bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
English and Spanish Acquisition by Limited-Language-Proficient Mexican Americans in a Three-Year Maintenance Bilingual Program
Authors: Escamilla Kathy , Medina Marcello
Published: March 2007

The primary purpose of this investigation is to ascertain the long-term effect of a maintenance bilingual education program (K-2) on the acquisition of Spanish (L1) and English (L 2) for two principal linguistically homogeneous groups ofMexican-American children who were all limited in English (LEP) as well as Spanish (LSP) proficiency. For purposes of comparative analysis, these program participants were divided into a most-limited-language-proficient group (n = 74) and a limited-language proficient group (n = 113). Although the primary analysis compared L, and L2 acquisition, the second analysis examined changes in oral English and Spanish for the two principal groups at kindergarten and second grade. The most significant overall results related to the additive effects that the MBE program fostered for the two groups'oral L1 and L2.
Liberal Gender Role Attitudes and Academic Achievement among Mexican-Origin Adolescents in Two Houston Inner-City Catholic Schools
Authors: Valenzuela Angela
Published: March 2007

This study examines the relation of liberal attitudes toward women to academic achievement among 97 seventh-and eighth-grade Mexican-origin adolescents attending two Houston inner-city Catholic schools. These liberal attitudes refer to views regarding the rights and roles of women in society. Results show that liberal attitudes toward women are significantly related to Mexican-originfemales'academic achievement, as measured by their grades in mathematics and language arts. This association suggests thatfemales modify their achievement as a result of theirperceptions of compatibility between liberal attitudes and academic success or socioeconomic mobility. Moreover, to the degree that such attitudes reflect the social and cultural resources of educational institutions, they may correspond implicitly to cultural capital.
Ethnic and Gender Differences in the Diagnostic Profiles of Substance Abusers
Authors: Dassori Albana M. , Neff James A. , Hoppe Sue K.
Published: March 2007

The aim of the study was to evaluate ethnic and gender differences in the diagnostic profiles of patients first admitted to the alcohol/drug rehabilitation unit of a state hospital. The majority of the patients (66%) had more than one diagnosis. African-American patients were significantly more likely to have a single diagnosis, however. In terms of primary diagnosis, Mexican Americans were more likely to have an alcoholrelated disorder while African-Americans were more likely to have a drug related disorder Drug-related disorders also complicate the diagnostic profile of African-American patients who had a primary diagnosis of an alcohol-related disorder Ethnic differences in type of drug abused were observed. African Americans were more likely to use stimulants/hallucinogens, and Mexican Americans were more likely to use depressants. A drug-related disorder was the most common diagnosis among females across all ethnic groups. Findings pointto the need of developing gender/ethnic-sensitive treatment programs. Potential ethnic and gender biases in the diagnostic evaluation of substance abuse patients are discussed.
Latinos and the 1992 Los Angeles Riots: A Behavioral Sciences Perspective
Authors: Hayes-Bautista David E. , Schink Werner O. , Hayes-Bautista Maria
Published: March 2007

The role of Latinos in the Los Angeles civil disturbance of 1992 has not been explored. An early explanation was that Latino residents of South Central LosAngeles participated in the riots because they were CentralAmerican, poor, isolated, and unemployed. Census data from the Summary Tape File 3 show that Latinos in South Central are virtually identical to Latinos living in neglected areas outside of South Central and not markedly different from more affluent Latinos in nonneglected areas. Thus Latino participation cannot be explained by virtue of internal composition. This article suggests that Latino participation can be better explained by using a collective behavior approach. The civil disturbance occurred in two distinct phases. The arson phase was a classic replay of the long, hot summers of the mid 1960s and showed elements of the solidaristic and expressive behavior so common to that period and did not have any noticeable Latino participation. The generalized looting phase, which did include noticeable Latino involvement, was individualistic and instrumental, akin to looting that often takes place in the case of a natural disaster. In conclusion, it is noted that collective behavior can be quite useful in understanding Latino collective behavior, fads, taste, and public opinion formation.
Development of the College Stress Inventory for Use with Hispanic Populations: A Confinnatory Analytic Approach
Authors: Solberg V. Scott , Hale James Bradford , Villarreal Pete , Kavanagh Jack
Published: March 2007

