The academic achievement of boys with fragile X syndrome and the relation between several predictive factors and academic performance are reported. Boys with fragile X syndrome displayed significant deficits in all academic skill areas. Relative strengths were observed in general knowledge, reflecting the ability to integrate experiential…

Cornelia de Lange syndrome is reported to be associated with self-injurious behavior (SIB) and social avoidance. We used analog methodology to examine the effect of manipulating adult social contact on social communicative behaviors and SIB in 16 children with this syndrome. For 9 participants engagement behavior was related to levels of adult…

In this article, the authors talk about the state of boyhood in education and explain the idea that not all elements of the brain--especially not gender--are plastic. They discuss the mismatch between boys and conventional education and how gender "really" happens in the brain and describe the three biological stages in which human nature…

Objective: To explore the genetic and environmental influences on DSM-IV conduct disorder (CD) aggressive and nonaggressive subscales, taking into account age and sex differences. Method: A community sample of 1,100 twin pairs (ages 11-18) was interviewed using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children. Bivariate analyses, using variable…

Mental health problems can develop at any point in life and may be influenced by a variety of factors, including genetics or family history of a disorder, chemical imbalances in the brain, or stressors in the environment. Adolescence is a time of great change and transition, when youth are starting to make decisions about career paths, further…

Background: Noise-induced hearing loss is a major cause of deafness and hearing impairment in the United States. Though genetics and advanced age are major risk factors, temporary and permanent hearing impairments are becoming more common among young adults and children especially with the increased exposure to portable music players. Though…

This article explores the conceptual change of students in Grades 10 and 12 in three Australian senior high schools when the teachers included computer multimedia to a greater or lesser extent in their teaching of a genetics course. The study, underpinned by a multidimensional conceptual-change framework, used an interpretive approach and a…

Background: Melanoma is a serious skin cancer that has been on the rise in the United States. Some genetic component is apparent. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify demographic, clinical, attitudinal, and health belief factors associated with intention to obtain genetic testing for hereditary melanoma among unaffected first-degree…

Despite the importance of learning abilities and disabilities in education and child development, little is known about their genetic and environmental origins in the early school years. We report results for English (which includes reading, writing, and speaking), mathematics, and science as well as general cognitive ability in a large and…

The Child Development & Behavior (CDB) Branch of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) seeks to improve the health and well-being of individuals from infancy through early adulthood by supporting research into healthy growth and development, including all aspects of child development. The study of typical child…

This paper presents the development of a 3-D virtual environment in Second Life for the delivery of standards-based science content for middle school students in the rural Appalachian region of Southeast Ohio. A mixed method approach in which quantitative results of improved student learning and qualitative observations of implementation within…

Purpose: To describe and compare the pragmatic language profiles of school-age children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and Williams syndrome (WS) on a standardized measure to determine whether a standard pragmatics tool can differentiate between 2 groups of children with opposing social presentations and pragmatic language difficulties.…

Background: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a congenital alteration of chromosome pair 15. It is characterized by short stature, muscular hypotonia, hyperphagia, obesity, behavioural and emotional disturbances, hypogonadism and partial Growth Hormone (GH) deficiency. The aim of this study was to assess the long-term effect of GH treatment on the…

Background: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is associated with a characteristic behavioural phenotype whose main features are, alongside compulsive hyperphagia, deficits in social behaviour: social withdrawal, temper tantrums, perseverative speech and behaviour, mental rigidity, stereotyped behaviour, impulsiveness, etc. Similar symptoms may also be…

This paper reviews the book "The Bell Curve" by Harvard psychologist Richard J. Herrnstein and political scientist Charles Alan Murray. The paper asserts as the book's main points and implications: (1) one's socioeconomic place in life is now determined by IQ rather than family wealth and influence; (2) ruling white elites, who have…