Latent class analysis (LCA) is a statistical method used to identify subtypes of related cases using a set of categorical or continuous observed variables. Traditional LCA assumes that observations are independent. However, multilevel data structures are common in social and behavioral research and alternative strategies are needed. In this…

This article presents a study of academic procrastination and associated motivation variables in 508 adolescents from a general secondary school in central Turkey. Girls reported higher levels of self-efficacy for self-regulation and predicted higher Turkish grades than boys, but there was no difference in levels of procrastination. Academic…

Individual (gender and acculturation), microsystem (social support), exosystem (socioeconomic status), and macrosystem (racism) variables were examined as predictors of career decision-making self-efficacy in a sample of 85 Vietnamese adolescents in the Washington, D.C., area. English language acculturation and peer support accounted for unique…

The article reviews the current status (1993-2007) of psychosocial treatments for children and adolescents who have been exposed to traumatic events. Twenty-one treatment studies are evaluated using criteria from Nathan and Gorman (2002) along a continuum of methodological rigor ranging from Type 1 to Type 6. All studies were, at a minimum, robust…

Predictors of language production skills were evaluated in 48 children and adolescents with Down syndrome and compared to 48 children matched for nonverbal mental age and mother's years of education. Comparison of two models found the model that incorporated comprehension performance (as well group membership, chronological age, cognition,…

This study of 91 young adults, who had been identified as intellectually gifted as adolescents, found that out-of-school activities in adolescence were significant predictors of later vocational choice. Subjects whose adolescent out-of-school activities matched their adult occupations had a higher level of work accomplishment than other subjects.…

The HEW National Strategy for Youth Development Model is promoted as a community-based planning and procedural tool designed to enhance positive youth development and prevent delinquency. To investigate the relationship between the percentage of youths endorsing particular needs and problems and the relative predictiveness these items bear on…

Parents (N=100) of children (ages 9 to 13) with or without learning disabilities (LD) responded to a retrospective developmental survey. Parents reported that the children with LD had significantly more neurodevelopmental problems or delays across domains (e.g., language, motor, attention, social behavior) than normal achievers. A pattern of…

Two interrelated cross-sectional studies involving 751 children were conducted to investigate the correlates of outwardly directed aggressive behavior in children (ages 6-21) with mental retardation. Findings indicate that aggression was best predicted by concurrent self-injurious behavior. (Author/CR)

Treatment attrition is a major problem for programs treating adolescent substance abusers. To isolate and cross validate factors which are predictive of addiction treatment attrition among adolescent substance abusers, screening interview and diagnostic variables from 119 adolescent in-patients were submitted to a discriminant equation analysis.…

Demographic prediction of juvenile delinquency has been hampered by the heterogeniety of youth samples. In an attempt to correct for sampling bias in predicting juvenile delinquency, 1,689 male and female youths(aged 12 to 19, drawn from a 6 percent systematic, census tract, random sample of Pennsylvania school youths) completed the Youth Needs…

Values are a central concept in understanding and predicting human behavior. Value priority differences have been shown to predict important political, social, and economic attitudes and behaviors. The purpose of this study was to identify differences and similarities among the value hierarchies of adolescents who have never tried alcohol,…

Analysis of data from the 1958 Philadelphia Birth Cohort Study indicates that individuals who dropped out from delinquency were less likely to renew their involvement with crime as adults regardless of race, socioeconomic status, gender, or particular dropout period. (FMW)

Analyzes the interrelationships among delinquency, substance abuse, and sexual activity in a sample of 1,725 youths over a 5-year period. Findings indicate that adolescent sexual intercourse is a function of age and sex, and may reflect a general propensity to engage in risky behavior. (FMW)

The Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) Office of Youth Development's National Strategy for Youth Development model was promoted as a community-based planning and procedural tool for enhancing positive youth development and reducing delinquency. To test the applicability of the model as a function of delinquency level, the program's Impact Scales…