A study examined the coping mechanisms of 20 Lebanese students at the American University of Beirut during the war in Lebanon in 1975-91. Results indicate the group perceived their experiences as relatively normal. The nature of and exposure to war, personal variables, and the supportive role of family and community were critical in helping the…

Examined longitudinally the influence of gender and family factors assessed during adolescence on young adult romantic intimacy. Found that men reported more problems of insufficient intimacy than women, regardless of family dynamics. Flexible control, family cohesion, and mothers' marital satisfaction predicted young adults' intimacy. Family…

Anecdotal accounts of work with two families illustrate how adventure family therapy focuses both on individual client needs and on the power and influence of the family and other interacting systems on behaviors. Sidebar explains why adventure experiences are useful in therapy. Contains 19 references. (TD)

Investigated relationships among youth risk behaviors and demographic factors. Data on risk behaviors (delinquency, truancy, weapon carrying, fighting, sexuality, substance use, demographics, and family structure) were compared within specific demographic factors and by age group for diverse inner-city adolescents. Survey and interview data…

This article discusses the incidence of depression and signs of depression in gifted children, including perfectionism, emotional sensitivity, existential depression, and a history of depression in the family. A list of questions to consider regarding possible signs of depression in children is provided. (Contains references.) (CR)

Examines 662 Arab adolescents' commitments to their own self-development, family, Arab people, and village along with the order in which these commitments are structured. Reveals that the two prevalent patterns of adolescent commitment, individualistic and collectivistic, demonstrate the adolescents' struggle with these value systems and the…

Racism is the current sociopolitical climate, the central bacteria, in our society, which prevents the possibility of social cohesion. This personal narrative explores a child's early experiences of racism and the development of a coping strategy. It calls for helping professionals to engage in "a lifelong critique of identity." (EMK)

Identifies the pressures and problems in adolescents' family, peer, and school worlds that they perceive as having impact on their learning. Interviews with 55 ethnically and academically diverse urban youth show problems with social worlds and transitions and the social, emotional, and educational consequences of these problems. (SLD)

Used data from Iowa Youth and Families Project to examine parental influences on ninth and tenth graders' community activities. Found that although both parental modeling and parental reinforcement made significant differences in the extracurricular activity involvement of their children, parental reinforcement was most consequential when parents…

Examines the relations of both family and school contexts on students' academic achievement and explores the mediating effects of students' perceptions of their motivations and academic self-competence. Students' perceptions of parenting style, parental involvement, teaching style, and school atmosphere significantly predicted their school…

Administers 23 psychometric measures of reading, writing, and related language processes to 102 elementary students and their parents. Notes results are consistent with claim of functional systems theory that the same language processes are orchestrated flexibly depending on task at hand. Finds number of language deficits uniquely predicted…

Examines the scholastic achievement in Arabic, English, Hebrew, and mathematics of 240 Bedouin-Arab adolescents from monogamous and polygamous families in Negev (Israel). Reveals that adolescents from monogamous and polygamous families demonstrate equivalent levels of scholastic achievement, although boys in polygamous families and girls in…

Presents the results from a survey of upper-grade students in 1995. Examines the socioeconomic and sociopsychological characteristics of their families and the connections among these variables and adolescent's life strategies and aspirations. Determines the planes of intergenerational mobility. (CMK)

Family and consumer sciences (FCS) professionals often are called upon to work with groups that are seeking to create healthier communities. This article offers an expanded perspective on what it means to include a family focus in these discussions and it answers the question, How does a family perspective lead to different solutions for creating…

The areas considered in this chapter have to do with the aims of family socialization, the nature of influence, linking multiple sources of influence, and the range of families and contexts used as a basis for accounts of socialization. In each area, moving beyond restrictive assumptions opens up new ways of thinking and new research questions.