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Biomedical subjects

J Wilks

Publications and source records attributed to J Wilks.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Alcoholism and family interaction.

In 16 families, half of which had an alcoholic parent, both parents and an adolescent were videotaped interacting with each other. Mothers, fathers and the adolescent in each family viewed the videotaped interaction and completed ratings of themselves and the other two family members on levels of anxiety, involvement, dominance and friendliness. In families with an alcoholic parent, adolescents and their mothers rated family members as less anxious than did adolescents and mothers in families without a drinking problem. Also mothers in the alcoholic families rated family members as being more involved, and their ratings were higher than mothers in other families. Alcoholic families rated parent-adolescent interactions as more dominant and friendlier. At least in these videotaped interactions where alcohol was not being consumed, mothers in alcoholic families adopted a more positive view of family members than mothers in other families. In addition, possibly due to the efforts of fathers not to drink and memories of interactions when he was drunk, alcoholic families perceived their family interactions as more dominant and friendlier than families without an alcohol-related problem.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1992

Adolescent view on risky and illegal alcohol use.

A sample of 1154 adolescents from central Queensland indicated their agreement or disagreement with 28 reasons why young people drink alcohol in ways that are risky or illegal. As predicted, agreement varied across the three age groups sampled, with younger respondents being most likely to agree with drinking reasons. In contrast, very few sex differences emerged in the study. This suggests that young males and females share some common views about situations related to problematic alcohol consumption, and that age differences may be the more important factor in the development of alcohol education messages.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1992

Drinking habits of central Queensland adolescents: local research for local needs.

This study examined the utility of monitoring adolescent drinking habits in order to assist the development of local drug education programmes. Drinking patterns are reported for a quota-sample of 1154 adolescents aged from 13 to 18 years in central Queensland. Results showed that the prevalence of drinking increased according to age, with 47% of 13-year-olds reporting that they have used alcohol (not just sips or tastes), through to 93% among the 18-year-old group. Older teenagers were more likely to report drinking in the past month and the past week, though their consumption patterns are very similar to young people in other studies. Locations for drinking varied with age, younger groups drinking more often in home settings while older groups enjoyed a greater range of public and private venues. Beverage preferences again showed some age and sex differences, but overall males expressed a preference for regular beer and spirits, while females reported a preference for spirits and wine coolers. The importance of conducting local research to address local needs is discussed.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1992

Total arterial compliance: differences between spontaneously hypertensive rats and normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats.

Invasive hemodynamic measurements were performed on 14 normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats and 15 spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) to test the hypothesis that SHRs have lower total arterial compliance than WKY rats. Ascending aortic pressure was measured with a catheter-tip manometer, and aortic flow was measured with an electromagnetic flow probe. Prolonged diastoles were produced by an electrocardiographically timed aortic occluder. The aortic decay time constant (Tau) for each prolonged diastole was calculated by an exponential fit of the initial linear segment of the log (pressure)-time curve. Tau is the product of resistance (R) and compliance (C) in the Windkessel model for the arterial system. Total arterial compliance was therefore determined from the relation Tau/R. The total arterial compliance index was calculated by correcting for body weight. Compliance was also estimated by the stroke volume/pulse pressure ratio. Compared with WKY rats, SHRs have higher mean pressure (111 +/- 19 [SD] mm Hg vs 71 +/- 14, P less than .0001), higher mean flow (0.50 +/- 0.10 mL/sec vs 0.38 +/- 0.04, P less than .001), and a shorter decay time constant (365 +/- 54 msec vs 475 +/- 54, P less than .001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Evaluation of a strategy for changing group stereotypes of the heroin user.

This study examined characteristics attributed to a person using an illegal narcotic drug (heroin) and sought to change established stereotypes by participation in a group education experience. Prior to the main study, 100 Advanced Psychology students generated lists of adjectives they would use to describe a heroin user. The most frequently mentioned characteristics were placed in structured lists as pre- and post-test measures. Both semantic differential and open-choice formats were used. The Prevention Role Play, a recently developed strategy in drug education, was used to challenge the group's stereotypes. Significant shifts in attributions were revealed between the pre- and post-test measures. After the Role Play students reduced their negative stereotype on a number of dimensions though they still described the heroin user as confused, insecure, troubled and lonely. The discussion considers possible strategies for facilitating positive attitude change.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1990

A diary approach to analysing young adults' drinking events and motivations.

