bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mutual antipathies during early adolescence: More than just rejection
Authors: Witkow Melissa R. , Bellmore Amy D. , Nishina Adrienne , Juvonen Jaana , Graham Sandra
Published: March 2006

Recent research suggests that having a mutual antipathy, in comparison to not having an antipathy, is associated with a host of negative outcomes. However, the methods used may not have adequately controlled for rejection and therefore may have provided an incomplete description of the psychosocial correlates of having a mutual antipathy. With a sample of approximately 2000 sixth-grade students, the goal of the present study was to disentangle the effects of rejection from those of having mutual antipathies and assess whether or not involvement in a mutual antipathy reflects maladaptive behaviour for young adolescents. When controlling for rejection, and including only students who received at least one rejection nomination, having a mutual antipathy was not necessarily associated with increased maladjustment. Additionally, when compared to boys and girls with no antipathies, those involved in at least one same-sex antipathy had different psychosocial adjustment profiles than those involved in at least one opposite-sex antipathy. The results indicate the need to carefully choose comparison groups when examining the correlates of mutual antipathies.
Caring for children around the world: A view from HOME
Authors: Bradley Robert H. , Corwyn Robert F.
Published: March 2006

This review examines cultural and socioeconomic variations in parenting as represented by the original and adapted versions of the HOME Inventory. There was specific focus on three aspects of the family environment where cultural models of parenting and access to resources are thought to be operative and for which there is evidence of impact on child well-being: parental responsiveness, discipline practices, and exposure to stimulating materials and experiences. Findings revealed meaningful impacts of culture and SES in all three areas. Not only did mean differences emerge across countries but different alliances between indicators, presumably representing the same parenting construct, also emerged. The review also revealed a tendency for researchers to modify the HOME consistent with local beliefs and practices concerning what children need, what families need, and the role of parents in fostering particular aspects of development. Despite differences in cultural models of parenting around the world, the studies showed rather consistent relations between exposure to stimulation and parental responsiveness and children's adaptive functioning. Associations with physical punishment were somewhat less clear.
Child and mother play in cultures of origin, acculturating cultures, and cultures of destination
Authors: Cote Linda R. , Bornstein Marc H.
Published: March 2006

Immigrant (Japanese and South Americans in the United States) families’ play was compared to play in families in their countries of origin (Japan and Argentina, respectively) and in a common country of destination (European Americans in the United States). Two hundred and forty 20-month-old children and their mothers participated. Generally, the play of immigrant children and mothers was similar to European American children's and mothers’ play. Japanese and Argentine children engaged in more symbolic play, whereas immigrant children engaged in more exploratory play. Likewise, South American immigrant mothers demonstrated and solicited more exploratory play than Argentine mothers. Japanese mothers solicited more symbolic play, and Argentine mothers demonstrated more symbolic play than immigrant mothers. The findings from this study provide insight into the nature of child and mother play generally and that of immigrant children and their mothers specifically and shed light on the parenting climate in which immigrant children are reared.
Autonomy- vs. connectedness-oriented parenting behaviours in Chinese and Canadian mothers
Authors: Liu Mowei , Chen Xinyin , Rubin Kenneth H. , Zheng Shujie , Cui Liying , Li Dan , Chen Huichang , Wang Li
Published: March 2006

The purpose of the study was to investigate maternal socialization goal-oriented behaviours in Chinese and Canadian mothers. Participants were samples of children at 2 years of age and their mothers in P.R. China and Canada. Data on child autonomy and connectedness and maternal encouragement of autonomy and connectedness were collected from observations of mother–child interactions in a laboratory situation. Cross-cultural similarities as well as differences were found in the study. Chinese mothers had higher scores on overall involvement than Canadian mothers during mother–child interaction. When overall involvement was controlled, Chinese mothers had higher scores than Canadian mothers on encouragement of connectedness. In contrast, Canadian mothers had higher scores than Chinese mothers on encouragement of autonomy. The results suggest that culturally general and specific socialization goals and values are reflected in maternal parenting behaviours.
Parent beliefs and children's achievement trajectories during the transition to school in Asian American and European American families
Authors: Sy Susan R. , Schulenberg John E.
Published: March 2006

This study examines the predictive relationships among 309 Asian American and 9471 European American parents’ beliefs, expectations, and involvement, and their children's math and reading achievement trajectories during children's transition to school. Data came from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K), an ongoing study of kindergarten children as they make the transition into and through formal schooling. Based on the educational niche theoretical framework (Chao, 2000), we predicted that parents’ beliefs and expectations would indirectly influence children's achievement trajectories via parent involvement and that these structural paths would not differ significantly between groups. Analyses using latent curve modelling (LCM) supported these predictions. Of particular importance is the finding that despite significant mean differences in Asian American and European American parents’ beliefs, expectations, and involvement practices, the degree to which these constructs predicted children's achievement trajectories over time did not differ between groups.
A comparative study of child temperament and parenting in Beijing, China and the western United States
Authors: Porter Christian L. , Hart Craig H. , Yang Chongming , Robinson Clyde C. , Olsen Susanne Frost , Zeng Qing , Olsen Joseph A. , Jin Shenghua
Published: March 2006

