This research examined resilience processes in context through a narrative case study of Tasha, a young African-American woman who grew up in a poverty-ridden area of a mid-sized city in the Southeast. Personal and external data are analyzed and interpreted in terms of contextually defined themes of adversity (i.e., intersectionality of social…

Discusses implications of the Downing and Roush (1985) feminist identity development model for feminist therapy with women. Describes potential pitfalls of feminist therapy and emergent issues at subsequent stages of client's identity development. Proposes research agenda for hypothesis testing of model when applied to therapy with women clients.…

This study compared the level of ego development of 30 women with histories of childhood sexual victimization and 30 women with no history of abuse. Results indicated no significant difference in ego levels between groups, with a slight trend toward higher ego development in the abused group. (Author/DB)

Objective: This study investigates attributional styles and psychosocial functioning of men and women with ADHD identified in adulthood to inform practice issues. Method: One hundred and eighty adults participate: 52 females with ADHD, 37 males with ADHD, 51 female controls, and 40 male controls are administered questionnaires broadly assessing…

This study investigated factors affecting lifespan achievement as perceived by 16 gifted women from 15 countries outside the United States. Results indicated that the gifted women shared personal characteristics of determination, willingness to take risks, and a will to achieve their goals. Eight positive coping strategies are described.…

This study analyzed the lifespan development of 80 women who are contemporary creative writers. Themes in the women writers' lives were characterized by developmental events, including nurturing of talents by both male and female teachers and mentors; professional situations; and core personality/personal attributes that were similar to men…

The importance of role models for women achieving career success has received increased attention; however, there has been little agreement on a definition of the concept. To determine who college women say their role models are and to determine developmental discontinuities in women's reports of their role models, 377 college women completed two…

For men and women to be genuinely effective leaders, they need to challenge themselves to grow beyond the limiting boundaries set by gender role definitions. When leaders are aware that the integrated human being is the result of a balanced complement between feminine and masculine personality traits, they enable others to actualize the same…

Two dental classes were tested for personality change in the freshman year and after graduation. Significant test/retest increases were found on orderliness and conformity scales and decreases on the activity/energy scale. Sex differences occurred on activity/energy, emotional stability, and masculinity/femininity scales. In one class, females…

This study examined, as part of a national retrospective study of high achieving women, factors affecting the life-span achievement of 15 Latina women identified as gifted. More than half did not evidence their potential through high grades in school. Participants cited racial or gender bias as a major obstacle but also reported a strong…

Psychosocial, psychosomatic, and psychodynamic factors were evaluated in 33 female psychiatric patients who had been victims of incest. Sexual abuse experiences in childhood were related to feelings of anxiety, helplessness, and powerlessness, which, with a lack of support from the mother, led to ego weakness, and an autoplastic model of coping…

Reports on a study of the effect of eye contact on 73 male and female college students. Finds that as eye contact duration increased, the model was judged to have less state anxiety, less trait anxiety, and less test anxiety. Concludes that the study confirms that as eye contact increases, an individual is judged more positively. (CFR)

This study identified early conditions of successful adults, via a historical analysis of psychological traits and childhood environments of 38 notable 20th-century American women writers. The study rated multiple traits and conditions representing cognitive, affective, familial, and educational aspects. Results focus on the degree of persistence…

The study, with 89 gifted girls in grades 1-12, found decreased self-regard, self-confidence, inner courage, and self-assurance with increased age. Levels of perfectionism, hopelessness, discouragement, and emotional vulnerability rose with increasing age. Findings suggest the need for strong identity information and models and the encouragement…

Information about the experiences successful leaders perceive as vital to their development can be helpful to one's understanding of resiliency. Such information can also offer insights into the ways successful leaders use positive and negative situations as learning opportunities and the strategies they implement in addressing adversity. The…