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Few public places are designed with due consideration to the needs and preferences of teens. Teens in public spaces are often viewed with apprehension from other user groups. Teens hanging out in public spaces are always observed with caution and are sometimes associated with negative behaviour by other community members. In designing public spaces that are suitable for the teens and not alienating them to other members of the community, it is necessary to understand how teens perceive their environment and what they expect from it. The psychological, social and emotional development determines the teens’ preferences regarding public spaces. This research attempts to understand how teens perceive and value those places and the factors that influence teens’ preferences in public spaces. This study aims to deduce some factors that influence teens’ preferences and behaviour from an environmental psychology perspective and then test these factors on a sample of teenagers in an Egyptian setting.

An empirical study was conducted with teens in two districts in Cairo, Egypt: “Dokki” and “Sheikh Zayed,” to understand how teens perceive their neighbourhoods, identify preferred places and discern factors that influence their preferences. A sample of 67 teens, aged between 13 and 19 years old, in which 31 were males, and 36 were females, completed a survey that allowed teens to identify and rate their experiences. This occurred using a map-based mobile application to foster more active engagement by participants, in which they identified their favourite places, the behaviour associated with these places, what teens do there – when, and with whom, as well as their rating of the place.

The most important conclusion drawn from this study was that teens’ preferences are linked to their cognitive, emotional and social development. They influence and are associated with essential aspects such as the sense of freedom, sense of safety, self-identity, enjoyment, thrill-seeking and peer relationships. Therefore, it is important to adopt a new perspective to the design of public spaces to create teen-friendly places.

Adopt a new perspective to public space design to create teen-friendly places by adopting an environmental psychology lens to shed light on the social and psychological dimensions of the built environment.

Marketing in libraries has been widely discussed in literature, but is often limited to either prescriptive writing on the application of marketing theory to libraries, or descriptions of marketing at individual libraries with little theoretical basis. The purpose of this paper is to investigate marketing to teens as practiced by public libraries, and to discover whether the application of marketing mix concepts to practice is a conscious decision by libraries.

Staff were interviewed at two large New Zealand public libraries to discover whether they considered marketing targeting theory and marketing mix concepts when marketing to teens.

It was found that while both libraries did some formal teen marketing, the majority of marketing was conducted more informally by individual branch libraries. Libraries struggled in particular with defining their teen users, and the marketing mix was dealt with in an ad hoc manner. Overall, library marketing was more tactical than strategic.

Library managers can review their development of marketing strategies for teens in the light of the findings described in this paper. A closer application of marketing concepts can help with the development of marketing plans.

This paper aims to draw together research which links the moral panic about the “adipose” body during the first five years of the millennium to the worsening mental health of US teens. Noting the way medical advocacy biased the news coverage in the quality press in the UK, the USA and Canada through its emphasis on weight gain in child and youth populations, it reviews evidence of a relationship between eating disorders, body dissatisfaction and the mental health of teens.

Building on research which suggests that teens ' misperception of their body can impact their mental health, the paper proposes reflexive embodiment, defined as the way an individual interprets and evaluates their own body morphology in relationship to the medical profession’s articulation of norms for weight classes, as a new construct for exploring the impact of the medical debates about obesity.

Using data sets from the US Youth Risk Behavior Survey gathered in 2001 and 2007 to compare both weight status and weight class accuracy, the study finds evidence that teens ' perceptions of their bodies have changed more than their actual weight. Noting a complex relationship between teens ' misperception of their weight status and mental health risks associated with depression and suicide, the paper explores ways that the medical stigmatization of the adipose body, and the ensuing consequences of gendered weight bias, have consequences for teen well-being.

This case study only provides an exploratory analysis of an hypothesis suggested by the theory of reflexive embodiment.

Refocus health professions on the mental health of teens.

Evidence of health implications of reflexive embodiment adds to a growing critique of medicalization of adipose body morphology.

