Cross-national studies consistently reveal that bullying is a pervasive problem in schools and associated with a multitude of deleterious outcomes. The present dissertation conducted two studies to further provide insight into this complex phenomenon and facilitate the development of effective bullying prevention programs. Youth involved in…

Students' time expenditures influence their learning and development. This study used latent profile analysis to identify a taxonomy of how first-year students spend their time using a large multi-institution sample. We identified four time usage patterns by first-year students titled Balanced, Involved, Partiers, and Parents. Sex, expected major…

The majority of previous research on academic skills, self-concept of ability and interest has deployed the variable-oriented approach and focused on self-concept, or ability, or interest only. This study examined the patterns and dynamics of pattern change in Finnish children's word reading skill, self-concept of ability and interest from…

Research indicates disparities in the enrollment of minorities in postsecondary education. However, the reasons for the lower enrollment rates of minorities are less clear. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between sex, income, GPA, racial/ethnic identity, academic self-concept, and sense of school belonging for African…

This study investigated trajectories of time spent in structured activities from middle childhood to early adolescence by using data from the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care. We used latent class growth analyses and identified five trajectories (stable low, increasing high, decreasing low,…

This study investigated whether secondary schools in Norway had deviant subcultures, which could be labelled "schoolyard corner society", and how gender and age were related to membership. We also studied levels of reactive and proactive aggressiveness in students, and the relationship between these types of aggressiveness and…

This study was designed to predict middle school sixth graders' group membership in band (n = 81), chorus (n = 45), and as non-participants in music performance ensembles (n = 127), as determined by gender and factors on the Attraction Toward School Performance Ensemble (ATSPE) scale (alpha = 0.88). Students completed the ATSPE as elementary fifth…