A 21-item College Stress Inventory was developedfor use with Hispanic students using confirmatory factor analytic techniques with a sample of 164 Mexican American and Laino American college students. As hypothesized, evidence for a three-factor solution consisting of Academic Stress, Social Stress, and Financial Stress was found The Academic Stress subscale addresses issues related to balancing academic and family responsibilities, taking exams, meetingfamily expectations, and handling the academic workload. The Social Stress subscale addresses issues related to meeting peers of one's own ethnicity, finding supportive relationships, and handling relationships. The Financial Stress subscale refers to issues involving paying academicfees, owing money, paying for rent and food, and having money for recreation activities. Additional analyses indicated that the Social Stress scale may be composed of two subfactors, one addressing general interpersonal issues, and one addressing interpersonal issues due to one's ethnicity.
Unemployment and Underemployment among Mexican-Origin Workers
Authors: De Anda Roberto M.
Published: March 2007

This study documents, for the first time, the incidence of underemployment among workers of Mexican descent. The results indicate that there were twice as many underemployed Mexican males relative to their White counterparts in 1987. The disparity for women was also substantial with 1.6 times as many Mexicans as Whites underemployed. Joblessness among Mexicans accounts for less than one third of their total underemployment. The data also show that young and poorly educated Mexican workers are overrepresented among the underemployed. Additionally, underemployed workers are concentrated in peripherylike sectors of the economy. Data come from the 1987 annual demographic file of the Current Population Survey.
Reading and Study Behaviors of Fourth-Grade Hispanics: Can Teachers Assess Risk?
Authors: Frontera Lucy S. , Horowitz Rosalind
Published: March 2007

In this study, teachers assessed content reading and study behaviors of 57fourth-grade Mexican American children attending a low-income urban school in south Texas. Questionnaire items were significantly correlated with traditional at-risk indicators such as grade point average (GPA), age, and standardized achievement. Teachers' assessments of students'work habits, such as the student's completion of homework and class assignments and the student's ability to get organized and understand directions, were important indicators of students 'success in school as measured by GPA and achievement. This research indicates that the identification of good study practices can be critical in targeting at-risk students and that classroom teachers are an essential component in the assessment of these behaviors. The study concludes by recommending teachers' input in making the decision about who is at risk. Further, the results would suggest that teachers give appropriate attention to the critical assessment and teaching of content reading and study behaviors early in the elementary grades.
Parents and Siblings as Early Resources for Young Children's Learning in Mexican-Descent Families
Authors: Perez-Granados Deanne R. , Callanan Maureen A.
Published: March 2007

This study explored the ways in which both parents and older siblings are important resources for young children 's learning in the home context. Parents from 50 Mexicandescent families were interviewed in their homes and were asked questions regarding the kinds of causal questions their children ask, and the different skills their children learn from one another. Parents reported that their children ask questions about complex phenomena in important domains such as biology, physics, and behavior; and parents generally feel good about, and encourage, these questions. Parents also indicated that their children learn different skills from one another; younger siblings learn mostly academic skills from older siblings, and older siblings learn mostly social skills from younger siblings. Both children are reported to learn mostly through observation and imitation of one another Findings are discussed in relation to the issues of "match" between homes and schools as complementary contexts for young children's learning.
Use of Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-IT with Substance Abuse Patients
Authors: Lessenger Leslie H.
Published: March 2007

The Acculturation Rating ScaleforMexican Americans-II (ARSMA-II) was administered to 105 adult male MexicanAmerican substance abuse patients. The subscales werefound to have good internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha = .87 and .82 for the Mexican Orientation scale [MOS] and the Anglo Orientation scale [AOS], respectively). A Pearson correlation of .69 was obtained between the ARSMA-II acculturation score and Mendoza 's Cultural Lifestyle Inventory cultural shift. A Pearson product moment correlation of .20 (p < .05) was obtained between the ARSMA-II AOS score and the Cultural Identification scale (CIS) Anglo-American identification score. The correlation between the ARSMA-II MOS score and the CIS Mexican American identification score was not significant. Adjustment of cutting scores to determine acculturation levels and modes may be appropriate when the scale is used with a research sample differing from the normative sample on important variables.
The Academic Achievement Game
Authors: NEWMAN MICHAEL
Published: March 2007

