Analyzes National Educational Longitudinal Study 1988 data to test the effect of participation in extracurricular activities on high school achievement. Shows that participation in some activities improves achievement, while participation in others diminishes achievement. Concludes participation in interscholastic sports promote student…

Introduction: There is currently a need for research into indicators that could be used by non-clinical professionals working with young people, to inform the need for referral for further clinical assessment of those at risk of suicide. Method: Participants of this repeated measures longitudinal study, were 2603, 2485, and 2246 school students…

This study explored the relationship between school achievement levels and teachers' expectations, locus of control and efficacy in four elementary schools in Delta, Mississippi in keeping with the self-fulfilling prophecy theory. Data from surveys of 102 teachers, five focus groups, observations, and secondary information on teachers' grading…

This study investigated the role of three groups of risk and protective factors (e.g., individual, family, and extrafamilial) that are associated with teen pregnancy. Two groups of Latina adolescents (aged 15 to 19), nonpregnant/ nonparenting (NP; N = 48) and pregnant/parenting (P; N = 46), completed a demographic survey, an adolescent profile…

The study in this article investigated factors that distinguish the increasing number of Latino students who continue their education beyond high school from the small and stable number who complete a baccalaureate degree. The sample included a cohort of 866 Latino men and women who participated in the National Educational Longitudinal Study…

Career counseling in secondary schools is important for all students, but it is especially critical for students with learning disabilities. This digest describes how making developmental career counseling a focus in secondary schools contributes to the success of youth with learning disabilities in post-school employment. These students show…

This study assessed the relative value of Bandura's (1977, 1982, 1986) self-efficacy theory and Rotter's (1966) locus of control model in predicting the career maturity of college students. A sample of 113 undergraduates (83 women and 30 men) completed a demographics questionnaire and measures of career decision-making (CDM) self-efficacy (Taylor…

Those who guide and work with children are interested in enabling them to build concepts about themselves that lead to higher self-esteem. This study investigated factors associated with self-esteem in sixth through ninth graders. The independent variables were locus of control, family structure, sex role, gender, grade level, and parental alcohol…

This investigation of the relationship of computer anxiety reduction to instructional strategies and learner characteristics used multiple repeated measures in a 2x2x2 quasi experimental design with arousal-seeking tendency, coping style, sex, computer skill mastery, and locus of control as the independent variables. Discrete dependent variables…

This study sought to determine if there is a difference in the self-concept of students who are labeled or nonlabeled as having a disabling condition. Subjects in the study were 50 general education Chicago (Illinois) students (ages 12-15) and 50 special education students labeled as having learning disabilities, educable mental handicap, or…

The demand for educational reform has reopened several debates concerning fundamental aspects of education. Three of these debates--the goals of education, school governance structures, and the locus of control for reform--are linked to teacher participation. This paper suggests that education's goals could best be addressed by action research…

This research assessed the impact of the experience of academic success and failure on the causal attribution patterns of low income Brazilian elementary school students. The sample consisted of 147 first, third, and fifth graders, previously classified as success or failure students. Causal attribution was measured through individual interviews…

Adolescent determination of behavior can be viewed as the result of perceived locus of control. To investigate adolescent perceptions of control in terms of age, loci of control (internal or external), situations (community and home), and direction of control (from or over the environment), 909 adolescents (345 males, 564 females), aged 11-19,…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of three levels of learner control (no control, moderate control, and high control) on the achievement and continuing motivation of Hispanic students. Two weeks prior to the experimental part of the study, 101 seventh and eighth grade Hispanics were pre-assessed along an internal-external…

This research project was designed to explore ways of making computer text presentations more readable as a way of compensating for the constraints that computers impose on the display of text as compared with print-on-paper displays, e.g., limited screen resolution and display area. Forty-eight undergraduate teacher education majors enrolled in…