The purpose of this investigation was to examine comparable dimensions and linkages between child temperament and parenting styles with samples from Beijing, China and the western United States. Participants included 404 mothers and fathers from Beijing, China and 325 mothers and fathers from the western United States. Both mothers and fathers completed Buss and Plomin's (1984) EAS Temperament Scale as well as a spousal-report measure of parenting styles. Structural equation modelling was used to identify invariant (statistically comparable) factors for child temperament and parenting styles. Within-culture gender comparisons showed that Chinese fathers (relative to mothers) viewed their sons as being more active and sociable than daughters while US mothers (relative to fathers) rated their sons as being more active. Across-culture differences revealed that US parents (relative to Chinese parents) viewed children as more emotional while Chinese fathers (relative to US fathers) rated their children as more active. Similar and differential cultural patterns of linkages were also found between parenting styles and child temperament. Child emotionality was positively associated with authoritarian parenting in both cultures while child activity level was linked to more authoritative and less authoritarian parenting styles, but only in the Chinese sample. Finally, child sociability was found to be negatively linked to cross-gender patterns of authoritarian parenting in the US while mothers’ and fathers’ authoritarian parenting in China was linked to lower sociability in daughters only.
Intergenerational cultural conflicts in norms of parental warmth among Chinese American immigrants
Authors: Wu Chunxia , Chao Ruth K.
Published: March 2006

This study examines the intergenerational cultural conflict experienced by Chinese adolescents from immigrant families, and its consequences for their adjustment. Intergenerational cultural conflict is assessed as the mismatch between adolescents’ ideals and perceptions of parental warmth. The extent and consequences of such mismatches for these youth are also compared to European American adolescents—who likely did not experience such conflict. One hundred and eighty-four Chinese American (60 first- and 124 second-generation) and 80 European American adolescents completed measures of (1) parental warmth (the acceptance-rejection subscale of the Children's Report on Parent Behavior Inventory), and (2) psychological adjustment. Chinese American adolescents’ ideals exceeded their perceptions of parents’ warmth to a greater degree than they did for European American adolescents. Moreover, such discrepancies were related to greater adjustment problems for Chinese American adolescents. Although only a small proportion of adolescents reported that parents were warmer than they desired, this excessive warmth had more positive consequences for Chinese American than European American adolescents.
Infants' social looking toward mothers and strangers
Authors: Walden Tedra A. , Kim Geunyoung
Published: March 2006

This study investigated infant social looking in a social referencing procedure with mothers and strangers. Sixty-one infants and their mothers participated when the infants were 18 and 24 months old. The frequency and latency of looking toward each adult when the baby encountered remotecontrolled ambiguous toys were measured. Mothers and strangers (female experimenters) expressed positive or negative emotional responses whenever children looked toward them. Results indicated that older infants looked more often and faster, especially toward strangers. Both age groups tended to look to the strangers more frequently than to mothers. The pattern of looking toward caregivers over time differed from looking toward strangers in both age groups. These results indicate that nonattachment figures may be preferred targets of referencing in certain situations. It is also implied that older infants' looks to adults might differ from those of their younger counterparts in a number of ways.
Exploring adolescent self-defining leisure activities and identity experiences across three countries
Authors: Coatsworth J. Douglas , Sharp Erin Hiley , Palen Lori-Ann , Darling Nancy , Cumsille Patricio , Marta Elena
Published: March 2006

The developmental processes of identity exploration and formation in adolescence often take place within the context of leisure activities. The discovery model of identity formation proposes that these processes are reflected in part by adolescents' subjective identity-related experiences including personal expressiveness, flow, and goal-directed behaviour (Waterman, 1990, 1993). This model, however, has not been tested with cross-national samples. The purpose of this study was to examine the applicability of this general model of identity-related experiences within self-defining activities for a sample of 493 adolescents from the United States, Chile, and Italy. Confirmatory analyses of a three-factor model showed strong invariance across countries. Findings indicated that most adolescents reported high levels of identity experiences within self-defining activities. Results from Multivariate Analyses of Variance indicated considerable commonalities and a few significant differences in these experiences across the three countries and across five broad activity classes. Findings are discussed in the context of the growing literature on adolescent activity involvement and the relation of activities to identity exploration.
Background and classroom correlates of child achievement, cognitive, and behavioural outcomes in rural Kenyan schoolchildren
Authors: Daley Tamara C. , Whaley Shannon E. , Sigman Marian D. , Guthrie Donald , Neumann Charlotte G. , Bwibo Nimrod
Published: March 2006