Using the notion of design developed as part of the New London Group's Multiliteracies Project, this qualitative multicase study examines undergraduate academic literacy as a multimodal achievement game. Retrospective interviews and textual analyses revealed a series of operations on course content that constituted moves in the game. The goal of the game was to find, move, and display content, including not only facts but also concepts and forms of situated knowledge that would gain the highest points on assessments. Better “players” were more aware than their lower achieving counterparts of the game as specific activity different from learning. They also had more nuanced and planned versions of the operations that began with what was expected on assessments and moved backwards toward sources. Findings support forms of preparing students for academic success through the multiliteracies pedagogy that combines consciousness raising through overt instruction with forms of immersion and critical analysis.
Second Graders Sharing Writing
Authors: DYSON ANNE HAAS
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to examine one type of literacy event in a second grade classroom—“free writing” and, especially, its sharing time phase—from the perspectives of the classroom teacher and selected class members. The study was based on data collected over a 14-week period in a second-grade classroom. Data gathered included observation notes, audiotaped recordings of the children's talk while writing, written products, and child interviews. The study's findings suggest a social fact or dynamic operating in classrooms that has implications for both researchers and practitioners concerned with school writing; that dynamic is the individual child's social life within the classroom itself and, particularly, his or her social interpretations of school writing tasks (what each is trying to do, for whom, and why).
Social-Cognitive Ability and Writing Performance
Authors: KROLL BARRY M.
Published: March 2007

This article responds to Burleson and Rowan's (1985) discussion of the relationship between social-cognitive ability and writing skill. A study is reported in which 49 9-year-old children completed a social-cognition task, wrote four compositions (literary/narrative, expressive, referential, and persuasive), and produced oral messages. Correlational analyses showed that social-cognitive ability was most strongly related to the oral task (r = .37), weakly related to the literary/narrative task (r = .25), and very weakly (nonsignificantly) related to performance on the other writing tasks.
The Reform Tradition in Nineteenth-Century Composition Teaching
Authors: WOODS WILLIAM F.
Published: March 2007

The composition teaching we tend to associate with nineteenth-century schools was exemplified by A. S. Hill's courses at Harvard, which emphasized correctness, clarity, stylistic refinements, and organization. But there was also a “reform tradition” that stressed the importance of the student's interests and experience, and saw the writing task as based on observation, description, speaking, and listening. Inspired partly by romantic educational theories from the continent, this tradition grew out of the social and educational reforms of the 1830s and 1840s and provided the basis for the early progressive teaching of the 1890s.
Coherence and Cognitive Style
Authors: WILLIAMS JAMES D.
Published: March 2007

The primary hypothesis was that field independent subjects would produce discourse that would be judged more coherent than the discourse of field dependent subjects. A total of 44 subjects in their first term of college composition were selected from a group of 60 volunteers from two universities and a community college. Each subject was administered the Culture Fair Intelligence Test, the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire, and the Group Embedded Figures Test. There were five research conditions: Three evoked oral responses, and one evoked a written response. A group of readers unaware of the nature of the research evaluated each response holistically, rating it in terms of a coherence scale. Coherence scores were then analyzed in relation to cognitive style classification. The primary hypothesis was supported by the data. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated significant cognitive style effect, F(6,25) = 4.82, p <.0001. The correlation between cognitive style and coherence was significant, r(32) = .54, p <.002. The results suggest that cognitive style is a significant variable in explaining differences between good writers and poor ones.
Explaining How to Play a Game
Authors: KROLL BARRY M.
Published: March 2007

Students in grades 5, 7, 9, 11, and college were first taught to play a board game by watching a demonstration film and then were given the task of writing directions for the game. These written explanations were analyzed to examine grade-related changes in the overall informativeness of the explanations, in the kinds of elements that students tended to explain adequately, in the extent to which students included orienting information for their readers, and in the degree to which students adopted elements of a formal (or “official”) approach when explaining the game. The results provide a rich description of the growth of students' informative writing skills between the upper-elementary grades and the beginning of college.
An Analysis of Writing Activities
Authors: DeGROFF LINDA-JO CAPLE , LEU DONALD J.
Published: March 2007

This study examined three recent language arts textbook programs to determine the frequency of writing activities, the nature of writing tasks, and the frequency of process-approach activities such as selecting topics, prewriting, sharing, revising, and publishing. Results indicate that elementary school students receive in the central part of the lessons in their language arts textbooks opportunities to write an averange of approximately one piece of extended writing per week. Typically, the topic of the piece is selected by the text rather than the student; there is no prewriting activity; the piece is not shared with a teacher or peers; revision, which is seldom suggested, focuses on editing surface features, not content; and students' products are not published. Recommendations for improvements in writing activities are considered.
Response, Revision, Disciplinarity
Authors: PRIOR PAUL
Published: March 2007

