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Abstract
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In the Philippines, one third of the population are adolescents between 10 and 24 years of age.1 They face several risks: 1 in 12 (8.6%) begin child-rearing before age 19,2 1 in 6 (14.6%) smoke tobacco by age 15,3 1 in 4 (23.8%) drink alcohol by age 16,4 and 4 in 5 (80%) experience some form of interpersonal violence by age 24.5
The negative effects of these risks cascade throughout an adolescent’s lifetime. For instance, teenage pregnancies in the Philippines are associated with higher school dropout rates, more infants with low birth weight, higher rates of maternal and child mortality, and lost economic productivity.6 Interventions in addressing these risk factors is critical to ensure better quality of life and economic productivity. Many of these behaviors begin around early adolescence, but research on early adolescent behaviors is limited in low- and middle-income country contexts.7
Risky and sensitive behaviors such as sexual initiation and tobacco and alcohol use are measured by self-reported questionnaires to ensure that responses are not biased by the presence of an adult. However, some studies globally have indicated that the use of self-administered questionnaires result in inconsistent responses when the same adolescents are asked the same questions in the immediate future.8-11 However, these studies are at least a generation behind, and little is known about what kinds of adolescents are more likely to inconsistently report behaviors. An ongoing cohort study on adolescents in the Philippines presents a unique opportunity to update current literature by measuring the level of reporting consistency on these behaviors and determine predictors of reporting inconsistency ...
Language: en |