Completing a diary over two weeks, 201 young adults recorded each of their drinking events, and information about the context and their motivations for alcohol use. Males reported almost twice as many drinking events and three times the number of drinks over the two-week period. At the same time, males and females mostly drank from Wednesdays to Sundays, with the majority of beer, wine and spirit consumption being between 4 p.m. and midnight. Most drinking occurred in mixed-sex peer groups, and the next greatest in family gatherings. Males mostly drank beer, while females chose either wine or spirits. Most drinking was in bars or at home. Males tended to drink for a wider range of reasons. The advantages of using prospective diaries in studies of young adults' alcohol use are discussed.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1990

Extending upon student drinking patterns in an Australian population.

One hundred and twenty-two students from the University of Queensland were surveyed regarding their attitudes and behaviour toward alcohol. As an extension of earlier investigations at the same university the study provides some monitoring of drinking levels over 8 years. Results indicate that the quantity and frequency of male consumption continues to be greater than that of females. Sex differences were also evident in beverage preferences. An increase in the proportion of males drinking more than 40 grams of alcohol per day was noted. The implications of this finding are discussed within the broader context of comparisons across studies and with reference to National Health and Medical Research Council recommendations for alcohol consumption.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1990

Perceptions of legal and illegal drugs: comparisons of parents, adolescents, and best friends.

The topic of drugs is a sensitive issue and an area where considerable conflict and disagreement may exist between parents and children. In this study, 50 family groups (consisting of father-mother-adolescent-adolescent's friend) responded to questions about a range of legal and illegal drugs used in Australia. A multidimensional scaling analysis revealed that parents, adolescents, and adolescents' best friends had similar perceptions about drugs, especially distinctions between legal and illegal substances, and drugs used more by younger people. LSD, cocaine and heroin were judged by all groups as causing personal and family problems, being strong and dangerous, not socially acceptable, bad for one's health and associated with crime. Marihuana, tobacco and alcohol were judged in opposite terms, as well as being perceived as popular, widespread and used by youth. Subjects' perceptions of drugs were very similar to representative state and national community samples, but were inaccurate when compared to official figures for drug prevalence and morbidity. In particular, respondents showed little appreciation of the problems associated with widely available legal drugs such as alcohol and tobacco.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1989

Parent, peer and personal determinants of adolescent drinking.

This study examined direct and indirect influences of parents and peers on adolescent drinking. One hundred and six adolescents, their parents and a same-sex best friend of the adolescent each completed measures that tapped actual and perceived drinking behaviour, and normative standards for alcohol use. Of methodological interest was that adolescents of both sexes provided accurate reports of their parents' and peer's drinking, as well as drinking norms. Path analyses revealed different effects for male and female adolescents. Strongest predictors of alcohol use for males were their perceptions of their father's and mother's drinking, and their father's actual drinking. Best friend's drinking was positively related to the adolescent males' perceptions of themselves as a drinker. The single predictor of their internalized norms was the perception adolescent males had of their friend's drinking. Significantly, the adolescent male's own norms predicted how much and what they drank. For adolescent females, how much they believed their best friend drank, and their friend's normative standards, were the strongest predictors of alcohol use. Father's drinking also influenced the drinking practices of daughters, but mothers had no impact on their daughters' alcohol use. In contrast to young males, females' personal preferences or liking of alcohol successfully predicted most of their drinking behaviour.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Cross-cultural perspectives on teenage alcohol use.

Alcohol use by teenagers is a widespread and well-documented behavior in many Western nations. In contrast, very little is known about the drinking habits and attitudes toward alcohol of teenagers in the world's developing countries. In this paper we propose that adolescents learn about alcohol as part of the socialization process, just as they learn other social behaviors. Central to this learning is the development of a set of expectancies within one's culture about the effects of alcohol upon the user. These expectancies are important determinants of subsequent drinking behavior. An understanding of the sociocultural environment in which these expectancies develop, and in which teenage drinking occurs, is essential for developing intervention strategies aimed at promoting responsible alcohol use and avoiding alcohol-related problems among young people.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Cross-cultural perspectives on teenage attitudes to alcohol.

Six hundred and seventy-seven indigenous Papua New Guinean, 315 Australian, and 166 American high school teenagers completed a series of measures on attitudes to alcohol. Papua New Guinean students differed most from other students in considering that money was wasted on alcohol and that preventive steps should be adopted to ban sales of take-away alcohol. In addition, Papua New Guinean males and females were more likely than other teenagers to feel that women should not drink alcoholic beverages. Within countries, males and females had fairly similar attitudes about alcohol and alcohol-related issues, and where differences occurred, males generally were less likely to highlight the costs of alcohol abuse.

Adolescent↗