YOUTH RISK BEHAVIOR SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM

The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) is a social epidemiologic surveillance system established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in order to monitor health-risk behaviors among high school students, evaluate the impact of national and local efforts to prevent health-risk behaviors, and monitor progress toward achieving Healthy People 2000 and Healthy People 2010 objectives.

The YRBSS includes national, state, and local school-based surveys of high school students. The national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys (YRBS), representing a national sample of students, were conducted in 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, and 1999, and continue to be conducted on a periodic basis. Special surveys include the 1995 National College Health Risk Behavior Survey and the 1998 National Alternative High School YRBS. The School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) assesses school health policies and programs at the state, district, school, and classroom levels.

The YRBSS provides prevalence estimates of six categories of priority health-risk behaviors: (1) behaviors that contribute to unintentional and intentional injuries; (2) tobacco use; (3) alcohol and other drug use; (4) sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases; (5) unhealthy diet behaviors; and (6) physical inactivity. Data and documentation are available for all years of the national YRBS, and for both the 1995 National College Health Risk Behavior Survey and the 1998 National Alternative High School YRBS. Fact sheets and brochures on specific topics are also available. Numerous informational products are available from the CDC.

Dawn M. Upchurch

(see also: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Risk Assessment, Risk Management; Surveillance; Surveys )

Bibliography

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2000). Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance—1999. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dash/yrbs/index.htm.

Kolbe, L.; Kann, L.; and Collins, J. (1993). "Overview of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System." Public Health Report 108 (Supp. 1):2–10.