In the current study, background data (sex, age, and SES) and classroom factors were examined as predictors of scholastic achievement and child cognitive and behavioural outcomes in a group of rural Kenyan schoolchildren during their first year of formal schooling. Previous research in this area has provided mixed results regarding the characteristics of children and school environments that best predict optimal outcomes for children. This study extended previous research through the use of multiple culturally grounded predictor and outcome variables; in addition to using observational techniques to assess the classroom environment, this study examined cognitive, academic, and behavioural measures. Results suggested that while background factors such as child age and SES are important predictors of child outcomes, inclusion of classroom factors significantly improved prediction for all types of child outcomes, and the addition of behaviour as a predictor shows an even greater effect. The largest effect was seen for the outcome variables most closely tied to classroom activities.
The transition from elementary to high school: The pivotal role of mother and child characteristics in explaining trajectories of academic functioning
Authors: Duchesne Stéphane , Larose Simon , Guay Frédéric , Vitaro Frank , Tremblay Richard E.
Published: March 2006

The present 8-year longitudinal study had two goals. The first goal was to describe different trajectories of academic functioning during the transition to high school using a group-based trajectory method. The second goal was to determine if previous family and child characteristics (notably behavioural problems and prosociality) predict these trajectories. A total of 1003 mothers and teachers participated in the study. Results of the trajectory analysis revealed the presence of three groups. A first group experienced stable and high levels of academic functioning (63%), a second group experienced a significant drop in academic functioning (14%), and a third group experienced stable and low levels of academic functioning (23%). Logistic regression analyses showed that these groups differed in terms of early parental characteristics, child behavioural problems, and prosociality. These results are discussed in light of empirical findings on the transition to high school.
Development of graphic formulas for the depiction of familiar objects
Authors: Picard Delphine , Vinter Annie
Published: March 2006

We investigated the nature of graphic formulas in 5-, 7-, and 9-year-old children when they were asked to draw a house and a television in a free condition, and then to draw from photographs of these objects. Assuming that the frequency of occurrence of a feature in children's drawings reflects its semantic weight, we studied the relations between occurrence and order of production of features to assess the extent to which a core-to-periphery progression principle (van Sommers, 1984) applies to the graphic formulas. The results showed that this principle was essentially present in the free drawing context. Under copying conditions, the order of production of the features was under the influence of perceptual and geometric factors, which elicited the production of subsystems of features at the depends of the application of the core-to-periphery progression principle. In the free condition, the core-to-periphery principle was mostly relevant in accounting for graphic formulas of the house in the young children (5 and 7 years), and of the television at ages 7 and 9. We suggest that the development of a graphic formula is partially related to the development of the object as a category in the child's conceptual system.
Health status, cognitive and motor development of young children adopted from China, East Asia, and Russia across the first 6 months after adoption
Authors: Pomerleau Andrée , Malcuit Gérard , Chicoine Jean-François , Séguin Renée , Belhumeur Céline , Germain Patricia , Amyot Isabelle , Jéliu Gloria
Published: March 2006

We compared health status, anthropometric and psychological development of 123 children adopted before 18 months of age from China, East Asia (Vietnam, Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, Cambodia), and Eastern Europe (mostly Russia). Data were collected close to the time of arrival, and 3 and 6 months later. Anthropometric measures included weight, height, and head circumference percentiles, and weight/height and height/age ratios (indices of acute and chronic malnutrition, respectively). We assessed cognitive (MDI) and motor (PDI) developments with the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (Bayley, 1993). At time of arrival, children presented physical, cognitive, and motor delays, as well as health problems. Growth parameters improved with time, but differently among the groups. East Asian children, in a better physical state at time of arrival, changed less than the others did across time. Children adopted from Russia globally had lower MDI than the others, while children adopted from East Asia had the highest PDI. Hierarchical linear modelling indicated that initial MDI was related to height/age ratio (index of chronic malnutrition), while its change over time was related to age at time of arrival. PDI was also related to height/age ratio, as well as to presence/absence of neurological signs at time of arrival. Infants with a higher risk index had lower MDI and PDI initial scores.
Social withdrawal and maladjustment in a very group-oriented society
Authors: Valdivia Ibis Alvarez , Schneider Barry H. , Chavez Kenia Lorenzo , Chen Xinyin
Published: March 2006

