode.

RESULTS

Demographic characteristics (sex, race/ethnicity, grade, and sexual identity) did not differ by mode (PAPI vs. tablet). For the majority (93.2%, 83 out of 89) of YRBS behavior and experience items, mode was not significantly associated with the reported proportions, adjusting for sex, race/ethnicity, grade, and sexual identity. However, 30 out of 89 (33.7%) items showed significant variation in missingness by mode; 10 items had higher missingness with PAPI administration while 20 had higher missingness with tablet administration.

DISCUSSION

Survey administration mode was not significantly associated with behavior and experience reporting among high school students. More research is needed to understand differential patterns of missingness by mode. Aligning with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Public Health Data Modernization Initiative, findings from this study provide evidence to support electronic survey administration for the national YRBS, particularly using tablet data collection.

At the Intersections: Examining Trends in Experiences of Violence, Mental Health Status, and Suicidal Risk Behaviors Among US High School Students Using Intersectionality, National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2015-2019

PURPOSE

Surveillance data are used for public health action, but the practice of analyzing data by single demographic characteristics may produce findings that reflect abstract categories rather than a person's lived experience. Intersectionality is a theoretical framework that advocates for individuals to be recognized as the whole of their identity and within context of power structures. Using the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2015-2019, we examined 5-year trends in experiencing violence, poor mental health, and suicidal risk behavior among US high school students using intersections of race/ethnicity and sex.

METHODS

We used SUDAAN to calculate prevalence estimates and logistic regression models to assess for linear trends while accounting for the weighting and complex survey design.

RESULTS

Among all students in aggregate, experiencing dating violence decreased while being threatened with a weapon at school and feeling persistently sad or hopeless increased over time; however, these trends did not apply to most students when stratified by identity. The one near-universal experience was that students in aggregate and almost all identities had an increased trend of skipping school because they felt unsafe there.

DISCUSSION

By focusing on identities defined by two main drivers of health disparities-race/ethnicity and sex-we found that changes in risk behaviors did not occur equally among students and that prevalence estimates were highest among Black males, Black females, and Hispanic females. We outlined the power structures that frame the current educational environment. Patterns of health disparities can be highlighted by analyzing surveillance data through an intersectional lens.

A study of some infectious causes of reproductive disorders in cattle owned by resource-poor farmers in Gauteng Province, South Africa

Two hundred and thirty-nine cattle from Gauteng Province in South Africa were tested for various pathogens causing reproductive diseases includingbovine viral diarrhoea/mucosal disease (BVD/MD) virus, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis/infectious pustular vulvovaginitis (IBR/IPV) virus, Neospora caninum and Brucella abortus usingvarious tests. For BVD/MD virus, 49.37% tested positive, 74.47% for IBR/IPV virus, 8.96% for Neospora caninum and 3.8% for Brucella abortus. The result for Brucella abortus is higher than the national average, possibly due to the small sample size. A high seroprevalence of antibodies to both BVD/MD virus and IBR/IPV virus was evident. These 2 viruses should be considered, in addition to Brucella abortus, when trying to establish causes of abortion in cattle. The clinical significance of Neospora caninum as a cause of abortion in Gauteng needs further investigation. One hundred and forty-three bulls were tested for Campylobacter fetus and Trichomonas fetus, and a low prevalence of 1.4% and 2.1% respectively was found in this study. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed.