This study examines the roles of parents (monitoring, involvement and support at school), teachers (support) and peers (excess time spent with friends, peer rejection at school) in predicting risk behaviors (smoking and drinking) and mental well-being among 3499 Israeli-born and 434 immigrant adolescents ages 11, 13 and 15, in the 2006 WHO Health Behavior in School-Aged Children cross-national survey. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) showed that for native Israeli youth, in line with previous developmental literature, all three relationships - parents, teachers and peers - have a significant impact on both mental well-being and risk behaviors. However, for immigrant adolescents, it was the school environment (parental support at school, teacher support and peer relationships) that proved to be the significant predictor of risk behaviors and mental health outcomes. These findings suggest that the school is an important social support in the health and mental well-being of immigrant schoolchildren. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd.

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teacher immigrant immigrant population Alcohol Drinking drinking behavior Israel Interpersonal Relations psychological aspect health survey Europe Adolescent Psychology mental health human drinking social support child behavior ethnology Faculty adolescent health human relation psychological well being risk perception North America Humans Cross-Cultural Comparison Adolescent smoking male Emigrants and Immigrants child psychology parent prediction female young population university cultural factor Parent-Child Relations peer group child health Article high risk behavior Risk-Taking behavior disorder Adolescent Behavior Social Environment migration outcome assessment world health organization monitoring child parent relation Child