Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors and the 5Cs of Positive Youth Development in Mexico

• Healthy lifestyle behaviors (HLBs; regular fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity) share intersections with Positive Youth Development (PYD) through the promotion of health, well-being, and overall positive functioning among young people. This chapter examines such intersections in Mexico in light of pressing health concerns and the need for effective preventative approaches to reduce adolescent obesity. The chapter begins with operationalization and a summary of relevant empirical work on HLBs and the 5Cs of PYD (i.e., competence, confidence, character, connection, and caring) as a way to highlight the incremental contributions offered to the PYD field and the uniqueness of the Mexican context. The chapter follows with an illustrative empirical example from a cross-sectional self-report study with Mexican youth regarding HLBs and the 5Cs. The results from a structural equation modeling supported the reliability and validity of the HLBs and the 5Cs measures in Mexico. Further, the chapter provides evidence for positive associations among the main constructs investigated in a path model indicating that HLBs are associated with the 5Cs. The final section provides indications for research, policy, and practice based on the evidence presented in this chapter.

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Psykologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Psychology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

healthy lifestyle behaviors

fruit and vegetable intake

physical activity

positive youth development

5Cs

Mexico

adolescents

psykologi

Psychology

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

kap (subject category)