Current social perspectives on writing and disciplinary enculturation are generally grounded in theories of discourse communities. Although assumptions underlying these theories have been seriously questioned, few studies of situated writing have applied alternate theories. In this article, I explore a sociohistoric notion of disciplinarity in a case study of how a sociology student's dissertation prospectus is negotiated in a graduate seminar. A microhistorical narrative of a response episode in the seminar and subsequent textual revision is contextualized in histories of local activity. Analysis of the seminar response foregrounds emergent, nonlinear, discursively heterogeneous practices of disciplinary sense-making. Analysis of the text foregrounds practices whereby situated histories of textual production and reception are transformed into purified representations of the discipline and the author. Finally, the analysis details how the disciplinary work of revision in this setting was socially distributed and interactively achieved.
The Reduction of Prejudice Through Mass Media
Authors: Rubin Irwin M.
Published: March 2007

Two programs aimed at reducing prejudice were compared; one an educational television course (N=190) and the other a six week summer workshop (N=50). The participants of both pro grams were members of the teaching profession from Boston and surrounding areas. No differential effects were found on an in strument which measures the rationality of an individual's thinking toward minority groups. The television course was found to be significantly less effective when compared to the workshop in increasing an individual's level of sympathetic identification to ward minority groups. It was concluded that the impersonal, one- way nature of television may reduce its value as a medium of influence for people whose attitudes are based on more affective vs. cognitive factors.
The Relationship Between Extent of Educative Behavior By Adults and Their Attitudes Toward Continuing Education
Authors: Seaman Don F. , Schroeder Wayne L.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship be tween the extent of educative behavior by adults and their attitudes toward continuing education. Ninety-eight randomly selected em ployees of the Florida Power Corporation responded to the Leisure Activity Survey which measured educative behavior and to a form of the semantic differential which was designed to measure atti tudes toward continuing education. A positive correlation was found between the level of education of the participants and the extent of their educative behavior at the .05 level of signifiance. No significant relationship was found between attitudes toward continuing education and extent of educative behavior.
Self-Actualization and Adjustment in Retirement: Implications for Program Development
Authors: Keahey Scott P. , Seaman Don F.
Published: March 2007

This study investigated the utilization of self-actualization concepts in the development of educational programs to aid suc cessful adjustment in retirement. The population sample consisted of retirees in six stratified social groups reflecting rural, urban, minority, and veteran backgrounds. Extent of self-actualization was determined by the Personal Orientation Inventory and adjust ment to retirement was measured by the Retirement Descriptive Index. A partial canonical correlation and chi square were utilized to treat the data. A positive relationship, significant at the .05 level, was found on the two combined roots for all scales on the R.D.I. and all but one scale of the P.O.I. It was concluded that self-actualizing concepts are definitely involved with successful adjustment to retirement.
The Design and Evaluation of a Rural Land Use Planning Simulation Game
Authors: Barkley William D. , Dickinson Gary
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to design and evaluate a simulation game using land capability data to teach rural adults certain principles and competencies required for effective land use planning. Six instructional objectives involving the acquisition and application of knowledge as well as the modification of attitudes were specified and a board game was devised as the instructional technique. Evaluation instruments were constructed and the simu lation game was revised in a pilot study. A field project was then carried out in the East Kootenay area of British Columbia where 40 rural people residing on land holdings of 50 or more acres par ticipated in the simulation game. Post-test mean scores were com pared to pre-test means and three of the eight objective and sub total scores showed statistically significant gains while the remain ing changes were non-significant but in the hypothesized direction. Test scores correlated significantly with some characteristics of the participants and with some factors related to success in playing the simulation game. The study discusses factors that may have influenced the results obtained and concludes that simulation gaming is potentially a useful technique for educating rural adults about land use planning.
Effects of a Study Guide On Independent Adult Learning
Authors: Kotaska Janelyn G. , Dickinson Gary
Published: March 2007

This study investigated the effect of a study guide on learn ing by nurses using an independent study packet. One experimen tal group (N=18) received the packet with a study guide, another group (N=17) received the same materials without a study guide, and a control group (N=21) completed a post-test only. Both experimental groups had significantly greater mean post-test scores than did the control group, but the mean scores for the two experi mental groups were almost identical. Analysis of variance con ducted with the two experimental groups indicated a significant interaction between method of instruction and type of educational preparation for nursing as well as type of nursing employment. The potential influence of unmeasured and uncontrolled variables made it difficult to conclude that the study guide had no effect on learning. The results of the study suggest, however, that the com ponents of individual methods of adult education should be exam ined carefully to determine whether they are essential to adult learning, and in what form they should be provided if shown to be necessary.
Behavior Modification and Contingency Manage Ment in a Graduate Adult Education Program
Authors: Boshier Roger
Published: March 2007

