Describes a longitudinal study which examined patterns of change in the life-goal aspirations and educational expectations of 2,786 women and men who graduated from the University of California, Davis, between 1968-79. Findings indicated that life-goal aspirations and educational expectations have changed over the decade of the 1970s. (Author/AM)

One of a series on selected topics, this bibliography contains resource materials and research findings about aspirational needs of rural youth--including ethnic, male/female, and urban/rural comparisons. The 10 citations, published from 1966 to 1974, are drawn from "Resources in Education" (RIE), a monthly publication containing…

The study investigated whether Mexican American male and female migrants differed from Mexican American male and female non-migrants in reference to: level and type of occupational and educational aspirations and expectations; projected age of marriage and procreation; and valuation of life goals. Using data gathered in a 1973 survey of Mexican…

To examine the use of creativity measures as supplementary, supportive data in college admissions procedures, and to examine the relationships between level of aspiration measures, actual college performance, and creativity measure performance, 18 high- and low-risk freshmen entering Tufts University completed three creativity measures and the…

In an effort to determine whether there are differences in areas of residence that affect the aspirations and expectations of young people living therein, this study examined occupational and educational aspirations of 1,835 rural high school seniors from 3 sociocultural contexts in Kentucky: (1) a low-opportunity, rural-poverty area in central…

One of a series on selected topics, this bibliography of resource materials and research findings is drawn from ERIC documents; the 42 citations on rural youth cover expectations and aspirations about education, occupation, residence, marriage, and procreation (several are historical change studies), and focus on such influences as race, sex,…

The literature review attempted to identify: 1) what we know and don't know about post-secondary aspirations, expectations, and access; and 2) where and how it is possible for us to embark on solutions or further investigation. The research in this area has been heavily sociological. Socio-economic background, family size, community origins,…

A model of the social processes involved in the production of individual educational achievement is formulated and used to interpret data from Australia. Results are evaluated. The "needs press" paradigm and "social learning theory" are discussed as mechanisms of transference in the model. (SB)

Based on comparative data from two 1973 studies, this study examined whether or not the occupational and educational status projections and language usage patterns of Mexican American teenagers living in a large metropolitan area differed from those of teenagers living in isolated, relatively small nonmetropolitan places. The two separate, but…

Describes research testing the 'race convergence' hypothesis for high school students of low socioeconomic background. Findings showed that many race differentials in the aspiration-formation process disappear at this level. (Author/CK)

This study investigated some of the differences in a perceptual discrimination performance task due to: (1) sex and (2) level of aspiration of each group of subjects. It was found that there is an interaction effect between femaleness, maleness, and aspiration level. (Author)

Employed a modified Rotter Level of Aspiration (LOA) task to assess parents' goal setting for their asthmatic, diabetic, and healthy children (N=64). Results indicated mothers of asthmatic children showed no significant goal-setting differences from comparison mothers and were less controlling. Fathers were more rigid and less accommodating and…

A 120-item questionnaire was administered to 750 Irish adolescents, aged 12-17. It measured sex differences in the following variables: academic achievement; educational and occupational aspiration; self-assessment of achievement; assertiveness; and stereotypes toward adult roles and three achievement-related traits (striving, competence, and…

The project was designed to examine the way in which institutions of higher education change, or fail to change, the educational aspirations of women students and to test the explanatory power of two dominant sociological reference group theories, environmental press and relative deprivation, when applied separately to male and female…

The primary objective of the largely exploratory study was an empirical examination of familial socialization practices and their influence on ambition (measured as education and occupational expectations) of black and white males and females. Existing generalizations about career expectations were extended by establishing comparisons on the basis…