The analysis of data contributes to a growing concern about medical stigmatization of “fat” bodies as unhealthy.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which negative online risk experiences (information breaches, explicit content exposure, cyberbullying and sexual solicitations) cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in adolescents. The study also explores whether teens’ short-term coping responses serve to mitigate PTSD or, instead, act as a response to stress from online events.

The study utilized a web-based diary design over the course of two months. Data were analyzed using hierarchical linear modeling with repeated measures.

The study confirmed that explicit content exposure, cyberbullying and sexual solicitations (but not information breaches) evoke symptoms of PTSD. Analyses also indicated that teens engage in active and communicative coping after they experience post-traumatic stress, regardless of risk type or frequency.

The authors found that teens took active measures to cope with online risks soon after they felt threatened (within a week). Actively coping with stressful situations has been shown to enhance adolescent resilience and reduce long-term negative effects of risk exposure. If these early coping behaviors can be detected, social media platforms may be able to embed effective interventions to support healthy coping processes that can further protect teens against long-term harm from exposure to online risks.

This is the first study to examine situational PTSD symptoms related to four types of adolescent online risk exposure within the week exposure occurred. By applying two competing theoretical frameworks (the adolescent resilience framework and transactional theory of stress), the authors show empirical evidence that suggests short-term coping responses are likely a stress reaction to PTSD, not a protective factor against it.

This research aims to examine some of the main sources of frustration in the relationship between retailers and teen shoppers and the coping strategies they use as they interact with each other in a mall environment.

Data were collected from retailers and teen shoppers via depth interviews and the data were coded using a grounded theory approach.

Retailers in the study expressed frustration with teen shoppers arising from disruptive behavior, and refusal to accept assistance. Retailers attempt to deal with these issues at both the individual and the corporate level. Teens' frustration with retailers stems from being ignored, and/or treated with suspicion. Teens also indicated that retailers attempt to manipulate and persuade them. Teens deal with these issues by neutralizing or proactively coping with the situation.

The results of this study provide some significant insights for retailers. Most of the retail informants did not report any specific training with respect to interacting with teenage shoppers. The results of this study, however, suggest that providing retail employees with an understanding of teens' shopping behaviors and perceptions might promote more positive interactions with teen shoppers. This study utilized two independent sets of data to capture informants' perceptions and self‐reported behaviors. Studying actual interactions between retailers and teen shoppers might help to address any potential bias associated with self‐reported data.

The findings suggest that it is not a question of whether or not retailers should interact with teens but rather a question of how to interact with them so they do not feel ignored but also not pressured or treated with suspicion. Retailers should review the current strategies they use when customers first enter the store. By allowing teens to initiate the interaction, they are likely to feel more in control and less pressured.

Very little, if any, previous research has combined data from both retailers and teen shoppers in one study. Novel managerial suggestions are made as well as conceptual contributions in the under‐researched area of teen persuasion detection and persuasion coping.

The purpose of this study was to analyse the hyperlinks leading to six teen health websites in order to assess the visibility of teen health web portals as well as to discover which websites refer teens to reliable health information.

An environmental scan of the web was conducted to find sample health websites for teens. Inlink data was gathered using Google Webmaster Tools, and the inlink sources were classified by the type of creator.

The teen health websites in this study had a low level of visibility on the web compared to general health web portals (such as Medline Plus, for example) and a weak level of referrals from health‐related groups compared to other organisations such as schools and public libraries. Many non‐healthcare related websites are linking to teen health information, demonstrating that teens' health information needs are being met by sources that lack expertise in health care.

Due to the small sample of six websites, generalisations beyond the context of the study are difficult to infer. The Google Webmaster inlink tool does not guarantee 100 per cent coverage and some inlinks may not have been captured by the tool, although this number is most likely minimal. The results of this study present a snapshot rather than an all‐inclusive view of the visibility of teen health websites and offer a starting point for further investigation.

The weak network of inlinks leading from reliable health care providers is a lost opportunity for health care professionals to reach young people.

Due to the weak network of inlinks from reliable health information sources, teens may not be accessing accurate and reliable health information. This could have a potential cost in terms of health outcomes.

