Rol psicologo salud

PSYKHE 2008, Vol.17, Nº 2, 91-102

Copyright 2008 by Psykhe ISSN 0717-0297

Gender Variation in Extracurricular Activity Participation and Perceived Life Chances in Trinidad and Tobago Adolescents Variación por Sexo de la Participación en Actividades Extracurriculares y la Percepción de Oportunidades de Vida en Adolescentes de Trinidad y Tobago
Zena R. Mello y Frank C. Worrell University ofCalifornia

Participation in extracurricular activities has surfaced as an important context for adolescent development and may be a fruitful avenue for fostering future attitudes, a concept shown to predict adolescent behaviors. In this study of youth from Trinidad and Tobago, we examined gender differences in activity participation and perceived life chances in 1,385 adolescents (59% male).Trinidadian adolescents were highly active, on average, participating in three activities. More males were involved in athletic and organized groups, whereas more females participated in artistic and religious activities. Artistic and athletic activity participation predicted positive perceived life chances, even after controlling for academic achievement. Artistic activities were especiallybene¿cial for predicting future attitudes for males compared to females. Keywords: gender variation, extracurricular activities, perceived life chances, future-orientation, Trinidad and Tobago, adolescents. La participación en actividades extracurriculares es un importante contexto para el desarrollo adolescente y puede ser una provechosa vía para promover actitudes acerca del futuro, un concepto quepermite predecir el comportamiento adolescente. En esta investigación se examinaron las diferencias por sexo de la participación en actividades y la percepción de las oportunidades de vida en 1.385 adolescentes de Trinidad y Tobago (59% varones). Los adolescentes eran muy activos, participando en promedio en tres actividades. Los hombres participaban más en deportes y grupos organizados, mientras lasmujeres lo hacían en actividades artísticas y religiosas. La participación en actividades artísticas y deportivas predijo una percepción positiva sobre las oportunidades de vida, aun después de controlar los logros académicos. Las actividades artísticas fueron especialmente bene¿ciosas para predecir las actitudes de los hombres respecto del futuro. Palabras clave: variación por sexo, actividadesextracurriculares, percepción de oportunidades de vida, orientación futura, Trinidad y Tobago, adolescentes.

Introduction Trinidad and Tobago is a twin island republic in the southern Caribbean with a population of a little over one million people. Despite a vibrant economy
Zena R. Mello, Cognition and Development, University of California, Berkeley, United States. Frank C. Worrell, Cognitionand Development, University of California, Berkeley, United States. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Zena R. Mello, Ph.D., Cognition and Development, University of California, 4511 Tolman Hall, Berkeley, CA, United States. E-mail: mello@berkeley.edu The study was conducted under the auspices of the School Leadership Center of Trinidad and Tobago. The authors would liketo thank Rebecca Anguiano for translation services.

and the highest per capita income in the Caribbean, poverty is widespread and rising (World Bank, 2000; Worrell, 2006a). Poverty rates are highly correlated to educational attainment among Trinidadian youth. For example, in 1998 less than half the student population passed the general or basic pro¿ciency exams in English and Mathematics(Worrell, 2006a). As a point of comparison, Trinidadian poverty rates are comparable to those reported for ethnic minority youth in the United States (US). Estimates indicate that about 33% of Trinidadian youth receive public assistance (Worrell, 2006a) compared to 40% of Hispanic and African American youth (National Adolescent Health Information Center, 2003). Further, some reports show that...