Social support is defined, and its place in the broader scheme of support systems is delineated. The literature relating this concept to various aspects of health is summarized, and a possible theoretical explanation for the way in which social support acts to promote the health of individuals is proffered. Social support, defined as the sum of…

Despite the growing accumulation of studies attesting to the association between life events and illness, either physical or mental, a number of critical methodological and conceptual issues are considered not to permit any clear answer to the basic questions regarding the importance of the role these events play in the etiology of such disorders.…

A national study of 4,984 clergymen in 21 predominantly white Protestant denominations concerning occupational stress and continuing education involvement was conducted by the Ministry Studies Board of the National Council of Churches. The questionnaire, which was mailed to 7,990 clergymen and returned by 62%, consisted of seven sections:…

The main effort during the reporting period was focused on Projects A and B of the research proposal. The aim of Project A is to develop strategic disposition tests for determining individual competence and preferred learning style. The aim of Project B is to examine the relationships between individual competence and performance on a task under…

Discusses the meaning of counseling from nonwestern perspectives and suggests some considerations for counselors. Discusses cultural differences related to stress, myth and superstition, social change, and social attitudes related to physical and mental health in six cultures. (JAC)

For students in Japan, job opportunities and future success are closely correlated with the status of the universities they attend. Preparation for entrance examinations begins in elementary school, and the student's school career is spent in an atmosphere of intense preparation and competition. MLW)

Assessment of clinically depressed and nondepressed children (ages 9-17) on measures of attributional style, hopelessness, depression, life stress, and child temperament suggested absence of a unique constellation of cognitive characteristics in depressed children compared with the nondepressed sample. Treatment appeared to affect self-reported…

Investigated the influence of a child with sickle-cell anemia on parental affiliation, parent-child relationships, and parents' perception of their child's behavior. In the sickle-cell group, parents' interpersonal relationship suffered; parent-child relationship and child behavior correlated significantly; and single-parent families estimated…

Maintains that it is not normal for children of 5 years and older to have tantrums in the classroom. Suggests that the child's health, the parent-child relationship, parents' marriage, teacher-student relationship, the classroom situation and other sources of stress be examined as possible causes for tantrums. (BB)

Presents the results of two surveys of administrators and faculty of library and information science programs. The surveys were designed to determine sources and degrees of job related tension among these populations. A discussion of the findings is provided, as well as recommendations for future research. (CLB)

Examined the stress and illness paradigm by considering influences of social interest and coping styles on three measures of health status: overall health, somatic symptoms, and energy level. Subjects (N=109) included office workers, nurses, and graduate students. Found social interest and daily hassles explained significant amounts of variance on…

Examined multivariate model of effect of life events and transitions, intrafamily strain, marital adjustment, and appraisal on family well being. Showed that life events and transitions had no effect on family well being, but they intensified intrafamily strain, which in turn negatively affected marital adjustment and perceived well being, yet…

Investigated the impact of marital status on how people organize and interpret subjective experience, comparing national survey responses of first-married, divorced, and remarried adults. Found the way that respondents structured their subjective evaluations differed significantly not only from one another but also, except for first-married…

Conducted a field study using the Osipow and Spokane (1983) scales to test the relationship of coping resources as moderators to stress-strain relationships. Found role overload to be the most significant source of strain but that coping resources contributed to moderating this and other stress-strain relationships. (Author/KS)

Reports on two studies related to the effect of early stress on the social and academic development of boys and girls. Suggested that the social resiliency of boys was relatively consistent from age 3 to 18, while girls had no such pattern. Academic performance of boys was lower than girls. (TW)