Objectives: To assess prevalence of elevated depressive symptoms in young adolescents and examine associations between symptoms and sociodemographic and behavioral factors. Methods: Cross-sectional survey data from 3621 seventh grade students from 16 middle schools were analyzed. Results: Elevated depressive symptoms were reported by 40% of girls…

The Social Skills Rating System (SSRS) provides a multi-rater assessment of child social behaviors that influence the development of social competence and adaptive functioning. This study examined whether the items on the teacher version of the SSRS provide reasonable indicators of the three first-order social skills dimensions proposed by the…

The research on college student suicide is discussed, with emphasis on variability in base rates, the operating assumptions regarding reported base rates, and methodological difficulties in studying suicide. Variability in suicide among schools and among different types of students is examined, and the effects of changing demographics and cultural…

The achievement gap that exists between Black and White students--even those from similar economic backgrounds--is an ongoing challenge for educators. Although schools receive much of the blame, the gap is more the result of social class characteristics that go beyond even the best schools and teachers. Raising the achievement of lower-class…

Most research on adolescents and firearms focuses on urban populations, handguns, and homicide. This study examines the prevalence and correlates of recreational gun use (RGU)--for hunting or target shooting--among 5,801 community-residing 12- to 17-year-old Californians. Data are from the first statewide California Health Interview Survey (CHIS),…

This study examined emotional and perceptional changes American people had experienced 10 to 12 months after the September 11 (9-11) terrorist attacks. A nationally representative sample of 807 U.S. adults ages 18 or older was interviewed using random-digit dialing that included unpublished numbers and new listings. The results indicated that 5 to…

The deleterious effects of early substance use have been well documented. Past research has produced mixed results regarding the extent to which the profile of risk differs for urban African American and suburban Caucasian youth. Sixth graders from urban (n = 420; 92% African American) and suburban (n = 391; 89% Caucasian) schools in metropolitan…

The expectations, self-perceptions, past academic behaviors, and attitudes of transfer students were examined in this study. Participants were 2,492 incoming transfer students (53% female, 14% African American, 14% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 6% Hispanic/Latino/a, and 65% White, and had a mean age of 21.8) at a mid-Atlantic doctoral…

African American and European American 4th, 6th, and 8th graders rated the competence of rich and poor children in academics (i.e., math, science, reading, writing, school grades, smartness), sports, and music. In contrast to middle school students, 4th graders favored the rich in all 3 domains. Youth of both races reported that the rich were more…

This article discusses President Bush's own view of promoting civil rights. Mr. Bush has sought to redefine the discussion of civil rights in education. Instead of focusing on racial integration in public schools, for instance, the president has emphasized the achievement gap between minority and white students. He has spoken of school choice as a…

This study explores differences in mathematics assessment results between American Indian students in Western New York and their Anglo peers. The sample consisted of 2,256 fourth grade students (Native = 323 Anglo = 1933) and 2,475 eighth grade students (Native = 353 Anglo = 2122). Scores from New York State's Fourth and Eighth Grade Math…

Employing for analysis a set of secondary data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, the present study sought signs of theoretical support for this emphasis on family preservation. Specifically, the research examined the effects on childhood delinquency of the following variables: family stability; parenting style; parental supervision;…

This study addressed concerns about the potential for differential gains in reading during the first 2 years of formal schooling (K-1) versus the next 2 years of schooling (1st-3rd grade). A multilevel piecewise regression with a node at spring 1st grade was used in order to define separate regressions for the two time periods. Empirical Bayes…

For the past 15 years, economist Ronald Ferguson has investigated the myriad factors that combine to create racial disparities in academic performance. Beginning with his analysis of the impact of test scores in predicting racial wage gaps, Ferguson has explored how rates of progress in narrowing gaps have varied over the recent decades, the roles…

To evaluate the adequacy and efficiency of preschool education in California, the RAND Corporation has undertaken the California Preschool Study to improve understanding of achievement gaps in the early elementary grades, the adequacy of preschool education currently given, and what efficiencies or additional resources might be brought to bear in…