Reduce Risky Behaviors among College Students

Reduce Risky Behaviors among College Students

Part I of the project should describe the scientific evidence to answer the questions below. Assume that your major focus is on the behavior in the United States, although information from other countries may be applicable.

a) 15 points: Is the behavior clearly related to one or more documented health outcomes? What is the evidence for the relationship? (In some cases, provide a more specific definition for the behavior; for example, if a topic concerned “physical activity” possibly choose to narrow the behavior to “walking for exercise.” Also, the student may wish to select one particular health outcome to focus on).

b) 10 points: How common (prevalent) is the behavior? How common (prevalent) is the health outcome? The assigned topics indicate a potential population of interest, but may need to be defined more specifically (for example, if the assigned topic says “in adolescents,” is there a particular geographic or demographic group of interest?).

c) 15 points: Background information about the behavior – What makes the behavior more likely to occur? What makes the behavior difficult to change? Some things to examine could be characteristics of the behavior itself (for example, the behavior might be very pleasurable, habitual, or involve addiction), the individual (personal characteristics), society (social norms, what others are doing) and the larger environment (resources, policies) that make the behavior easier or more difficult to change.

d) 10 points: Reference formatting, clarity, and mechanics (e.g., grammar, spelling, punctuation, proper citations).

Total length of Part I: 4-7 pages plus reference list (do not exceed the page limit). Papers should be typed, double spaced, include page numbers, have 1-inch margins, and use one of the following fonts: Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri. No cover page. Please insert your name in the upper right hand corner along with the date, and the course number. The title of the paper should be centered on the top of the first page. References should include primary peer- reviewed literature and government reports; as a general rule, do not cite Web pages except in unusual circumstances, for example, to identify organizational policies or to describe the type of information or advice generally available to the public. It is recommended that references adhere to the APA-style formatting guidelines (OWL link: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/). Should the student choose not to follow APA-style guidelines, they may select another format. However, all citations must be consistent (for instance do not use a mix of APA and MLA, pick one formatting guideline and follow those guidelines throughout the paper). Papers that are unclear and include mechanics errors (e.g., spelling, punctuation, and grammar) or improper citations will receive reduced points (up to 20% of the paper grade). Please proofread work before submitting it for a grade.