Children in all cultures readily engage in artistic activities, yet the arts (dance, drama, drawing, and music) have traditionally been marginal topics in the discipline of developmental science. We argue that developmental psychologists cannot afford to ignore such naturalistic activities that involve so many basic phenomena--attention,…

Different cross-domain trajectories in the development of students' ability self-concepts (ASCs) and their intrinsic valuing of math and language arts were examined in a cross-sequential study spanning Grades 1 through 12 (n = 1,069). Growth mixture modeling analyses identified a "Moderate Math Decline/Stable High Language Arts" class…

Longitudinal data on reaction time for children in the Berkeley Growth Study and the Oakland Growth Study were analyzed in terms of relative intraindividual variability. Findings indicated a major maturational and a minor learning component in the improvement of mean performance in simple reaction time with increasing age and experience.…

A multivariate modification of the cross-lagged panel correlation paradigm was applied to data from 4 subgroups of students tested and retested in fifth, seventh, ninth, and eleventh grades on 16 essentially identical cognitive measures. Results suggested that the test of aural comprehension was tapping the causal factors involved in intellectual…

Investigated changes in perceptions of the student/teacher relationship and the value of mathematics on the part of 2,501 students making the transition to junior high school. The value of math increased for students who moved from less supportive to more supportive teachers. (RJC)

Personality and intelligence associated with depressive symptoms in 99 young adults were evaluated using prospective data from preschool through adolescence. Found that depressive symptoms in males developed earlier than in females, and that adolescent females were more likely than adolescent males to express autocentric reactions, such as…

Assessed relationships between early temperament and behavior problems in a longitudinal study of 850 children from age 3 to 15. Temperament dimensions at ages 3 and 5 were correlated in theoretically coherent ways with behavior problems that were independently evaluated by parents and teachers at ages 9 and 11 and by parents as ages 13 and 15.…

Hypothesized that individual differences in 81 sixth-grade boys' self-restraint would serve as a mediator between family factors in preadolescence and sons' delinquent behavior 4 years later. General family functioning at preadolescence, independent of other scores, predicted boys' level of self-restraint four years later. (MDM)

Investigates the prediction of children's (1) academic achievement on the basis of cognitive tasks given prior to kindergarten, and (2) academic attitudes on the basis of teachers' and mothers' ratings of the children's general cognitive abilities and actual achievement through grades 1, 2, 3, 5, and 10. (HOD)

Examined parents' role in the development of their children's moral reasoning. Differences in interaction style in discussions of hypothetical and of real-life dilemmas were found. Children's moral development was best predicted by a parental discussion style involving supportive interactions and the presentation of higher level moral reasoning.…

Examined the relationship between childhood malnutrition and later intellectual development in 18 severely malnourished (SM) children who participated in a 3-year home visitation intervention. Follow-ups done 7, 8, 9, and 14 years after hospitalization showed that these children had markedly higher vocabulary and achievement scores than a control…

Investigated the academic and intellectual performance of disadvantaged children who had experienced one of four types of prekindergarten program or no prekindergarten at all. IQ measures did not differ significantly among preschool program groups, but differential effects in the three grades, related to both preschool program and sex, were noted…

Reanalyzed data from Sheldon and Eleanor Glueck's study of 500 delinquents and 500 nondelinquents from low-income neighborhoods of Boston between 1924 and 1935. Found that low supervision, weak parent-child attachment, and erratic, threatening, and harsh discipline, contributed to delinquency. Suggests that strong family social controls may serve…

A sample of 183 third through sixth grade students were administered the Revised Class Play (RCP). Seven years later, these children and their parents completed a questionnaire measuring the students' behavioral symptoms and social, athletic, and academic competence. The RCP scores were related to adolescent competence and psychopathology. (BC)