High-School Dropouts in a Working-Class South African Community: Selected Characteristics and Risk-Taking Behaviour

Characteristics of teenage school dropouts in South Africa were studied. The prevalence of risk-taking behaviour among the dropouts (n=87) was compared to teenagers still in school (n=332). Data on risk-taking behaviours was available for 68 of the 87 dropouts. For items involving suicidal behaviour, the only statistically significant finding was the odds ratio of 3.52 for females still in school for seriously thinking about self-harm in a way which might result in death. (30 refs.)