Relations among academic achievement, school bonding, school misbehavior, and cigarette use from eighth to twelfth grade were examined in two national and panel samples of youth from the Monitoring the Future project (N=3,056). A series of competing conceptual models developed a priori was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). The…

This report presents results of a cross-sectional study of achievement and underachievement in middle and high school (grades 6 to 9) African-American students in five mid-Atlantic school districts in 1995. Interviews with 152 African-American students, of whom 44 were identified as gifted, were conducted. Students were asked about their…

Asserting that parents are young children's most precious resource, this paper offers research-based advice for raising children with self-esteem and the ability to become independent, productive members of society. The paper's sections are: (1) "Parents Build Self Esteem"; (2) "Flexibility and Adaptability Help Parents Survive"; (3) "Parents Are…

Suggests ways in which art teachers in public schools can demonstrate the value of art, and escape being low man on the school totem pole.'' (DS)

Studied the development of attitudes about locus of control in four gifted high school students, using essays, extracurricular activities, and interviews. Results suggested scales are inadequate to describe attitudes about control, self-descriptions are not necessarily substantiated by behavior, and the labels external and internal are imprecise…

Measured the effect of confidentiality, parental influence, and peer influence on the moral judgment of ninth-grade students (N=274). Participants completed the Defining Issues Test and were told results would be either confidential or shared with parents or peers. Results suggest the moral judgment of ninth graders is not stable. (JAC)

Evidence that parental firm control promotes effective socialization of children (i.e., promotes self-control, social responsibility) is examined, and a reinterpretation of existing measures of firm control that is consistent with attribution theory is offered. It is concluded that the notion that parental firm control promotes effective…

A measure was developed to assess kindergarten children's interest in reading, and information about their home and school environments was collected. High-reading-interest children were read to more frequently, watched less television, and had more books at home. School factors are also discussed. (Author/PP)

Describes a study which surveyed British parents about their educational and occupational aspirations for their children, their views on sexual equality, and their children's out-of-school activities. The messages which children receive about gender from their homes are contradictory, but not as uniformly traditional as many teachers assume.…

Interview data from 336 mothers of elementary school children were used to examine the relationship between mothers' comments to children about the content of television programs and family communication styles (emphasis on free inquiry and expression for all family members vs. emphasis on family harmony and obedience to parental authority). (PD)

Investigated whether marriage-related attitudes which are antagonistic to successful marital adjustment, or maladaptive styles of marital interaction, contribute to the higher divorce rate of children from disrupted marriages. Findings indicated that children from separated/divorced homes espouse the most favorable attitude toward divorce. (Author)

Examined the self-esteem of middleborns compared with firstborns and lastborns. Studied the number, spacing, and sex of siblings of the middleborn. Data were obtained from a national sample of over 2,200 adolescent males. Results suggested that middleborns have a significantly lower self-esteem than firstborns and lastborns. (Author)

Males from rural economically deprived school districts, were surveyed a fourth and final time 10 years after high school graduation. Results show over the 10-year period the occupational and educational achievements and aspirations have been significantly higher for the high-identification with their father group than for the low-identification…

"Strictness" and "warmth" were concepts used to scale descriptions of their mothers as given by first-born 4 1/2 year-olds. Independent data had been obtained on mothers during and after pregnancy. "Strict" and "warm" mothers differed in terms of mental health, post partum period, childhood, adolescence, parent-child interaction, and relations…