In our reanalysis of data from the Brown et al. (2006) study (Steinberg & Monahan, 2011), we found no support for the contention that adolescents' exposure to sexy media content hastens their sexual debut. In their critiques of our article, Brown (2011) and Collins, Martino, and Elliott (2011) both questioned some of the decisions we made with…

This article responds to sociologist Christian Smith's claim that many teenagers today have lost traditional religious faith and instead espouse a new and erroneous faith in God the "Cosmic Therapist." The author challenges this claim by comparing two of Smith's chief complaints vis-a-vis teen faith to established portraits of adolescent faith.…

Using a two-step approach, Van Soest et al. (2010) recently questioned the pertinence of the conclusions drawn by Bootsma and Van Wieringen (1990) with respect to the visual regulation of an exemplary rapid interceptive action: the attacking forehand drive in table tennis. In the first step, they experimentally compared the movement behaviors of…

This article compares the first-person narratives of two adolescent girls in the novels "The Rain Catchers" and "The House on Mango Street". I propose that adolescent girls can use literacy to read the world around them as a text and therefore help them to form their own identities enough to ultimately find authority in telling their own stories.…

Expands an existing nonlinear dynamic epidemic model of onset of social activities (EMOSA), motivated by social contagion theory, to quantify the likelihood of pregnancy for adolescent girls of different sexuality statuses. Compares five sexuality/pregnancy models to explain variance in national prevalence curves. Finds that adolescent girls have…

A school librarian reviews CD-ROM encyclopedias, determining their suitability for school and public library use with children and young adults, and favoring content and accessibility over special features and multimedia enhancements. Outlines essential considerations when choosing encyclopedias (price, network and print versions, and online…

This paper will make a critical comparison between the stages of the Hero's Journey as presented by Christopher Vogler and the taxonomy of personal engagement as articulated by Educational Drama theorists. Both Vogler's journey and the taxonomy describe how a person travels from one world into another and back again, combining the two results in a…

Considers the key elements of a permanence philosophy in child care and protection that has dominated thinking in the United Kingdom for 15 years. Highlights the fundamentally different stance taken in new children's legislation in New Zealand and argues that the preconditions have been more clearly established for collaboration and partnership…

Discusses children's ability to distinguish fantasy from reality in video games and suggests that there is potential for creative innovative software and graphics. Virtual reality is described and compared to books, and learning about all new electronic genres in addition to the best existing ones is advocated. (EAM)

Delineates a series of nine questions concerning the study of adolescent friendships that must be addressed by theorists and empirical investigators. The questions concern comparisons between different types of relationships; peer relationships; individual differences; developmental differences; changes in friendship over time; friendship…

Contrasts the very popular and enduring Nancy Drew series with the host of imitators that appeared after the initial success of the Drew series. Points out that the Drew books were focused mysteries with only tenuous ties to realism but that imitators usually copied the outlines of the pattern but either overlooked or weakened important parts of…

Takes issue with the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation report (Schweinhart, Weikart and Larner, 1986) indicating that preschoolers taught by direct instruction end up with twice the rate of delinquency of children who participated in High/Scope's own kind of preschool education. Argues that self-report methodology invalidates High/Scope…

Examines methodological issues in conducting research with at-risk youth across cultures. A case study is used to illustrate key methodological issues and explore where conventional methodology may not be applicable to cross-cultural research with at-risk youth. Recommendations are made to address some of the methodological challenges. (Author)

Reactions to the national study of children's problems and competence by Achenbach et al. are offered, with focus on the development of a new survey instrument, the ACQ Behavior Check List. A reply from the researchers is included. (12 references) (LB)