Surveyed 243 students in grades 4 through 7 and 155 parents concerning knowledge and attitudes toward Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS education. Most children knew what AIDS was; younger children were less knowledgeable about sexual transmission, prevention, and prognosis. Significant age and sex differences in attitudes were…

This study, involving 24 young and elderly normal-hearing adults, addressed the effects of aging on auditory serial-recall performance for natural and synthetic words. Serial recall of monosyllabic words was not affected by age per se or by rate of presentation, but word difficulty affected recall for both groups. (Author/JDD)

Relations among dominance, sociometric preference, and social behavior were examined in groups of unacquainted first and third grade boys meeting in play sessions. Younger groups with high aggression showed less coherent organization than did others. Dominance was associated with social preference in younger groups, and with leadership in older…

A model of the development of prayer is offered. The development of prayer on the part of 89 middle-class adolescents and young adults from Catholic schools was studied. Results supported the model. (Author/BB)

Students (n=190) from a normal primary school in New Zealand were tested on sustained attention, reading ability, and classroom behavior measures. Results showed that the Continuous Performance Test, the Delay Task, and ratings on the Inattention factor on the Conners Teacher Rating Scale were significantly correlated with reading scores.…

Two studies investigated (1) the development of children's implicit theories of self-attributes in the domains of intelligence, sociability, physical skills, and physical appearance; and (2) the degree to which conceptions of ability can be experimentally manipulated to predict achievement cognitions and behaviors. (BB)

Examined discussions of 25 groups of peers who were in second, fifth, ninth, and twelfth grades, or were young adults. Trends in topicality arguments paralleled trends for other types of talk. With regard to the function of arguments, person-focused function declined in middle childhood but information-focused function increased. However,…

Examines patterns of gender stereotyping in five- and eight-year-old Singaporean children. Analysis of variance revealed male stereotypes were better recognized than female stereotypes. Own-sex stereotypes were more familiar than opposite-sex stereotypes. Findings were qualified by age interaction. Data were compared with data from 24 nations.…

A study of German-speaking kindergartners and adults replicated Canadian research that found that, although children made more errors than adults in recognizing emotional expressions of photographed faces, they structured emotional concepts just as adults did. (Author/BB)

This study of parenting stress, child behavior, and dysphoria among 150 families found that parents of children with autism and behavior disorders reported more stress than parents of Down's syndrome or nondisabled children. Mothers of Down's syndrome children did not differ from mothers of nondisabled children on any measures. No major age or…

Describes a study that was conducted in Provo, Utah, to identify motivators as factors in adult use of libraries. Four major areas were used to examine motivation: home and family life, vocational growth, religion, and politics. Six user characteristics were also studied, and implications for public libraries are suggested. (nine references) (LRW)

Examined racial, gender, intellectual, achievement, and grade-level status of 344 students referred for learning disabilities diagnosis. Found that being white, older, and of higher intelligence and achievement were characteristics of those found ineligible despite severe discrepancy. Being female and less academically able were characteristics of…

Recent criticisms of Project Head Start have resulted in plans to improve program services and to expand in a more thoughtful manner to make the program more responsive to the needs of children and families. New directions include expansion below and beyond the ages previously served by Head Start. (SLD)

Interviewed third-, fifth-, and seventh-grade students to assess who, why, and in what situations students ask for help when they have problems in math. Found that students generally saw teachers as more likely than classmates to facilitate learning. Several grade-related differences are also reported. (MM)

In a cross-sectional study of 95 kindergartners and 89 second graders, confirmatory factor analysis of a battery of phonological and control tasks was used to compare models of young readers' phonological processing abilities. Results suggest that phonological abilities are best conceptualized as relatively stable and coherent individual…