title: Identity consolidation and health risk behaviors in college students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the protective role of personal identity consolidation against health risk behaviors in college-attending emerging adults.
  
  
  METHODS
  A multisite sample of 1546 college students completed measures of personal identity consolidation and recent risk behavior engagement.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Multivariate Poisson regression indicated that personal identity consolidation was negatively related to binge drinking, illicit drug use, sexual risk behaviors, and risky driving. These findings were consistent across gender, ethnicity, and place of residence.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A consolidated sense of personal identity may protect college-attending emerging adults from health-compromising behaviors. Health professionals could incorporate an identity development component into college health programming.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Leonard M Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA. SSchwartz@med.miami.edu
authors.forename: Seth J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.forename: Larry F
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Forthun
authors.forename: Russell D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Ravert
authors.forename: Byron L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Zamboanga
authors.forename: Adriana J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Umaña-Taylor
authors.forename: Beryl J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Filton
authors.forename: Su Yeong
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Liliana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Weisskirch
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vernon
authors.forename: Yuliya
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shneyderman
authors.forename: Michelle K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: V Bede
authors.initials: VB
authors.lastname: Agocha
authors.forename: Monika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hudson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology; D001334:Automobile Driving; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012649:Self Concept; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D014495:Universities; D047568:Unsafe Sex / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult