Thirty children (ages 8-12) with language impairment (LI) and 30 children with normal language development (NL) were presented with role-playing situations that required the construction of tactful messages, and their responses were coded to reflect tactfulness. The LI children gave significantly less tactful messages than the NL children.…

A study was conducted over a 15-week period during which 6 preschoolers made weekly visits to a day-care center. There was little spontaneous cooperative play between day-care children and children with disabilities. Students with disabilities showed increased social and play skills. (LB)

Describes an interaction between a family day care provider and the children in her care. (BB)

Investigates the relationship between social skills and depression in a college student population. Finds that depression is associated with a partial social skill deficit, most notable in terms of excessive social anxiety, low motivation to communicate with others, low social expressivity, and diminished behavioral involvement. (PRA)

Hazards to new superintendents include enemies on the school board, sloppy expense accounting, and romancing school employees. Would-be survivors must be aware of antagonistic board members and the inevitability of making enemies, avoid expense account irregularities, eschew favoritism, admit mistakes, avoid subordinate-confidants, recognize the…

This paper presents a comparative analysis of Polish and English forms of addressing people and the sociocultural rules of their use. It is pointed out that numerous similarities in the repertoires of English and Polish forms of address lead Polish English-as-a-Second-Language learners to assume wrongly that the similarities extend also to the…

Kentucky employers (249 of 800 surveyed) identified adaptability, teamwork, communication, and problem solving as entry-level and advancement skills. Over 50 percent did no preemployment testing. Responses indicated areas needing change: training focused on workplace basics, accessible training delivery, and preemployment assessment services. (SK)

This study evaluated the type and frequency of social skills listed as objectives in 469 students' Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) in a rural special education cooperative. Results indicated that academically related social skills were much more likely to be included in IEPs than interpersonal skills. (Author/DB)

Responses from 95 managers and 127 high school students employed in service and retail jobs agreed that social competence is more important than personal competence, indicating that managers might stress social competence practices in dealing with subordinates. (SK)

Discusses peer mediation, a method by which school children can resolve their own disputes. Explains that any kind of student can be a mediator and that mediation can help students develop communication skills. Offers two hypothetical cases for mediation. Suggests establishing mediation programs in schools. (SG)

Presents case study of suicidal woman diagnosed as catatonic schizophrenic in state mental hospital. Account reveals much about woman's life history, suicide career, problems of living, needs for help, and perceptions of relevant systems. Proposed model would use parts of patient's story for preventive intervention regarding suicidal behavior and…

Assessed impact of comprehensive social service program on educational and psychological functioning of 152 adjudicated adolescents. Pretesting provided evidence of significant academic underachievement in all areas, as well as significant disturbances in psychosocial functioning. Posttesting documented improvements in all areas of academic…

When the skills taught in eight commercial social skills training programs were compared with 20 generalizable interpersonal skills, programs were found to address 15-70 percent. The correlation between social skills and employment difficulties of mildly disabled adolescents highlights the need for validating job-related social skills and…

Ten learning-disabled elementary students experiencing peer rejection participated in a 20-week intervention with a contextualist training model. Five of the 10 students' social status was classified as unrejected at the postintervention measure, and there were significant increases in positive peer nominations for males at posttest and 6-month…

Thirty hearing college students were interviewed to assess their perceptions of deaf students as classmates and influences of these perceptions on campus integration efforts. Hearing students felt that deaf students had similar academic competencies but were less competent socially. Full integration, especially social integration, did not occur.…