Examined why a particular adolescent in a family is referred for psychotherapy, using a systems approach. Results showed differences between the distance-sensitive family and the consensus-sensitive family regarding the function of the symptom and the process of selecting of the sibling as the index patient. (WAS)

The new direction in research on the home educational environment is away from prediction based on indirect, static measures such as socioeconomic status. Instead, attention is focused on the teaching and modeling behavior in the home. Positive changes in the home environment often produce increases in children's school achievement. (RL)

Uses preliminary case data from Virginia to indicate the pervasive importance of the maintenance of family and community ties among Vietnamese refugees in the United States. Shows that the family is capable of furnishing significant amounts of emotional and practical support. (Author/MK)

Scores of Black and White alcoholics were compared using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Profile differences were not clinically meaningful. However, comparative scores may not rule out racial test bias since better adjustment was indicated for Blacks by the Family Environment Scale. (RC)

Investigated personality and family-of-origin differences in male and female alcoholics. Results, based on medical records (N=204) of patients admitted to a residential chemical dependency center indicate that, regarding personality disturbances, men were healthier than women. More women had psychiatric treatment, were married to an alcoholic, or…

Explored ethnic and gender differences in sexual behavior among 148 white and 202 Asian American college students. Found that Asian and Caucasian American college youth differ in their sexual experience, with the former reporting fewer sexual partners. Individual, peer, and family correlates of sexual experience were quite similar across the two…

Regression analysis of 40 years of data on median income, education, divorce rate, and female-headed households was conducted to determine their influence on crime rates, especially homicide. Educational attainment had a significant bearing on criminality. Single parenting was less significant than low income. (SK)

Several inconsistencies in literature on adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) were found. This paper emphasizes that clinicians and those developing prevention programs should stop believing that certain characteristics are typical of all ACOAs. It makes recommendations for factors to be considered in programs for African American collegiate…

Reviews the literature to identify the most important antecedents associated with adolescent initiation of sex, contraception use, and pregnancy. Results indicate that over 100 antecedents create a complex, detailed picture of the correlates of adolescent sexual behaviors. They describe characteristics of adolescents themselves, their partners,…

Examines sibling influences on adolescent delinquency. Based on maternal and self reports, a moderately strong association between siblings' delinquency is found. Relationship remains significant controlling for childhood aggression and family environment factors measured during childhood (age 5) and adolescence (age 14). Effect varies according…

Factors related to psychosocial adjustment of 113 adolescent immigrants to the United States from the People's Republic of China were studied. Levels of psychosocial functioning were lower for adolescents with higher family conflict, lower family organization, and higher family authoritarianism. Value orientation mediated the relationship between…

Assesses traumatic experience symptomatology, resiliency factors, and stress among young adults who had experienced alcohol within their family of origin. Results indicated adult children of alcoholics had more self-reported stress, more difficulty initiating the use of mediating factors in response to life events, and more symptoms of personal…

Provides a discussion of the multiple dimensions of the grieving process. Using an example of an Italian American family, it also shows how to assist bereaved families as they cope with loss in the context of individual, familial, and social/cultural influences. (Contains 29 references.) (GCP)

Findings of European research illustrate how young adults construct professional identity through (1) socialization for work--family and social experiences and education; and (2) socialization by work--workplace social interactions that include direct and assisted (i.e., apprenticeship) integration into work. (Contains 31 references.) (SK)

A model is presented for analyzing the influence of culture on the coping behavior of families with disabled children, using examples from families in Norway and Botswana. The model considers culture's impact on the process of coping through emotional patterning, expectations of life and future, life experiences, and actual opportunities. (JDD)