The study investigates health information for teens, a population that increasingly uses the web as a source for health information. The authors used an approach that has not been used before in the study of teens and health information on the web.

The purpose of this case study is to examine the National Institute on Drug Abuse's (NIDA) use of its Sara Bellum Blog (SBB) as a means of engaging teens in the science behind drug abuse/addiction.

This case study presents how the SBB was conceptualized and is implemented. Metrics for monitoring the SBB are mostly qualitative and measure the extent of engagement (customer feedback, coverage by others).

Teens want to watch videos, see photos, hear real stories about other teens, be able to ask questions about drugs anonymously, not be preached to, and be stimulated to think for themselves. However, the extent of SBB comments was lower than expected. Multiple communication venues are needed, including engagement among intermediaries and role models for teens, such as teachers.

Data presented are process measures of use and types of use, not outcomes based.

The use of social media is a worldwide phenomenon, as is drug abuse among teens. Governments across countries can use lessons learned to inform the development of their own blogs and/or other social media tools.

While there are constraints on government agencies' use of social media, NIDA is a Federal institute that has found a way to communicate directly with teens about the sensitive topic of drugs. NIDA works with a Teen Advisory Group composed of a diverse representation of youth to inform the development of teen‐oriented messages and materials. NIDA fuses the use of social media across NIDA channels (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube) with science‐based information to empower teens to make healthy decisions.

This paper aims to provide concrete best practices to frontlines young adult and teen librarians for building positive, effective and welcoming relationships with young adults with disabilities at the library. The scope of this paper will include customer service strategies for working with young adults with disabilities. It will also feature strategies for making existing teen programming more accessible to young adults with disabilities.

By using the author’s professional library experience and citing other published works, this paper will present customer service strategies for librarians and library staff. It will share strategies for leading programs for and with teens with disabilities and will also address working with parents and caregivers of teens with disabilities.

This paper recommends specific strategies, so teen librarians are better equipped to provide inclusive customer service to teens with disabilities in libraries. These strategies are as follows: speak directly to the teen, consider communication and language, develop a rapport, respect their privacy, respect and encourage independence, think person-centered, invite their input, invite them to programs, be their advocate and give them permission to be teens. In addition, this paper shares various techniques for working with parents and caregivers, as developing positive relationships with parents is integral to cultivating positive relationships with teens.

Because of teen’s unique developmental, social and emotional needs, librarians require a specific set of competencies for positive engagement. Unless librarians have a background in accessibility or experience with someone with disabilities, they are inadequately prepared to address the needs of this population, specifically regarding customer service to teens with disabilities. This paper aims to build capacity of librarians by expanding knowledge and skills for working with teens with disabilities. As a result, librarians will be able to increase their competency and be equipped with concrete customer service tools. Librarians will be motivated to improve the accessibility of their libraries.

This study aims to investigate teenagers'perceptions about buzz marketing and the issue of disclosure.

A structured focus group methodology was used in the study.

The paper finds that teenagers like being buzz agents, they view this role as a job, they usually conceal the fact that they are buzz agents, and they generally see no ethical dilemma in not revealing their status.

It is important to establish a relationship that encourages honesty and transparency in the marketing exchange process when teens are used as buzz agents.

The paper provides useful information on the marketing exchange process when teens are used as buzz agents.

Retailers agree that segmenting and developing an understanding of target segments are important inputs to differentiating products and enhancing shopping propensity. Most shopping behavior and choice profiling tends to generalize rather than develop useful segment information. Thus, most results are not useful for targeting and positioning. A survey was conducted to examine shopping choice behavior of a very important and economically viable segment of this teen market called the “later aged female teen”. It was found that a typical later aged female teen was born to shop. Making the right choice, especially for her clothing, is important both from a social affiliation and a social influence position. This group felt brand (fit, look, and style) to be the most important attribute to consider in apparel choice and later aged female teens wanted excitement in their shopping venue. Shopping was important and there were risks associated with an incorrect choice of their clothing. Finally, the desire to stay and shop at the local mall seemed to be a function of the mall composition and excitement.