Elementary-school children in Cuba and Canada participated in measures of loneliness, sociometric status, friendship, aggression, and social withdrawal. Withdrawal was associated with loneliness in the Cuban data from both cohorts, Grade 4 and Grade 6. In the Canadian data, withdrawal was only linked to loneliness in Grade 6. In contrast with North American data, aggression was a significant correlate of loneliness in the Cuban data from both cohorts. Social withdrawal was more strongly linked with loneliness in a Grade 6 cohort than among children in Grade 4. Especially in the Cuban Grade 6 data, there was considerable evidence that peer acceptance/rejection mediates the link between problematic social withdrawal and loneliness. These data are interpreted in light of the known functions of the peer group in Cuban society in regulating social behaviours that may be interpreted as not participating in the collective group or undermining its behavioural norms.
Cultural orientations and historical changes as predictors of parenting behaviour
Authors: Keller Heidi , Borke Joern , Yovsi Relindis , Lohaus Arnold , Jensen Henning
Published: March 2006

This study addresses the stability and variability of patterns of parenting in three cultural environments that can be assumed to differ with respect to their cultural models. German middleclass families can be assumed to follow primarily independent socialisation goals, Cameroonian Nso farmers can be assumed to follow primarily interdependent socialisation goals, and Costa Rican families can be assumed to follow an autonomous relational orientation. Parenting patterns of mothers interacting with their 3-month-old babies were assessed at two points in time, being 4 to 6 years apart. The data confirm the predicted cultural differences in style of parenting, which proved to be stable across the covered time span. We also predicted changes in parenting styles that should be oriented to a more independent cultural model across the cultural samples. Our data confirm this hypothesis, although the changes are differentially represented in the three samples, with the Cameroonian Nso sample expressing no significant changes and the German middle-class sample representing the most pronounced changes. The data are interpreted as documenting linkages between parenting and macrolevel societal changes.
Parenting as the expression of sociohistorical time: The case of German individualisation
Authors: Keller Heidi , Lamm Bettina
Published: March 2006

This study addresses sociohistorical changes in parenting in a prototypical independent society: Germany. In Germany, a distinct societal increase in individualisation has been described as beginning with the mid-1980s. It is assumed that these changes not only affect children and adolescents, but also the first formative developmental period: infancy. Mothers' interactions with 3-month-old babies belonging to two cohorts (cohort 1: 1977/1978; cohort 2: 2000) show significant changes with respect to parenting behaviours that have been related to independence as a socialisation goal: increase of face-to-face contingency and object play and decrease of bodily and facial/vocal warmth. The results are interpreted as supporting the view that sociohistorical times form distinct cultural environments.
Delinquency and moral reasoning in adolescence and young adulthood
Authors: Raaijmakers Quinten A. W. , Engels Rutger C. M. E. , Van Hoof Anne
Published: March 2006

This article presents a longitudinal-sequential analysis of the developmental and reciprocal relationships between self-reported delinquency and moral reasoning (as measured with the Dutch version of the short form of the Defining Issues Test). Between 1991 and 1997 a large sample of 846 Dutch adolescents and young adults (15–23 years in 1991) was measured three times with an interval period of 3 years. Moral reasoning scores increased with age both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, while delinquency scores dropped sharply, resulting in modest negative correlations between delinquency and moral reasoning. Structural equation modelling of the data delivered a satisfactory fit, suggesting statistical reciprocal effects between delinquency and moral reasoning for the total sample. A multigroup analysis for three different age cohorts revealed a consistent negative effect of previous delinquency on moral reasoning between the ages of 21 to 23 years. Between the ages of 24 to 26 years, however, delinquency scores were, in turn, negatively affected by previous moral reasoning. Although substantial gender differences in delinquency were reported, no such differences were obtained for either moral reasoning or its relationship with delinquency. The results are discussed in view of the need for a multidimensional process approach of the relation between moral judgment and delinquency.
Predictors of mental state understanding in preschoolers of varying socioeconomic backgrounds
Authors: Garner Pamela W. , Curenton Stephanie M. , Taylor Kelli
Published: March 2006

Two studies investigated the influence of age, language, and family background on the development of preschoolers' social cognitive skills. Study 1 examined variability in economically disadvantaged preschoolers' understanding of fantasy and evaluated the relation of age and language to children's skill in this area. Children were shown drawings of fantasy and real-life events and asked if the event could happen in real life and to justify their responses. Children were more likely to answer correctly when the drawing depicted real-life events. Age and language were positively related to children's overall understanding of fantasy. In Study 2, both low and middle SES preschoolers were included and two false belief understanding measures were added to the battery of tasks. As before, age and language were related to fantasy understanding as well as to false belief performance. In addition, SES was predictive of fantasy understanding, but not false belief performance, regardless of how it was assessed. Social competence was unrelated to the social cognitive variables, even when the effects of age, language, and SES were controlled.
Cultural variation in children's observation during a demonstration
Authors: Mejía-Arauz Rebeca , Rogoff Barbara , Paradise Ruth
Published: March 2006