Twenty participants in a graduate adult education research course were randomly assigned to a control or experimental group. The experimental group received a reinforcer for making correct responses in structured-disscussions concerning the course content. After seven sessions the experimental subjects entered the control condition while the former control subjects received the reinforcer. At the end of each session participants rated aspects of the sessions and their learning on five Likert-type scales. They also completed questionnaires indicating the extent of their study behavior in the week preceding each session. Experimental subjects made more frequent "correct" responses, rated the sessions more positively, and manifested a greater number of desired study behaviors than control subjects. The new experimental subjects showed an incre ment in their rate of responding and study behaviors. The possible contaminating effects of expectancy and other extraneous variables are discussed. It is suggested that adult educators have been slow to utilize contingency management but should do so because of its power, simplicity, and utility.
Cognitive Styles and the Adult Learner
Authors: Cawley Richard W.V. , Miller Sheila A. , Milligan James N.
Published: March 2007

This research investigated relational and analytic cognitive styles among adult learners. It was hypothesized that in any selected population of adults, both polar analytic and polar rela tional, as well as mixed and conflicted, cognitive styles will be found; that relational cognitors will prefer a more informal learn ing environment and analytic cognitors will not; and that cogni tive style will be related to life style preference. The instrument used was found to be an effective gauge of cognitive style, and data on both styles were in fact collected. Predictions about learning environment preference were given reasonable support. Life style preference was not conclusively demonstrated, but enough evidence was collected to suggest the usefulness of further investigation.
Comparative Analysis of Program Development Processes in Six Professions
Authors: Pennington Floyd , Green Joseph
Published: March 2007

This study was designed to examine and describe planning strategies used by persons developing continuing professional edu cation (CPE) programs for six professional fields. From the descrip tion of practice in the six professions, a general model portraying the program development process was developed. The research methods used to guide the inquiry were those of grounded theory.

Results indicate planners attend to at least six clusters of activities in their program development processes in a fairly con sistent sequence. Results also indicate that there is limited use of knowledge resources available in the literature. Planners did, however, use a wide variety of resources available inside the uni versity and outside the university to plan programs.

Differences in strategies of program development in various professional fields did exist, most often in the order of activities and the emphasis given to specific activities in the program devel opment clusters.
Subjective Estimation of Adult Learning: the Development of a Magnitude Estimation Scale
Authors: Blunt Adrian
Published: March 2007

The psycho-physical technique of magnitude estimation was used to determine whether there is a social consensus concerning the magnitude of learning that occurs in adult learning activities. Previous research using magnitude estimation suggested that it is possible to develop ratio scales to quantify certain social norms, opinions and attitudes which frequently defy quantification by direct scaling procedures. Subjective estimates of learning in 26 adult learning activities were obtained from 191 community college credit course participants, 147 university adult education depart ment students and faculty members and 165 participants in a school district adult education program. The Subjective Estimation of Adult Learning Scale (SEALS) was found to be reliable by test re-test and cross modal matching techniques.

Evidence of a consensus was found when geometric mean esti mates for each activity were compared between the three groups of respondents. Analysis of covariance revealed age and years of schooling to be significant sources of variance on several scale items. Sex and an interaction of sex and years of schooling com pleted, were found to have a significant effect on one scale item.

Further research is needed to determine the validity of the study findings and to determine whether the SEALS has ratio properties. There is a need to replicate the study using different populations and alternate means of obtaining the subjective esti mates of respondents. Additional applications of magnitude esti mation techniques in adult education research are proposed.
Success in a High School Completion Program and Its Relation To Field Dependence—Independence
Authors: Donnarumma Theresa , Beder Hal , Cox David
Published: March 2007

This study explored the cognitive style of field dependence-independence (FDI) and its relation to performance on the General Educational Development Test (GED), performance on the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE), and learner attrition. The subjects were enrollees (N= 40) in a New Jersey GED preparation program sponsored by the Comprehensive Employment and Train ing Administration (CETA). Participants who passed the GED were found to be significantly more field independent while those who failed the GED or dropped out of the program were relatively more field dependent. As expected, field independence was related to higher math and reading scores on the TABE and GED. Field dependence-independence was discussed as a diagnostic variable in determining the needs of individual learners in adult education programs.
Theory, Practice and Basic Beliefs in Adult Education
Authors: Phillips John
Published: March 2007

