Explored ways selected characteristics of parents, children, and family context relate to mothers' parenting behavior in a sample of 73 mothers and their 5- to 7-year-old children. Found that mothers who experienced many stressors stemming from their personal adjustment, social relationships, and children's behaviors were more likely to…

Maintains that assigning schools responsibility for solving societal problems results in mission clutter, the root cause of failure in public schools. Discusses how mission clutter occurred and its dangers, focusing on the loss of critical educational focus, impediment to teacher recruitment and retention, occupational stress, and unfair…

Considers how to provide a supportive, secure environment to children of divorce through opportunities to exercise personal control, being tolerant of variable academic performance, and expressing faith in children's character and capacity for growth. Provides suggestions for creating safe channels for communication and teaching children coping…

A year-long qualitative study examined seven formerly-addicted alcoholic youth committed to recovery to determine how addicted youth become and remain sober. Bending to social stress, including racism and ethnic prejudice, three participants relapsed. However, personal commitment augmented by familial, community, spiritual, and educational support…

Examined the relationship between more and less developmentally appropriate learning activities (MDAP, LDAP) and stress and nonstress behaviors of first graders during a computer-based literacy laboratory. Found that children exhibited more stress behaviors during LDAP learning activities than did children during MDAP learning activities. No…

Examines the degree of teachers' stress tolerance by studying secondary education teachers in Izhevsk (Russia). Concludes that the teachers' level of expertise influences their level of stress tolerance, there is a positive connection between higher self-assessment and stress tolerance, and personal mechanisms of stress tolerance serve to foster…

Compared coping factors among family caregivers of Alzheimer's disease patients in Shanghai, China (n=110) and San Diego, California (n=139). Uncovered four coping factors that were reliably consistent in both samples: behavioral confronting, behavioral distancing/social support, cognitive confronting, and cognitive distancing. Shanghai caregivers…

Examines the ethical aspects of the experience of providing day care to dementia patients. Results, based on telephone interviews (N=40), indicate that ethical challenges arise in everyday incidents when participants, staff, or family members "cross the line" of acceptable behavior. Staff responses ranged from benign manipulation to…

A study assessed the effect of family-centered early intervention services on 47 children and their families during a 12-month period. During family-centered intervention, children's developmental gains were equivalent to their rate of development prior to intervention. The intervention also did not reduce parental stress or enhance family…

Psychometric support for the use of the Los Angeles Symptom Checklist (LASC), a self-report measure of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), was provided by a study involving 639 high-risk adolescents. The LASC had appropriate levels of reliability and appeared to detect distress and PTSD as a function of trauma exposure. (SLD)

The contributions of financial, parenting, and global stress to the relationship between parenting and ethnicity and the moderating effects of social support and employment status were studied for 50 Caucasian and 49 Mexican-American teenage mothers. Findings indicate a mediating effect of the combined influences of these stresses on the…

Interviews with 42 mothers with visual impairments found no significant relationship between the degree of impairment and amount of advance preparation for child care tasks, trial-and-error learning, or initial reactions to the pregnancy. Key concerns were children's safety, the extra time needed to accommodate the impairment, transportation, and…

Discusses how adversity provides opportunities for personal and professional growth. Notes benefits of adversity, including enhanced skills and insights, sense of accomplishment, balanced perspective, increased productivity and efficiency, increased sensitivity to others, enhanced sense of humor, better priorities, and personal and professional…

Analyzes a 1986 national survey (n=2,081) to examine differences in psychological and economic distress between remarried and divorced persons, and if economic distress differences explain differences in psychological distress between married and divorced persons. Findings show that remarried persons have significantly lower rates of economic and…

Data from 742 parents of adolescents revealed that about half the parents chose friendly behavior towards classmates and strong personality as the most important factors contributing to popularity, followed by high grades, acceptance by the opposite sex, and physical attractiveness. Parents chose high grades and desire to pursue higher education…