Ethnographic research indicates that in a number of cultural communities, children's learning is organised around observation of ongoing activities, contrasting with heavy use of explanation in formal schooling. The present research examined the extent to which first- to third-grade children observed an adult's demonstration of how to fold origami figures or observed the folding of two slightly older children who also were trying to make the figures, without requesting further information. In the primary analysis, 10 Mexican heritage US children observed without requesting additional information to a greater extent than 10 European heritage US children. Consistent with the ethnographic literature, these two groups differed in the extent of their family's involvement in schooling; hence, we explored the relationship with maternal schooling in a secondary analysis. An additional 11 children of Mexican heritage whose mothers had extensive experience in formal school (at least a high school education) showed a pattern more like that of the European heritage children, whose mothers likewise had extensive experience in school, compared with the Mexican heritage children whose mothers had only basic schooling (an average of 7.7 grades). The results suggest that a constellation of cultural traditions that organise children's learning experiences—including Western schooling—may play an important role in children's learning through observation and explanation.
Risk factors for pregnancy and childbearing in single young women: Evidence from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health
Authors: Miller-Lewis Lauren R. , Wade Tracey D. , Lee Christina
Published: March 2006

This study investigated psychosocial predictors of early pregnancy and childbearing in single young women, consistent with the Eriksonian developmental perspective. Two mail-out surveys assessing reproductive behaviour and sociodemographic, education/competence, psychosocial well-being, and aspiration factors were completed 4 years apart by 2635 young women, aged 18 to 20 when first surveyed. Young women in the “emerging adulthood” developmental period were selected from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. Longitudinally, lower investment in education over low-status paid work, experiencing unemployment, greater psychosocial distress, stress and alcohol use, and high family aspirations combined with low vocational aspirations were risk factors for early single pregnancy and childbearing. Several mediational relationships also existed between these predictor variables. It was concluded that psychosocial factors play an important role in understanding early pregnancy and childbearing in single young Australian women, and that the findings provide some support for investigating early pregnancy and childbearing from an Eriksonian developmental perspective.
Friendships of Indonesian and United States youth
Authors: French Doran C. , Pidada Sri , Victor Andrea
Published: March 2006

Issues in the study of friendship across cultures were explored by reviewing a set of studies focusing on the friendships of Indonesian and United States youth. Four topics are considered: similarity of friendships across cultures, dimensions of friendships that vary across cultures, the utility of the individualism/collectivism dimension for explaining cultural differences in friendship, and methodological issues in the study of culture and friendship. Two studies are presented that address some of these issues. Although friendships of US and Indonesian youth are similar across many dimensions, the friendships of Indonesian youth appear somewhat less close, more centred on instrumental aid, less focused on enhancement of worth, and more extensive and less exclusive than those of US youth. These patterns are opposite to those that have emerged in the comparison of those in the US and other collectivist cultures, suggesting the need to modify models of collectivism and friendship. Finally, the authors advocate the use of multimethod and multiagent assessments, addressing issues of social class in cross-cultural comparison, and using a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches to study culture and friendship.
Friendship as a predictor of adjustment following a transition to formal academic instruction and evaluation
Authors: Tomada Giovanna , Schneider Barry H. , de Domini Piero , Greenman Paul S. , Fonzi Ada
Published: March 2006

Most school transitions are characterised by sweeping changes in children's social and learning environments, often accompanied by important biological and cognitive changes; the multiple changes occurring within the child and the environment make the results of school-transition studies difficult to interpret. Italian elementary school children experience a marked transition in teaching and evaluation style at the end of second grade, but do not change schools. Formal academic instruction begins and pupils' progress begins to be evaluated individually by means of oral examinations. The present longitudinal study focuses on the role of friends during this transition. The participants were pupils of 17 classes in 11 schools in the city of Florence, Italy, and surrounding towns. Self-reported liking of school decreased sharply after the transition. There were some indications that having friends contributed overall to successful adjustment after the transition, especially in terms of children's liking of school. There was also some evidence that friendship is an asset to children undergoing stressful life experiences. Both children's liking of school and their antisocial behaviours were predicted by their friends' attitudes toward school and their friends' antisocial behaviour.
Bullying roles in changing contexts: The stability of victim and bully roles from primary to secondary school
Authors: Schäfer Mechthild , Korn Stefan , Brodbeck Felix C. , Wolke Dieter , Schulz Henrike
Published: March 2006

The present study was conducted to predict bullying roles over a 6-year time period and across contexts differing in the degree of peer hierarchies. Out of two representative data sets from primary (N 1/4 1525) and secondary school (N 1/4 2958), 282 children (156 boys; 126 girls) were followed up longitudinally. Self-reports on bullying experiences and peer reports about social status were assessed by a structured individual interview (in primary school) and by questionnaire given classwise (in secondary school). Risk analyses showed that only a bully role in primary school yields a risk of being sustained in secondary school. However, victims in primary school classes with a more pronounced degree of hierarchical structuring proved stable in their role while the victim role was unstable from primary school classes with low hierarchical structuring. This interaction did not apply to bully role stability. Differential characteristics of the victim and the bully role in primary school and secondary school settings are discussed.
Temperament and friendship in preschool-aged children
Authors: Gleason Tracy R. , Gower Amy L. , Hohmann Lisa M. , Gleason Terry C.
Published: March 2006

