Section of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, USA.
J Adolesc Health. 2011 Apr;48(4):398-403. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2010.07.019. Epub 2010 Oct 20.
Policy-makers rarely consult adolescents during development of health policies. However, perspectives of adolescents on health can inform public health policies and programs. As part of the development of an Indiana state plan for adolescent health, we used qualitative methods to describe adolescents' "emic" views of health, and discuss implications for a state health policy for youth.
We conducted eight adolescent focus groups in geographically and culturally diverse regions of Indiana. Each group was audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using qualitative methods.
Participants described health as a shared responsibility between adolescents and adults in their lives. They identified a key role for supportive adults in initiating and maintaining health behaviors. Physical, financial, and informational environments could support or hinder healthy behaviors and outcomes. Although adolescents' descriptions of physical health and risk behaviors were similar to adult formulations, they described mental health as "stress and fatigue," an interaction between the adolescent and their environment, rather than depression and anxiety which are considered to be individual pathologies. Respect for decision-making capacity, seeking adolescent input, and providing harm reduction messages were identified as particularly important.
Adolescent's perception of health can inform policies and programs, and should be sought before the development of health policies.
政策制定者在制定卫生政策时很少咨询青少年的意见。然而，青少年对健康的看法可以为公共卫生政策和项目提供信息。作为印第安纳州青少年健康计划制定的一部分，我们使用定性方法描述了青少年对健康的“内在”看法，并讨论了对青年健康国家政策的影响。
我们在印第安纳州地理和文化多样化的地区进行了 8 个青少年焦点小组。每个小组都进行了录音、转录，并使用定性方法进行了分析。
参与者将健康描述为他们生活中的青少年和成年人之间的共同责任。他们确定了支持性成年人在启动和维持健康行为方面的关键作用。身体、财务和信息环境可以支持或阻碍健康行为和结果。尽管青少年对身体健康和风险行为的描述与成年人的描述相似，但他们将心理健康描述为“压力和疲劳”，这是青少年与其环境之间的相互作用，而不是被认为是个体病理的抑郁和焦虑。尊重决策能力、征求青少年的意见以及提供减少伤害的信息被认为尤为重要。
青少年对健康的看法可以为政策和项目提供信息，在制定卫生政策之前应该征求青少年的意见。
