This article had four goals. First, the authors identified a set of general challenges and questions that a life-span theory of development should address. Second, they presented a comprehensive account of their Motivational Theory of Life-Span Development. They integrated the model of optimization in primary and secondary control and the…

Describes the development of coping behavior in children and the role of coping behavior in dealing with conflict and anxiety. Defines various coping mechanisms including rationalization, projection, displacement, denial of reality, compensation, regression, and intellectualization. Outlines suggestions for helping children and parents understand…

Examines the role of communication and denial in coping efforts of children with cancer. Results indicate level of family communication about cancer expressed by mother's communication is correlated with hypothesized responses in child. Usefulness of three instruments as effective tools in measuring child's reactions is demonstrated. (Author/BEF)

Children who handle stress well tend to be self-confident while those who don't are vulnerable and lack coping skills. Descriptions of capable and vulnerable children are listed, and a technique for helping to build positive feelings is offered. (DF)

Studies of personality integration in children and adults show that certain personality characteristics that predict effective behavior appear to be remarkably continuous regardless of differences in age, gender, race, or socioeconomic status. The studies point to the importance of self-esteem for effective behavior. (PP)

Discusses various theories concerning the purpose of children's humor, especially in the classroom. Describes ways in which children use humor to deal with stress. (RJC)

Ninety-three families of children with developmental delays were interviewed, to investigate the functional accommodations made to sustain daily routines for a child with a disability. Results found a downward trend in accommodation intensity from age 7 to 11, while types of accommodations increased from age 3 to 11. (CR)

Discusses the influences of parental alcoholism on children's daily lives, generally, and learning problems, absenteeism, and adjustment problems, specifically. Suggests that schools are one of the most promising settings for identifying and intervening with children of alcoholics as a target group. (DST)

It is often the case that lip service is paid to the strength of indigenous culture while the implications of indigenous peoples' strengths are disregarded in actual project design. This paper shows that indigenous peoples and societies are able to cope with an extraordinary number of permutations, and that their coping mechanisms are both…

This workshop manual is one of four volumes in a staff development series designed for use with the Georgia comprehensive guidance and counseling units. The manual presents three separate models of students' school coping styles to aid classroom teachers' understanding of student behavior. Part 1 summarizes four basic models of student coping,…

Examined stress and coping symptoms of 258 children whose parents were divorced. Found that, in the cross-sectional model, avoidance coping partially mediated the relations between negative events and symptoms; while active coping moderated between negative events and conduct problems. In the longitudinal model, significant negative paths were…

Estimates indicate that 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men have been sexually abused as children. These statistics may be underestimated based on anecdotal information relayed by many therapists who specialize in working with survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Effects of childhood sexual abuse have far reaching implications for the survivors' abilities…

Many children are targets of verbal and physical abuse or social ostracism at some point during their school careers, and a minority are repeatedly victimized by their peers. This volume brings together leading investigators to present the latest psychological research on chronically victimized children and adolescents. The book's introduction…