The influence of three components of temperament (activity level, impulsivity, and soothability) on children's friendships was investigated. Children (40 girls, 35 boys) aged 43 to 69 months responded to a sociometric interview and teachers provided temperament ratings. The probability of children choosing particular classmates as friends was evaluated based on the genders and temperaments of the dyad. A logistic choice model revealed that the choice of friends is highly influenced by gender, high impulsivity, and high soothability. Furthermore, the gender of the chooser and the activity level of the friend interacted such that girls chose low activity level friends and boys chose high activity level friends. In addition, the likelihood of a child being chosen as a friend based on gender and temperament was significantly correlated with popularity for girls, but not for boys.
Music cognition in early infancy: infants’ preferences and long-term memory for Ravel
Authors: Ilari Beatriz , Polka Linda
Published: March 2006

Listening preferences for two pieces, Prelude and Forlane from Le tombeau de Couperin by Maurice Ravel (1875-1937), were assessed in two experiments conducted with 8-month-old infants, using the Headturn Preference Procedure (HPP). Experiment 1 showed that infants, who have never heard the pieces, could clearly make a distinction between the Prelude and Forlane when the latter are played in multiple (i.e. orchestral) but not single (i.e. piano) timbres. In Experiment 2 infants were exposed repeatedly to one of the two piano pieces over a 10-day period. Concurrent with previous studies, results suggested that babies can recognize a familiar piece after a 2-week delay. Implications for early childhood music education are outlined at the end of the article.
Examining the validity of self-report: middle-level singers’ ability to predict and assess their sight-singing skills
Authors: Darrow Alice-Ann , Marsh Kerry
Published: March 2006

The purpose of the present study was to determine choral students’ ability to predict and evaluate their sight-singing skills. Participants were asked to assign a rating based on how well they predicted they would sight-sing five musical examples. Following the singing of each example, participants were asked to evaluate their sight-singing performances using the same rating scale. Two middle-level choral directors were asked to evaluate the participants’ performances using an evaluation form designed to parallel the subject’s prediction and evaluation questionnaires. Findings indicate that students were reasonably accurate at predicting their sight-singing performance; however, they were more accurate at evaluating their performance. Older students were generally more able to predict and assess their sight-singing performances, as were students who had participated in a musical ensemble. The data suggest that the dependability and usefulness of student self-report is promising and should be further examined by music educators.
Learning outcomes of two approaches to multicultural music education
Authors: Abril Carlos R.
Published: March 2006

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of multicultural music instruction on classroom learning outcomes. Fifth-grade children (10-11 years of age; N = 170) from four schools were randomly assigned to one of two instructional treatments: music concept and sociocultural context. The former approach used formal elements of music as a framework for learning; the latter contextualized music as a sociocultural phenomenon. At the conclusion of the 7-week unit, students responded to two writing prompts designed to measure newly acquired knowledge, understanding, and skill. These responses were analyzed to: (1) determine the nature of described learning; (2) compare responses between groups; and (3) test for differences between groups. Instructional approach was found to have a significant effect on children’s descriptions of acquired knowledge, yet did not affect their perceptions of music skill acquisition. Interactive dialogues surrounding sociocultural or musical concepts resulted in a greater number of students articulating their knowledge about these respective topics.
Pedagogical techniques and student outcomes in applied instrumental lessons taught by experienced and pre-service American music teachers
Authors: Henninger Jacqueline C. , Flowers Patricia J. , Councill Kimberly H.
Published: March 2006

The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of teacher experience on student progress and performance quality in an introductory applied lesson. Nine experienced teachers and 15 pre-service teachers taught an adult beginner to play ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’ on a wind instrument. The lessons were videotaped for subsequent analysis of teaching behaviors and performance achievement. Following instruction, a random sample of teachers was interviewed about their perceptions of the lesson. A panel of adjudicators rated final pupil performances. No significant difference was found between pupils taught by experienced and pre-service teachers in the quality of their final performance. Systematic observation of the videotaped lessons showed that participant teachers provided relatively frequent and highly positive reinforcement during the lessons. Pupils of experienced teachers talked significantly more during the lessons than did pupils of pre-service teachers. Pre-service teachers modeled significantly more on their instruments than did experienced teachers.
Endometrial Adenocarcinoma: Beliefs and Scepticism
Authors: Sivridis Efthimios , Giatromanolaki Alexandra
Published: March 2006

