Friday, November 28, 2003

Adolescent Self-Concept and Health into Adulthood
Article (in Adobe Acrobat format) at the Statistics Canada, brought to our attention in the latest issue of CMHA-Ontario's Mental Health Notes - "Teenage girls with low self-concept are more likely to be depressed later in life, according to a report from Statistics Canada. The National Population Health Survey examined the self-concept of 1100 teenage boys and girls between the ages of 12 and 19 in 1994/95. The researchers defined self-concept as a combination of self-esteem and feelings of control over one’s life. Girls with a weak self-concept during adolescence had a higher likelihood of developing depression within the next six years and had a higher chance of becoming obese. While low self-concept in teenage boys was connected to physical inactivity and obesity when they reached adulthood, the researchers did not find a significant linkage to depression..."