Focus Area 7: At-Risk Behaviors
2. Unhealthy and Risky Behavior Patterns

Taking risks is a natural part of human development and essential to making the transition from adolescence to adulthood. To support that healthy development in a positive way with the young people you serve, you need to recognize when a youth may be engaging in behaviors that have gone beyond ‘normal’ and are potentially ‘unhealthy’ or ‘risky.’

This is a big responsibility and the more you can learn about it, the better prepared you will be.

Unhealthy risk-taking can take many forms. Such behaviors become even more troublesome when they occur on a regular basis. Here are some examples of unhealthy or risky behaviors in youth:

• Physical aggression, bullying, and fighting
• A pattern of psychological, physical, or sexual abuse toward others
• Intentional physical harm to self
• Carrying a weapon
• Behaviors resulting in unintentional injury
• Behaviors resulting in unintentional violence
• Habitual criminal activity
• Use of alcohol and/or excessive drinking
• Use of drugs or chemicals that were not prescribed by a health professional
• Addiction to tobacco
• Excessive use of electronic vapor products e.g. e-Cigs
• Driving while intoxicated or impaired
• Not using condoms during sex
• Sexual activity resulting in sexually transmitted infections and/or unintentional pregnancy
• Remaining in physical, psychological, or sexually abusive relationships
• Unhealthy eating patterns - excessive eating, binging, purging or excessive restriction
• Extreme lack of exercise
• Poor diet leading to health problems
• Regularly not wearing a seatbelt
• Regularly not wearing a motorcycle helmet
• Regularly engaging in reckless/dangerous driving
• Distracted driving – using mobile devices while operating a vehicle

This list certainly does not cover all risky behaviors but it should get you thinking.

Warning Signs of Unhealthy & Risky Behaviors

Have you ever been in a situation where you were not directly seeing someone engaging in a risky behavior, but you were noticing warning signs?

Warning signs can be a precursor to a behavior becoming potentially dangerous. Being alert for warning signs will help you intervene earlier.

While not an exhaustive list, these are common examples of potential warning signs that you should be aware of:

• Increasing mood changes (e.g. temper flare-ups, irritability, defensiveness)
• Sudden academic problems (e.g. poor attendance, low grades, disciplinary action)
• Changing friends and a reluctance to have parents/family get to know the new friends
• Physical or mental changes (e.g. memory lapses, poor concentration, lack of coordination, slurred speech, etc.)
• "Wannabe" or gang activity
• Running away from home
• Significant isolation or withdrawal
• A "nothing matters" attitude (e.g. lack of involvement or loss of interest in former interests, general low energy)
• Self-abusive and/or destructive behaviors
• Finding substances (e.g., drugs or alcohol) in youth’s room or personal effects
• Harming animals
• Suicidal threats
• Fire-setting
• Frequent lying
• Bullying behavior

Not all warning signs are going to result in harm but the fact that there is an increased risk of harm to a young person who is exhibiting warning signs is the reason you need to be alert and aware.

Distinguishing between healthy and unhealthy behavior can be challenging. There is not always a bright line that distinguishes healthy behaviors from unhealthy or risky behaviors. But there are clues to be aware of:

• There are several concerning behaviors happening at the same time
• The concerning behaviors appear suddenly
• The behaviors are extreme
• The behaviors persist for a significant amount of time and cause other problems

Use these clues to guide your decision-making when determining how you will respond to warning signs of unhealthy and risky behaviors in youth. 

Risk Factors & Protective Factors

In the past two decades, there has been much research on risk and protective factors.¹ The findings show that these factors and their influence can vary depending on the youth’s developmental stage.

In short, risk factors increase a youth’s potential to engage in unhealthy behaviors while protective factors reduce the risk of unhealthy behaviors.

Everything you do as a youth worker will likely involve strategies that aim to prevent problems associated with known risk factors while promoting and building on protective factors with the youth you serve.

You are in an excellent position to help them achieve this critical balance.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)² offers these definitions of risk and protective factors:

• Risk factors are characteristics at the biological, psychological, family, community, or cultural level that precede and are associated with a higher likelihood of negative outcomes.

• Protective factors are characteristics associated with a lower likelihood of negative outcomes or that reduce a risk factor’s impact. Protective factors may be seen as positive countering events.

Risk factors tend to be positively correlated with one another and negatively correlated to protective factors. In other words, youth with some risk factors have a greater chance of experiencing even more risk factors, and they are less likely to have protective factors.

Risk and protective factors also tend to have a cumulative effect on the development—or reduced development—of behavioral health issues. Young people with multiple risk factors have a greater likelihood of developing a condition that impacts their physical or mental health; young people with multiple protective factors are at a reduced risk.

These correlations underscore the importance of early intervention and interventions that target multiple factors.

Risk Factors:

Protective Factors: