Indicates that personal religious preference is the demographic characteristic best able to predict a religion journalist's use of a particular denominational news service. Shows that the journalist's own religious preference is a much weaker predictor than is the strength of the religious tradition in the newspaper's circulation area. (JD)

Obtained two-week sleep diaries and four nights of laboratory recordings from 40 persons aged 50 to 70. Results showed no significant effect on sleep structure associated with employment status. Retirement appeared to increase the amount of sleep, generally the result of earlier bedtimes rather than later awakenings. (JAC)

Examines the evidence on the effects of giving information about drugs as part of drug education programs. Discusses the impact of information on knowledge, attitudes, and behavior surrounding drugs and drug use. Concludes that the effects of drug information on behavior are best regarded as unpredictable. (BH)

Using a sample of 98 alcoholics, studied intercorrelations between control-over-drinking ratings made in 10 follow-ups covering the first 18 months after treatment. Control among treated alcoholics was generally inconsistent and only marginally predictable. Recidivism increased up to 9th-month follow-up, then it stablized and seemed to decline…

Evaluates the efficacy of a multisystemic approach to treatment of juvenile offenders and their families. One group of delinquent adolescents received family-ecological treatment, another group of delinquent adolescents received an alternative treatment, and normal adolescents served as developmental controls. Findings support a multisystemic…

The authors discuss the nature, use, and application of behavioral rating scales for students with behavior disorders. An annotated list of eight behavioral rating scales is included. (CL)

Reports on four experiments on pattern perception in four-month-old infants. The first experiment examined preference for patterns varying in structure; the second examined encoding patterns from different subset sizes; and the last two experiments examined changes in the size, position, and orientation of the habituation pattern. (HOD)

Examined the nonmedical utilization rates of selected substances among an adolescent population of students (N=2,036). Analysis of psychosocial variables indicated that age at first use; frequency of use of marijuana, alcohol and cigarettes; and amount of available spending money were significant predictors of drug use. (LLL)

A retrospective analysis of the progress of eight institutionalized subjects who had been successfully treated in overcorrection procedures 10 years earlier revealed that maladaptive behaviors of the highest functioning individuals showed the longest term and best suppression, and that staff tend to return to the status quo after the expert…

Teacher-completed Behavior Problem Checklists on 727 behaviorally disordered younger and older boys and girls were factor-analyzed. Results confirmed the primacy and pervasiveness of aggression-disruption or conduct disorder among factors that classify children as behaviorally disordered. Also consistently found for all age groups was a factor…

Three data sets examining the prevalence of various abnormal stereotyped behaviors in severely disabled children attending early childhood programs indicated that the abnormal stereotyped behaviors increase with age at least until adolescence and that the effect is more marked in those with severe mental retardation. (CL)

In a study involving 101 severely developmentally disabled children (1-16 years old), stereotyped behaviors without objects was positively correlated with self-manipulation and chronological age and was negatively correlated with complex object manipulation, developmental age, developmental quotient, and teacher attention. Stereotyped behavior…

Script Analysis, Domain Analysis, Activity Patterns, and Behavior Setting Analysis are reviewed as approaches to the study of person-environment relationships. (DF)

Residential staff rated common consequences of stereotypic or self-injurious behaviors of 60 severely and profoundly retarded residents. Ratings indicated that only 7 percent of stereotypic behavior was followed by positive consequences or escape/avoidance from demands, while 30 percent was followed by staff attention and 38 percent led to escape…

Analysis of free play interaction between 40 mothers and their mentally retarded, retarded cerebral palsied, and nonretarded infants revealed that mothers of both groups of developmentally disabled (DD) infants were more directive than mothers of nonretarded infants. DD infants were more compliant and demonstrated lower levels of behavior and less…