The incidence of endometrial adenocarcinoma is high in North America and northern Europe, and low in Asia and Africa. This variance in frequency rates occurred in the late 1970s and its real cause has remained in question since. There is a widespread belief that endometrial adenocarcinomas associated with endometrial hyperplasia have a much better prognosis than those related to endometrial atrophy. This view is, in general terms, true but only because a high proportion of tumors arising from an atrophic endometrium are of serous/papillary, clear cell, or Grade 2-3 endometrioid carcinomas, in contrast to those developing from a hyperplastic endometrium, which are nearly all G1 endometrioid adenocarcinomas. These adenocarcinomas have, however, an excellent prognosis, no matter whether they are related to hyperplasia or atrophy, and taxonomically they form a single tumor group. In this regard, it is most reasonable to separate endometrial carcinomas into low-and high-grade tumors. The first are formed solely of G1 or “authentic” endometrioid adenocarcinomas, i.e., endometrioid neoplasms composed in their entirety of glandular elements without having traces of nonsquamous solid components. The high-grade tumors are formed of both endometrioid Grade 2-3 adenocarcinomas and nonendometrioid carcinomas—all of particularly aggressive behavior. The question of grading endometrioid adenocarcinomas in a precise and reproducible way becomes obvious. It is also believed that endometrial adenocarcinomas associated with endometrial hyperplasia are estrogen-primed, while those related to endometrial atrophy are deprived of hormonal stimulation. However, as we have shown in this laboratory recently, estrogen stimulation may be very common in endometrial neoplasms developing in an atrophic endometrium. For indeed most, if not all, postmenopausal atrophic endometria harboring adenocarcinomas contain actively proliferating glands, with high Ki-67 proliferation index, high epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) activity, high microvessel density (MVD), and rich in estrogen and progesterone receptors (ER and PR), indicative of a continuous low-level estrogenic stimulation. That there is a number of endometrial carcinomas that tend to develop in a milieu of antiestrogenic domination, following treatment for breast carcinoma, this may well represent a form of breast-endometrial hereditary disease and, certainly, merits further investigation.
Immunohistochemical Expression of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) and C-KIT in Cutaneous Melanocytic Lesions
Authors: Stefanou Dimitrios , Batistatou Anna , Zioga Aikaterini , Arkoumani Evdokia , Papachristou Dionysios J. , Agnantis Niki J.
Published: March 2006

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and C-KIT are involved in tumor progression in several human neoplasms. The aim of the present study has been to investigate their immunohistochemical expression in melanocytic lesions. We examined 11 compound nevi, 12 dysplastic nevi, and 18 melanomas. Immunostaining for VEGF was observed only in melanomas; c-kit expression was detected in melanomas (higher in radial than in vertical growth phase) and in nevi (predominantly in the junctional component). Our data indicate that assessment of VEGF expression might aid in the differential diagnosis between dysplastic nevi and melanomas. Moreover, VEGF might be a candidate for targeted therapy. The loss of c-kit expression might contribute to melanoma progression.
Limitations in the Interpretation of Biopsies in Patients with Penile Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Velazquez Elsa F. , Barreto Jose E. , Rodriguez Ingrid , Piris Adriano , Cubilla Antonio L.
Published: March 2006

Surgeons often perform small or superficial penile biopsies that are difficult to classify definitely with regard to a benign or malignant nature, and if malignant, cannot always be accurately subclassified. Staging and therapeutic decisions rely on the identification, in these materials, of pathologic parameters related to prognosis. In this study, we evaluated the accuracy and completeness of pathologic information obtained from biopsies of 57 consecutive patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SSC) of the penis, and compared it with the information obtained from penectomies. Diagnostic accuracy was determined by recording discordances of critical factors in biopsies and penectomies. The evaluated parameters were as follows: cancer diagnosis, histologic type, tumor grade, depth of invasion (anatomical levels), and vascular invasion. Histologic subtypes of SCC were the following: usual 37, verruciform 11, mixed 7, pseudohyperplastic 1, and sarcomatoid 1. Grades were 1, 2, and 3 (well, moderately and poorly differentiated). Levels of invasion were lamina propria, corpus spongiosum, and corpus cavernosum in the glans; and lamina propria, dartos, and skin in the foreskin. In 2 patients with well-differentiated tumors a diagnosis of cancer could not be established in biopsy material. In 17 cases (30%) there was a biopsy-penectomy discordance of histologic types, especially of verruciform and mixed carcinomas. Biopsies failed to identify the correct histologic grade in 30% of the cases. A higher grade was usually identified in penectomy specimens. Because biopsies were superficial, the deepest point of invasion could not be determined in 91% of the cases. Vascular invasion was identified in biopsies in only 1 of 8 patients. In summary, biopsies were useful for cancer diagnosis except in 2 differentiated variants of penile squamous cell carcinoma. However, important pathologic parameters related to prognosis were missed on biopsy materials, and they were more accurately evaluated in penectomy specimens. We conclude that clinical and pathologic staging of penile cancer, at least in our material, cannot depend on biopsy information alone. Data from biopsies may be insufficient to make a decision whether to perform a groin dissection, or for prognostic evaluation in those patients in whom other treatment modalities (such as radiotherapy or chemotherapy) are being considered.
Myoid Hamartomas of the Breast
Authors: Filho Osvaldo Giannotti , Gordan Ângela Navarro , Mello Regina de Arruda , Neto Cristovam Scapulatempo , Heinke Thaís
Published: March 2006

