Presents information about suicide among adolescents. Profiles the suicidal person and reviews general distress signals and events precipitating suicide. Suggests responses to potential or actual suicides, including intervention, prevention, and ministry strategies. Provides recommendations for educators and clarifies common myths about suicide.…

The development of a self-evaluation questionnaire compiled from 2,041 student-generated descriptions of coping behavior is described. A factor analysis of data for 643 students in years 11-12 of Australian secondary school yielded the 90-item Adolescent Coping Checklist--a questionnaire concerning different ways that adolescents cope with…

Inconsistencies in adolescents' self-reports of sexual behavior were studied for 758 rural adolescents (eighth-grade students in rural Maryland) who completed surveys over 3 years. Consistency rates fluctuate depending on the measure of sexual behavior, the racial/gender subgroup, age, and prior sexual experience, but the majority present…

The extent to which student questionnaire responses reflect students' active behavior was studied through course attendance patterns of Israeli undergraduates, student completion of a questionnaire rating college lecturers, and interviews with 36 students. In this instance, the questionnaire did not reflect actual behavior. Explanations are…

Reviews by Margaret A. Gibson (1988) and by Margaret A. Gibson and John U. Ogbu, Eds. (1991). These two books contribute significantly to theories of minority school success and failure in plural societies. Both distinguish between immigrant and involuntary minority groups, and attribute differing degrees of academic success to the cultural models…

Discusses the effects of child abuse and neglect on young children. Focuses on possible neurological effects; psychological effects, such as disregulation of affect and avoidance of intimacy; and cognitive consequences throughout childhood and adolescence. Describes interventions that can promote resiliency in children, such as providing alternate…

Configural analyses of teacher- , peer- , and self-assessments of students' interpersonal competence were evaluated with 948 students (including 107 students with mild disabilities) in 59 elementary classrooms. The study found 54% of boys and 64% of girls with mild disabilities were in configurations suggesting adjustment problems or poor outcomes…

A case study of an adolescent with catatonia superimposed on autism is presented. The symptoms of the patient are highlighted and include abnormal social interactions, deficits in symbolic play and in communicative language, and occurrence of hallucinations and delusions. Treatment of the patient with clozapine and lorasepam is described. (CR)

Two tables summarize effects of mentoring in 10 middle schools in De Kalb County (Georgia) and from mentoring programs sponsored by the Big Brothers/Big Sisters organization. Both sets of programs show improved attendance and improved conduct, and the Georgia programs were associated with better grades. (SLD)

Used written narratives to examine gender and age patterns in body image, emotional expression, and self-esteem for 209 students in grades 5, 8, and 12. Results indicate that boys restrict emotional expression in adolescence, whereas girls increase emotional expression in the same period. Girls also are more influenced by body image. (SLD)

Examined the impact of a series of common stressful life events (SLEs) on change in depressive symptoms among the elderly of the Hong Kong Chinese Society. Using multiple regression models, it was found that sense of control acted as a mediator in the linkage between the number of SLEs and depressive symptoms. Findings suggest that sense of…

Explores how the wider society should decide which minority practices can be tolerated and which should be banned for the good of the whole society. Principles of toleration cannot be set down in advance, but should be developed through open-minded dialog aimed at reasonable consensus. (SLD)

Takes a constructivist/interpretivist view of grief within the interactive, meaning-making system of the family. Views grief as a multidimensional process of reconceptualization of reality, focusing on regaining stability after a loss, with family members using relationships with each other to engage in that process. Families are seen as arenas of…

To explore theoretical issues inspired by the Likert response format, 2 social insight scales were developed and administered to 391 Air Force recruits. Results demonstrate the applicability of the probabilistic response format to measure differences in nontraditional knowledge domains and the existence of a factor that may be interpreted as…

Examines Web users' behaviors and needs and tests a methodology for studying users' interaction with the Web. A process-tracing technique, together with tests of cognitive style, anxiety levels, and self-report computer experience, provided data on how users interact with the Web in the process of finding factual information. (Author/AEF)