Describes a new 48-item self-report instrument, the Multidimensional Measure of Children's Perceptions of Control, which defines children's perceptions of control as understanding the locus of sufficient cause for success and failure. Three dimensions of third- through ninth-grade children's perceptions of control are assessed within three…

This report examines how indicators of academic and nonacademic competencies are related to postsecondary educational and labor market outcomes. Drawing on the National Education Longitudinal Study (NELS) surveys of students and teachers, the authors analyze how postsecondary earnings and the likelihood of attending and completing a postsecondary…

A study used the standardized Group Embedded Figures Test to assess field dependence-field independence among groups of vocational education teachers of varied ages and teaching backgrounds. The sample consisted of 170 volunteers who were vocational education teachers and trainers in the process of completing the requirements for either a diploma…

In adventure education, risk is important to achieving program objectives. An increased concern with legal liability and the concentration of media attention on negative outcomes have contributed to an increased social aversion to risk. Adventure education must establish that risk leads to personal growth and can be managed constructively in the…

Describes study that investigated achievement and motivation effects related to locus of control and learner control on seventh and eighth grade Hispanic students completing a computer-assisted instruction (CAI) science lesson. Use of the Intellectual Achievement Responsibility scale is discussed, and a questionnaire that assessed student…

Reports a national study of variables influencing the retention, restriction, or removal of challenged library materials in secondary schools. Results show that retention is positively associated with the presence of school board policy and support of librarians, whereas removal is associated with administrative challenges and librarians willing…

A shortened version of the Parental Bonding Instrument, used in a sample of Norwegian adolescents, aged 15-19, indicated that adolescents' perceptions of mothers' and fathers' care and control/overprotection were related to measures of both depression/anxiety and delinquency. Scores may indicate risks in a broad range of psychosocial problems.…

Research suggests that primary control increases as humans develop from infancy through middle age and then decreases in old age. To minimize losses, individuals rely on cognitively based secondary control processes in middle and old age. Literature on adult control processes is reviewed. (SLD)

Describes a study of at-risk high school students that investigated the motivational and instructional effects of advisement in computer-based instruction on learners of varying ability and locus of control orientations. Session attendance and achievement on tests are examined, and interaction between advisement and gender is discussed. (Contains…

Examined predictors of cigarette smoking and alcohol use in nationwide sample of 1,200 Icelandic adolescents. Found that use of tobacco and alcohol was related to sex, residence, hours of paid work, physical activities, social network, educational performance and beliefs, and psychological distress. Concludes that existing theoretical perspectives…

Suggests foreign students in Australia may not be getting preparation needed to integrate successfully into university study. Research is reviewed that indicates these students not only need help preparing for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) but also with learning at an Australian university. Academic preparation courses…

The Girls' Circle is a support group for adolescent girls developed by Beth Hossfeld and Giovanna Taormina as a unique program that addresses the needs of girls by focusing on increasing connections, building empathic skills, and developing resiliency. The present study evaluates the effectiveness of the Girls' Circle intervention on improving…

This investigation examined students attending U.S. and Canadian visual and performing arts secondary schools for distinguishing personality characteristics, locus of control, acceptance of talents, labeling, family dynamics, anxiety levels, perceived personal and school problems, and views of peers, artists/teachers, and counselors. One hundred…

An intervention program was implemented to reduce absences, stimulate responsibility for assignments, and increase participation in extracurricular activities among disengaged ninth-grade students (N=18). Older students served as role models and peer mentors as they sought to establish that freshmen could control their own success or failure in…

This final report summarizes the purpose, procedures, and results of a study, initiated in 1980, which investigated the interrelationships among motivational variables related to 423 fourth through sixth grade students' sense of efficacy in the classroom, or classroom motivation. Sense of efficacy was initially defined as a student's perception of…