Peers of a socially rejected seventh-grade girl were rewarded for publicly reporting positive aspects of the girl's behavior. Results indicated that positive peer reports reduced negative social interactions to near zero and increased positive interactions to above 70%. In addition, social acceptance ratings of the girl increased from…

Helps elementary educators understand and promote social interactions and social competence in inclusive settings, specifically those that include students with learning disabilities and mild to moderate levels of mental retardation. Focuses on social outcomes of inclusion, teacher's attitudes, theoretical perspectives, and areas of social…

Background: Child survivors of a catastrophic earthquake in Turkey were evaluated three and a half years after the event, and three years after a sub-group participated in a teacher-mediated intervention developed by the authors. The goal of this follow-up study was to determine the long-term effectiveness of the original intervention. Methods:…

The purpose of this study was to assess pre-service teachers' support for character education and analyze their perceptions of character as an effective deterrent to negative school behaviors. In addition, the author of this study sought to ascertain pre-service teachers' opinions regarding the importance of character education in undergraduate…

Purpose: To examine smoking initiation in a group of adolescents at risk for developing substance abuse. Methods: Fifty-nine adolescents (25 control and 34 at risk adolescents) participated in a longitudinal study of behavioral and cognitive predictors of development of substance abuse. Aggression, conduct problems, hyperactivity, impulsivity,…

In the wake of the 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act, localities across the United States initiated public information campaigns both to raise awareness of threats to air quality and to change behavior related to air pollution by recommending specific behavioral changes in the campaign messages. These campaigns are designed to reduce the health…

This article provides an overview of the literature on relational aggression of school-aged children and adolescents, with the specific aim of making this information relevant to school settings and education professionals. Relational aggression is discussed in terms of definitions, terms, and the importance of the school context. The literature…

A study into the relevance of cultural factors in predicting condom-use intentions among Antillean migrants in the Netherlands is described in this article. The association between the intention to use condoms with a new sexual partner and a perceived taboo on discussing sex, beliefs about sex education and machismo beliefs on gender and power…

Background: Childhood overweight is a condition that is prevalent within our society, affecting more and more children each year. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between child overweight and educational outcomes. Methods: Data are reported for 13,680 children in third grade from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, a…

This study explores the construct validity of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), which was created as a standardized tool for recording the behaviors of children aged 4 through 16 as reported by their parents or caretakers. Since its inception in 1983, the CBCL has been applied and tested on numerous clinical samples, yielding an impressive body…

This study focused on how school-age children develop and refine their strategies for dealing with aversive emotions, defined as fear, shame, anger, sadness, and hurt feelings. Two groups of children were used, one from a public school, serving a working class neighborhood, and the other from a sexual abuse treatment agency. The aversive emotions…

This study compared the social adjustment of abused and nonabused children, ages 4 to 11 years, and examined whether sociometric status and friendship quality differentially predict children's loneliness and teacher ratings of peer behavior. Thirty-five abused children from a structured residential treatment center and 43 nonabused children from…

Because conventional foreign language classroom interaction is not amenable to, and can even undermine, learning of social conversational skills, the Department of State's Foreign Service Institute has created an activity to develop these skills. It involves preparation for and realization of a single event, a party hosted by State Department…

This thesis investigates the sensitivity of junior high/middle school students to statements depicting verbal and physical sexual harassment. The independent variables that were investigated included gender, grade level, age, size of district, grades received, participation in sports, birth order, developmental level, and self-esteem. Students…

Assessing the current state of civic engagement in the United States, this document argues for increased participation from the citizenry, and discuses a number of programs supporting this effort. Although individuals remain actively involved in many civic activities through church, voluntary, and political associations, recent decades have…