Adolescence is the peak age for both victimization and mental disorder onset. Previous research has reported associations between victimization exposure and many psychiatric conditions. However, causality remains controversial. Within the Environmental Risk Longitudinal Twin Study, we tested whether seven types of adolescent victimization increased risk of multiple psychiatric conditions and ap...

OBJECTIVE This study applied a multi-method approach to examine the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and the experience of victimization during adolescence by investigating the role of intrapersonal feelings. METHODS The sample consisted of 2051 adolescents (M=13.8 years, S.D.=0.7; 51% male) from seven high schools in the Netherlands. Participants' weight and height were measured an...

OBJECTIVES This report examines (1) the prevalence of psychological and minor physical violence victimization in a nationally representative sample of adolescents and (2) associations between sociodemographic factors and victimization. METHODS Analyses are based on 7500 adolescents who reported exclusively heterosexual romantic relationships in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent He...

Gender-variant-based victimization is victimization based on the way others perceive an individual to convey masculine, feminine, and androgynous characteristics through their appearance, mannerisms, and behaviors. Previous work identifies gender-variant-based victimization as a risk factor for health-risking outcomes among same-sex attracted youths. The current study seeks to examine this rela...

Although research consistently indicates that adolescents’ peers are an important determinant of their involvement in crime as offenders, there has been little attention to whether adolescents’ peers influence adolescent victimization. This omission is problematic both because some adolescents alternate between offending and victimization and because many of the same factors that predict offend...

Numerous studies conducted over several decades have shown that victimization is associated with adjustment problems such as depression, low selfesteem, anxiety, suicidal ideation and school avoidance. It has also interpersonal correlates such as rejection and lack of friends. The strongest effect sizes are usually obtained for depression and other internalising problems. Longitudinal studies i...

OBJECTIVE To use a lifetime assessment of victimization experiences to identify children and youth with high cumulative levels of victimization (poly-victims). Also to compare such children to other victims and non-victims, and assess the contribution of cumulative victimization to levels of psychological distress. DESIGN A national sample of 1,467 children aged 2-17 recruited through random ...

PURPOSE To examine the link between victimization at school and health risk behaviors using representative data comparing lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youths and heterosexual youths. METHODS Data from the 1995 Youth Risk Behavior Survey taken in Massachusetts and Vermont were examined. This sample included 9188 9th through 12th grade students; 315 of these students were identified as LGB....

PURPOSE To test the extent to which adolescent victimization predicts subsequent use of mental health services in a prospectively assessed nationwide sample of high school students. METHODS Data were analyzed from 4590 adolescents participating in Waves I and II of the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent Health. In-home self-report data were collected on four types of personal victimiz...

Two major themes in the delinquency literature are the roles of family structure and childhood victimization. Combining these two lines of research, the current project examines the unique contribution of family structure and victimization on the serious delinquency of a nationally representative sample of adolescents. In addition, we examine whether the form of families serves to condition the...