Focus group interviews with secondary school students in Quebec reveal assimilationist discourses concerning the integration of newcomers. The first part of the study involved interviews with immigrant students. In the second part of the study, reported here, host society youth describe fears of losing their cultural identity. Interview data…

Greece has the highest smoking prevalence in the European Union, with adolescents having high levels of exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS). In July 2009, national smokefree legislation was implemented in Greece. This study explored Greek young people's attitudes to smoking, SHS and the impending legislation. Semi-structured qualitative interviews…

Background: Angelman syndrome (AS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder usually caused by an anomaly in the maternally inherited chromosome 15. The main features are severe intellectual disability, speech impairment, ataxia, epilepsy, sleep disorder and a behavioural phenotype that reportedly includes happy disposition, attraction to/fascination with…

Although studies have found a relation between the use of relational aggression and depressive symptomatology, there is less evidence for the relation of the role of gender identity in these processes. Consequently, this study investigated the roles of social and relational aggression and feminine gender role identity in depressive symptoms among…

A frequently noted but largely anecdotal behavioral observation in Williams syndrome (WS) is an increased tendency to approach strangers, yet the basis for this behavior remains unknown. We examined the relationship between affect identification ability and affiliative behavior in participants with WS relative to a neurotypical comparison group.…

Teaching children with autism is a challenging task for educators and parents, as the children display marked deficits in language and social behaviors. One of the major goals of an intervention program for children with autism is to provide them a method of functional communication and ample opportunities to practice these skills. For some…

Research on Eastern Europe stresses the weakness of its civil society and the lack of political and social involvement, neglecting the question: What do people themselves think it means to be a good citizen? This study looks at citizens' definitions of good citizenship in Poland, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Hungary, using 2002 European Social…

This study examines the applicability of Western adult attachment perspectives to interpersonal difficulties experienced by individuals with indigenous Chinese cultural backgrounds. A total of 275 Taiwanese university students completed self-report surveys of adult attachment, ideal attachment, and interpersonal problems. Culturally adjusted…

This article provides an examination of issues related to spontaneity of communication in children with autism. Deficits relating to spontaneity or initiation are frequently reported in individuals with autism, particularly in relation to communication and social behavior. Nevertheless, spontaneity is not necessarily clearly conceptualized or…

This study examined the dual roles of adolescents' perceptions of social acceptance and sociometric popularity in predicting relative changes over time in adolescents' social functioning. Observational, self-report, and peer report data were obtained from 164 adolescents who were interviewed at age 13 years and then again at age 14 years, as well…

The relationship between ageing and skills is becoming an important policy issue, not least in the context of population ageing. Data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) will potentially add considerably to the understanding of the relationship between ageing and foundation skills. In particular, the…

As our need for collaboration constantly grows, new tools have emerged to connect us in social networks, supporting the development of online communities, such as online games and virtual worlds. MMOGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Games) and MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games) are complex systems, in which players are…

Past research in both the transitions to adulthood literature and cultural sociology more broadly suggests that the working class relies on traditional cultural models in their construction of identity. In the contemporary post-industrial world, however, traditional life pathways are now much less available to working-class men and women. I draw…

When teaching individuals with autism it is important to pay particular attention to fitness and movement as these individuals are less likely than typical children to achieve the recommended level physical activity. Common characteristics of autism spectrum disorder can include deficits in communication and social behavior, which may limit…

Under the apartheid state, higher education was structured to maintain and reproduce the subordinate social and economic position of non-Whites. The post-apartheid higher education sector suffered from fragmentation along racial lines, a lack of sustainability, and a structural incapacity to meet the challenges of restructuring and development.…