Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Sep;52(9):1788-1798.
doi: 10.1007/s10964-023-01812-8. Epub 2023 Jun 24.

Adolescents in the Community: Extracurricular Activities and Sexual Harassment

Andrea S Mora  1   2 , Kristen M LoDuca  3 , Rosario Ceballo  4
Affiliations

Adolescents in the Community: Extracurricular Activities and Sexual Harassment

Andrea S Mora et al. J Youth Adolesc. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

Sexual harassment and participation in extracurricular activities are two common experiences for adolescents, yet little research examines the interplay between these two phenomena, particularly among low-income, racial/ethnic minority adolescents. This study examined whether participation in four types of extracurricular activities-school-based, structured community-based, unstructured community-based, and home-based-was associated with adolescents' PTSD and depressive symptoms over time, and whether those relations were mediated by neighborhood-based sexual harassment. Participants were 537 adolescents who were on average 15.6 years old, 54% girls, and majority Latino/a (n = 416; 77.5%). Path analyses revealed a significant indirect effect between unstructured community-based activities, but not structured community-based, school- nor home-based extracurricular activities and PTSD symptoms via sexual harassment. The findings point to the importance of examining how unstructured community-based extracurricular activities may increase neighborhood risks for adolescents, and the need for creating opportunities for adolescents to engage in structured and well supervised after-school extracurricular activities.

Keywords: Depressive symptoms; Extracurricular activities; PTSD symptoms; Racial/ethnic minority adolescents; Sexual harassment.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. American Association of University Women [AAUW] Educational Foundation. (2011). Crossing the line: Sexual harassment at school. https://www.aauw.org/app/uploads/2020/03/Crossing-the-Line-Sexual-Harass... .
    1. Antunes, M. J. L., & Ahlin, E. M. (2017). Youth exposure to violence in the community: towards a theoretical framework for explaining risk and protective factors. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 34, 166–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2017.01.015 . - DOI
    1. Bohnert, A., Fredricks, J., & Randall, E. (2010). Capturing unique dimensions of youth organized activity involvement: Theoretical and methodological considerations. Review of Educational Research, 80(4), 576–610. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654310364533 . - DOI
    1. Bolduc, M. L., Martin‐Storey, A., & Paquette, G. (2022). Correlates of sexual harassment victimization among adolescents: A scoping review. Journal of Social Issues, 1–27. Advance online version. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12529 .
    1. Brown, R., & Evans, W. P. (2002). Extracurricular activity and ethnicity: Creating greater school connection among diverse student populations. Urban Education, 37(1), 41–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042085902371004 . - DOI

LinkOut - more resources