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The impact of group identity on adolescent tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use was examined through a postal survey. The study included adolescents who identified with 1 subgroup (n = 1425) as well as adolescents who identified with 2 (n = 895) or 3 (n = 339) subgroups. The results showed that identification with the pop, skate/hip-hop, techno, and hippie subgroups was associated with higher risks of substance use, whereas identification with the sporty, quiet, computer nerd, and religious subgroups was associated with lower risks. Perceived group norm mediated the group identity-substance use relationship. Furthermore, identification with multiple groups with corresponding norm increased norm-consistent substance use, whereas identification with multiple groups with opposing norms reduced normative behavior. Implications for health promotion are discussed.

Despite the well-documented health effects of physical activity, few studies focus on the correlates of leisure-time sports and exercise participation. The present study examined correlations between adolescent sports participation and demographic factors, socioeconomic status (SES) and sociocultural factors. A school-based cross-sectional cluster sample including 6356 Danish fifth- and ninth-grade adolescents from four municipalities were included. Age (younger) and gender (boy) were associated with adolescents' sports participation. Girls were half as likely [odds ratio (OR) 0.49 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.44-0.55] to participate in sports than boys. Adolescents were more likely to participate in sports if they perceived their parents as active in exercise or sports. Adolescents with one or two unemployed parents were 0.75 (95% CI: 0.62-0.89) and 0.75 (95% CI: 0.56-1.00), respectively, less likely to participate in sports than adolescents with two employed parents. In a gender-stratified analysis, parents' occupational status was only a predictor of sports participation in girls. Differences between municipalities in adolescents' sports participation remained significant when controlled for individual factors such as gender, age, parents' background or parents' physical activity. The association between sociocultural and SES was stronger for girls than boys. In conclusion, demographics, SES and sociocultural factors were the best determinants of adolescent sport participation.

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Bullying is a form of aggression in which children are intentionally intimidated, harassed or harmed. The key elements of bullying include aggression, repetition and an imbalance of power between the bully and the victim. 1 Bullying can impact the physical, emotional and social health of a child. One literature review reports that victims of bullying are more likely to report sleep disturbances, abdominal pain, headaches, sadness, low self-esteem, depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts. 1 A Canadian study reviewing bullying among schoolchildren found that the long-term consequences of being a victim of bullying included mental health problems, criminality, school drop-out and unemployment. 2 Regrettably, a large Canadian study found no reduction in bullying prevalence in a sample of schoolchildren after their participation in a school-based anti-bullying program. 3 In fact, a literature review on childhood bullying concluded that we still need a clearer picture on the nature and prevalence of bullying in North America. 4 As such, the main objective of our study was to determine the unadjusted and adjusted risk indicators associated with physical bullying among children in grades 5-8. The second objective was to describe the impact of repeated physical bullying on health outcomes -namely depressed mood. METHODSEvery student in grades 5-8 attending school in the city of Saskatoon, Canada, was asked to complete the Saskatoon School Health Survey in February of 2008. There were 9,825 youth registered in grades 5-8 in the public and catholic school boards.The bullying survey used was the Safe School Study developed by the Canadian Public Health Association, which was based on a survey used by the World Health Organization. 3,5 This survey measures the prevalence of bullying by asking "In the past four weeks, how often have you been bullied by other students… [physically, verbally, socially or electronically]". There are four potential responses: never, once or twice a month, every week or many times