Hamartomas were first described by Albrecht in 1904, who defined them as tumor-like malformations in which there was abnormal blending of the normal components of an organ. The myoid hamartoma is a rare benign lesion of the breast and has an uncertain origin, possibly in the walls of the blood vessels, muscularis mammillae of the areolae, and mainly in myoepithelium. We report 3 cases of myoid hamartomas of the breast, with the clinical, radiologic, and histopathological findings, and review the literature. The 3 lesions showed normal breast ducts and lobules, entrapped by a muscular stroma and some foci of mature adipose tissue. The muscular origin of part of the stroma was confirmed by strong reactiveness with smooth-muscle actin.
Primary Carcinoid Tumor of the Prostate with Concurrent Adenocarcinoma: A Case Report
Authors: Ghannoum Julien E. , DeLellis Ronald A. , Shin Sandra J.
Published: March 2006

Prostatic adenocarcinomas commonly exhibit neuroendocrine differentiation as demonstrated by immunohistochemistry. However, true carcinoids of the prostate are rare. We describe herein a case of a primary carcinoid occurring synchronously with a conventional adenocarcinoma in the prostate of a 66-year-old man. The carcinoid measured 0.2 × 0.2 cm and did not show contiguity with adjacent conventional, moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. Immunohistochemical stains for chromogranin and neuron-specific enolase were strongly immunoreactive in the carcinoid but not in the adenocarcinoma. Both neoplasms demonstrated positive staining for prostatic acid phosphatase and prostate-specific antigen. Owing to the relatively minute size of the carcinoid, the possibility that this tumor will impact negatively on the patient’s overall prognosis is not anticipated.
Low-grade Tubular Myxoid Renal Tumors: A Clinicopathological Study of 3 Cases
Authors: Aubert S. , Duchene F. , Augusto D. , Llinares K. , Lemaitre L. , Gosselin B. , Leroy X.
Published: March 2006

We report 3 cases of a new renal cell tumor entity with a review of the literature. These 3 cases were retrieved from the files of this institution from 1991 to 2002. The clinical data and all histologic slides were reviewed and an immunohistochemical study was performed. Patients were all females. Tumors were almost similar with well-defined margins. Tumor architecture was tubular and focally fusiform with an abundant myxoid stroma. Tumor cells were low cuboidal, slightly eosinophilic with low nuclear grade. Immunohistochemistry was in favor of a distal nephron differentiation. All patients were healthy after surgery. We describe 3 cases of a new clinicopathological entity entitled low-grade tubular myxoid renal tumor with a benign clinical course.
Endometrial Adenocarcinoma in Situ in Complex Atypical Hyperplasia: Correlation with Findings in Subsequent Hysterectomy Specimen
Authors: Ventura Karyna C. , Popiolek Dorota , Mittal Khush
Published: March 2006

Well-differentiated endometrial adenocarcinoma can be difficult to distinguish from complex atypical hyperplasia (CAH) in a curettage or biopsy specimen. When a focus of back-to-back glands or cribriforming smaller than 2.1 mm is seen in a biopsy, we make a diagnosis of adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS). Whether this diagnosis translates into a more frequent diagnosis of carcinoma on the hysterectomy specimen is unknown. The objective of this study was to compare follow-up hysterectomy findings in biopsies showing AIS in CAH with biopsies showing only CAH without AIS. Twelve biopsy/curettage cases diagnosed as endometrial AIS in CAH and 12 biopsy/curettage cases diagnosed as CAH only were reviewed and correlated with corresponding hysterectomy material. A diagnosis of AIS was designated on biopsy/curettings when a focus of back-to-back glands or cribriforming less than 2.1 mm was present. Hysterectomy specimens showed endometrial carcinoma in 6 (50%) of 12 cases of CAH with AIS, and in 2 (17%) of 12 cases diagnosed as CAH only. Endometrial carcinoma with myometrial invasion was identified in 5 (42%) of the cases showing AIS on biopsy, but in none of the 12 cases diagnosed as CAH only on biopsy. Identification of AIS in CAH cases provides useful prognostic information.