Can educational decisions be made on a rational basis? Educational practice is based on theoretical knowledge. Choice of means, therefore, reduces to choice among competing theories. Such choice involves "technical criteria" and, most importantly, our "framework assumptions." These tell us what should be done, and, when we have analysed competing theories in terms of the technical criteria outlined, provide a basis for judging which approach is likely to be both effective and morally acceptable. These are important implications for adult education theory, research and practice.
Participatory Evaluation in Adult and Nonformal Education
Authors: Kinsey David C.
Published: March 2007

This article examines the usefulness of participatory evaluation in program development. The emphasis is on formative evaluation undertaken primarily by practitioners for purposes of planning and improving programs. After a brief discussion of rationale, dimensions and needs in respect to participatory evaluation, approaches are suggested for planning participa tion in evaluation and adapting methods to facilitate the use of participatory evaluation in adult and nonformal education programs. A three-dimensional reference grid is proposed as a framework for decision making in planning for optimal participation.
Self-Directed Learning, Political Clarity, and the Critical Practice of Adult Education
Authors: Brookfield Stephen
Published: March 2007

This paper argues that reframing the concept of self-direction as an inherently political idea comprises an important strategic opening in building a critical practice of adult education. Instead of being equated with atomistic self-gratification, self-direction can be interpreted as part of a cultural tradition that emphasizes the individual's standing against repressive interests. As such, the concept has some powerful political underpinnings which, if made explicit, could play a significant role in awakening the critical spirit in American adult education. Two inherently political dimensions of the idea are discussed: first, the recognition that at the intellectual heart of self-direction are issues of control and power that are inescapably political; second, the claim that any authentic exercise of self-directedness requires that certain political conditions be in place.
Teaching in Adult Education: Opening the Black Box
Authors: Nesbit Tom
Published: March 2007

Research on teaching adults is often a theoretical, focuses more on learning than teaching, and regards teaching primarily as techniques removed from subject-matter or social contexts. A richer understanding would be gained from empirical studies informed by the theoretical sophistication that marks other social science research. Specifically, the micro aspects of teaching and classroom interaction could be linked with the macro influences of educational and social systems. This paper considers the development of research on teaching, discusses why such research should address issues of structure and agency, and describes one empirical study that attempts to do so.
Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Adult Educators' Power and Influence Tactics in Program Planning Practice
Authors: Yang Baiyin , Cervero Ronald M. , Valentine Thomas , Benson Jeri
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate an instrument measuring adult educators' power and influence tactics in program planning practice. The study started with the formulation of a theoretical framework which links program planning behaviors and political contexts. Eight power and influence tactics were hypothesized to reflect different planning behaviors, and seven of them were found to represent distinctive underlying dimensions. A pilot study with 102 adult educators suggested that a reliable scale could be developed to measure these seven tactics. A validation study was conducted for the scale with a total number of 226 adult educators and trainers. Supporting validity evidence for a final version of the instrument was obtained from several sources, including construct validity, convergent and discriminant validity, and nomological validity. Moderate to high reliability estimates were obtained for the seven proposed dimensions of the construct for the instrument. Consequently, the instrument, Power and Influence Tactics Scale (POINTS), is recommended for use in research regarding practice in program planning.
Reading to Learn: Theory, Strategies and Instructional Research
Authors: Anders Patricia L.
Published: March 2007

This article provides three arguments for the pervasive use of textbooks to transmit knowledge to adolescents in secondary schools. In turn, four common problems with the use of textbooks are counter-argued. These problems are responded to from a theoretical perspective that is based in schema theory and psycholinguistics.

Adolescents' interaction with text can be improved with concommitant improvements in reading comprehension and content learning by teacher choice of appropriate pedagogy. Recommendations for teacher developed activities before students read are provided. Likewise, a teacher developed activity for students use during reading and immediately after reading is provided. Finally, a sample activity for after reading is explained. The rationale for these activities is based on the assumptions of schema theory and psycholinguistics.

Instructional research demonstrating the efficacy of these activities within the content area classroom is sparse. However, four studies supporting the use of one of the before reading activities, semantic feature analysis, are summarized. Further instructional research is called for.
Stressful Life Events, General Mental Health, and Temperament among Late Adolescent Females
Authors: Windle Michael
Published: March 2007

