Adolescents are generally thought to be healthy. However, adolescent risk behaviours, such as substance use, a poor diet or early sexual activity, are topics that keep generating high academic and media interest. Despite considerable explanatory efforts, not much is known yet about the proximate and distal determinants as well as the psychosocial and health-related consequences of risk behaviour in adolescence. The study is among the first to systematically examine the antecedents and consequences of risk behaviour from a comparative perspective over time and across countries. Matthias Richter presents findings from several empirical studies and extends current theoretical and empirical knowledge on adolescent risk behaviour.
This book is valuable reading for academics, practitioners and policy makers in a range of disciplines: sociology, psychology, educational sciences, public health and nursing sciences, with a special focus on adolescent risk behaviour.

Vorwort
Patterns, Determinants and Consequences

Autorentext
Dr. Matthias Richter is a Professor for Medical Sociology and Social Epidemiology at the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM) at the University of Bern.

Zusammenfassung
The present study is a collection and systematic summary of several papers which were published over the last five years. The publication of this volume would not be possible without the help of many people. My special thanks go to Prof. Dr. Klaus Hurrelmann, former head of the Department of Prevention and Health Promotion at the School of Public Health and now Professor of Public Health and Education at the Hertie School of Governance for his loyal, friendly and stirring support and collaboration. He has indeed broadened my view on research in adolescence and public health. Further, I would like to thank my c- leagues who worked with me on the different papers, first of all my former colleagues from the University of Bielefeld: David Bowles, Dr. Michael Erhart, Dr. Anja Langness, Prof. Dr. Anja Leppin, Dr. Rafael Mikolajczyk. I also wish to thank my German colleagues and co-authors for their valuable advice and support: Prof. Dr. Andreas Klocke (FH Fra- furt/Main), Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Melzer (TU Dresden) and Dr. Andreas Mielck (Helmholtzzentrum, München). My special thanks go out to Dr. Thomas Lampert (Robert Koch-Institut, Berlin) for his friendship, his interest and engagement which lead to many joint ideas, projects and publications. Further, I express my sincere thanks to my international colleagues who worked with me on the different studies summarized in this v- ume: Prof. Dr. Candace Currie (University of Edinburgh, UK), Prof. Dr.

Inhalt
Conceptual framework.- Material and methods.- Results of the empirical studies.- Discussion and perspectives.