Interrelationships among stressful life events, general mental health, and temperament were investigated with a sample of 133 late adolescent females. Three different stressful life event schemes were used to explore these interrelationships, including a categorization based on contextual or social domain, a categorization-based source of control for event occurrence, and a unit-weighted summation of life events. Differential relations between the disaggregated social domain and source of control dimensions and general mental health were found. Contrary to previous findings on stress-mental health relationships in adolescence, a socially-interactional stress dimension, and not a family stress dimension, was most highly correlated with general mental health. Alternative explanations were proposed to account for these discrepant findings, one of which suggested the need to consider differences in contextual "press" factors which may differentially influence early and late adolescents. Moderate to strong support was found for the relationships of temperament to general mental health and to stress. Eight of ten temperament-mental health correlations were statistically significant. Similar to the mental health-stress relation findings, differential relations were found between temperament attributes and the disaggregated social domain and source of control dimensions. Temperament attributes were generally more highly associated with the occurrence of socially-interactive, peer, and controllable stressful life events. Multiple regression analysis indicated that temperament and stress made statistically reliable contributions to general mental health.
Congruence between Objective and Self-Report Data in a Sample of Young Adolescents
Authors: Crockett Lisa J. , Schulenberg John E. , Petersen Anne C.
Published: March 2007

Methodology texts frequently emphasize the limitations of self-report measures. Empirical information on the validity of self-report data, however, tends to be limited to particular topics and populations. This paper examines the validity of self-report data in a sample of young adolescents for whom objective and self-report data were available on course grades, height, and weight. A comparison of the two kinds of data generally supported the validity of the self-reports, although there was some evidence of response effects. It was concluded that while young adolescents exhibit some systematic errors in reporting, self-reports can provide a useful substitute for some kinds of objective data.
Adolescent Attachment and Ego Identity: A Structural Equations Approach to the Continuity of Adaptation
Authors: Quintana Stephen M. , Lapsley Daniel K.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to examine the concurrent relation between adolescent attachment to parents and the achievement of ego identity in late adolescence within a lifespan continuity of adaptation frame-work. Also examined were the contribution of parental control to the formation of attachment and the acquisition of ego identity. One-hundred one college freshmen responded to at least two measures (each) of parental attachment, ego identity, and maternal and paternal control. Model testing in a structural equations analysis showed that (a) there was no relation between adolescent attachment and ego identity; (b) adolescents who perceived that their parents were controlling reported weak attachment; and (c) adolescent identity achievement was inhibited by perceptions of high parental control. The first finding was discussed in terms of its implications for a lifespan theory of adolescent attachment and the continuity of adaptation framework. The latter two findings were discussed in terms of the growing literature on family dynamics and identity development. Implications for future research are drawn.
Self-Esteem and Appraisals of Parental Behavior
Authors: Buri John R.
Published: March 2007

Adolescents' levels of self-esteem as a function of their own versus their parents' appraisals of parental nurturance and parental authority were investigated. Results revealed that (a) both mothers'andfathers'nurturance (as perceived by the adolescents) were positively related to self-esteem, (b) based upon the adolescents' appraisals, parental authoritativeness was directly related to self-esteem whereas parental authoritarianism was inversely related to self-esteem, (c) adolescents' assessments of parental nurturance and authority were more strongly related to self-esteem than were the parents'assessments of these variables, and (d) regression analyses suggested that parental authority may be an important source of parental nurturance information for adolescents.
Onset of Drug Use among Rural Black Youth
Authors: Okwumabua Jebose O. , Okwumabua Theresa M. , Winston Ben L. , Walker Hollie
Published: March 2007

A sample of 362 Black students (grades 7 to 12) who reside in a rural county in Alabama was surveyed by teacher-administered questionnaire to examine the age of onset and periods of risk for drug use, and patterns of multiple drug use. A questionnaire was used also to obtain demographic parameters of drug use as well as information about the use of six categories of drugs. Results suggest that aggregately rural Black youth began drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and marijuana, and using smokeless tobacco and solvents by age 10 years, whereas initiation into cocaine use began by age 1 years. The period of risk for initiation of drug use was between ages 10 and 14 years. Approximately 65% of ever-users were single drug users, whereas 35% were multiple drug users at the period of initial experimentation.
Identity Style
Authors: Berzonsky Michael D.
Published: March 2007

The four personality outcomes classified by Mar-cia 's idenltity-status paradigm are conceptualized in terms of three styles of per sonial pr-oblem solvilng atid decision making: (a) An Information Orientation involves actively sear-chingfor, elaborating, and evaluating issue-relevant iniformation; (b) A Normative Orientation focuses on internalized conventions, standards, and expectations; (c) A Diffuse Orientation is characterized by avoiding or procrastinating until the affective cues in a given situation dictate behavioral reactions. Thie validity of a self-report measure of these styles was examined in two studies. The results indicated that the style measures were related to identity-status scores and other personality measures in a theoretically conisistent fashioni. The findin7gs suggest thal a style conceptualization of identity may be useful, especially in the context of life-span identity crises.
Sexual Knowledge, Attitudes, and Risky Sexual Behavior among Inner-City Black Male Adolescents
Authors: Jemmott Loretta Sweet , Jemmott John B.
Published: March 2007

Sexual knowledge, attitudes toward sex and contraception, contraception use, and sexual behavior were examined among 200 Black male inner-city junior and senior high school students who completed an anonymous questionnaire. Virtually all of the students (97%) reported having had coitus at least once. Most (78%o) reported not using any contraceptive during initial coitus, and a majority (54%) reported not using one during their most recent coitus. Multivariate multiple regression analyses revealed that students with greater sexual knowledge and more positive attitudes toward contraception were more likely to report using contraception than were other students. Students with more liberal sexual attitudes reported greater sexual activity, including a higher frequency of, and number of female partners for, coitus and fellatio. Among students who reported involvement in a steady romantic relationship, relatively liberal sexual attitudes were associated with self-reports of a sexual relationship with a woman besides their girlfriend.
Family System Dynamics, the Individuation Process, and Psychosocial Development
Authors: Gavazzi Stephen M. , Sabatelli Ronald M.
Published: March 2007

Measures of family system patterns of interaction and the individuation process were examined as mediators of psychosocial development in a sample of college students. Included is an initial exploration into the construction and development of self-report, paper-and-pencil instruments designed to measure the two exceedingly complex constructs of differentiation and individuation. Indicators of family conflict, parental intrusiveness, and psychological interconnectedness were found to be significant predictors of psychosocial maturity, supporting the theoretical expectation that distance regulation patterns indicative of well differentiated families and age-appropriate manifestations of the individuation process would be independently and interactively related to psychosocial adaptation. Also, the exploration of gender-related differences revealed that males were significantly more financially and psychologically independent from family members than were females but did not differ on any of the other family system and individual variables explored.
High School Students' Perceived Self-Efficacy in Physical and Mental Health
Authors: Froman Robin D. , Owen Steven V.
Published: March 2007

Self-efficacy, a central construct of the Bandura social cognitive theory, formed the background for developing a measure of adolescent health expectations, the School Health Efficacy Questionnaire. The scale taps perceived self-efficacy in both physical and mental health. It showed strong factorial validity, although the factor structure is somewhat different for males and females. Subscales derived from the factor analyses gave high reliabilities. A series of MANOVAs and multiple regressions produced results predicted from self-efficacy theory, and supported the instrument's construct validity. Because low efficacy expectations may lead to self-harmful behaviors, such as poor personal relationships or substance abuse, health educators should consider ways to enhance adolescent appraisals of their capabilities.
Gender Differences in Children's and Adolescents' Career Aspirations
Authors: Sandberg David E. , Ehrhardt Anke A. , Ince Susan E. , Meyer-Bahlburg Heino F. L.
Published: March 2007

Career choices and their relation to personal and family background variables were studied in a sample of 148 children (68 females and 80 males) at two points in time: when the participants were between 8 and 13 years of age (Phase 1) and approximately S years later, when they were between 13 and 18 years of age (Phase 2). Male andfemale respondents during both phases chose largely nonoverlapping careers. Boys' choices were heavily gender-stereotyped during both developmental periods. In contrast over one quarter of the females during Phase 1 and close to one half during Phase 2 chose male-dominated occupations. Boys' ideal and realistic career choices did not differ in the degree to which they were gender-typed. Girls'realistic career nominations, however, included a significantly higher percentage of female incumbents in the labor force than did their ideal choices. Gender differences in career choices were not accompanied by differences in several family background and personal variables except for the desire to parent a child and pursue a full-time career.
The Relation between Adolescents' Perceptions of their Family Lives and their Adjustment in Stepfather Families
Authors: Fine Mark A. , Donnelly Brenda W. , Voydanoff Patricia
Published: March 2007

This study assessed the relation between adolescents 'perceptions offamily life and their adjustment in stepfather families. Adolescents and biological mothers from 117 stepfather families were interviewed as a part of the National Survey of Children. Data gathered included a number of measures of adolescent adjustment (from both adolescent and maternal reports) and adolescents'perceptions offamily life. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses, controlling for demographic variables, revealed that adolescents' adjustment was related to theirperceptions of lower levels ofparentalpunishment more parental rewards and consistency, more parental agreement in child-rearing issues, more traditional beliefs regarding marriage and family life, and less anger at their mothers' remarriage. These findings support the notion that adolescents' perceptions of their family lives are related to their adjustment in stepfather families.