Nonlinear growth curves or growth curves that follow a specified nonlinear function in time enable researchers to model complex developmental patterns with parameters that are easily interpretable. In this article we describe how a variety of sigmoid curves can be fit using the M"plus" structural modeling program and the nonlinear…

This article examines the life of education reformer Flora White, who both represented and deviated from the stereotypical new woman portrayed in popular literature of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. White's decision to reject marriage and children in favor of a career resulted in greater financial insecurity and an unmet desire…

This reflective paper discusses aspects of the author's personal development as an adult learner. Though that development is reflected in her practice as an adult educator, she does not explore those implications in the paper. Instead, she grapples with what it means to make meaning, to determine how she knows what she thinks she knows. The author…

As people consider the critical importance of inner control in the development of human functioning, it might be wise to reexamine a fundamental insight from cultural psychology: from the very beginnings of life the growth of the individual mind is a reflection of and response to the minds around people, including the stimuli to which those…

In the past 50 years researchers have identified a number of demographic shifts occurring within industrialized societies that have resulted in changes in the nature of the developmental processes occurring in young adults. Arnett (2000) labels this new, socially constructed time period, between the ages of 18 and 25 years, as emerging adulthood.…

Although every child with disabilities may come to self-actualization by different means and measurements it is, nevertheless, an important goal. The child with disabilities may be guided toward her goal of self-actualization by being encouraged to find her individual strengths and capacities, and by being assisted to successfully interact with…

The authors use multiple-sample longitudinal data from different test batteries to examine propositions about changes in constructs over the life span. The data come from 3 classic studies on intellectual abilities in which, in combination, 441 persons were repeatedly measured as many as 16 times over 70 years. They measured cognitive constructs…

This article examines experiences of chronological age. Using data from the British Household Panel Survey, we analyze both qualitatively and quantitatively verbatim responses from 8177 respondents aged 16 and over concerning the (dis)advantages of their age. Two main questions are tested: (1) Is the cultural narrative of age decline supported by…

Before his freshmen year, the author thought he knew everything--about himself, about college and about the world. He anticipated brilliant and disheveled professors, who, heads in the clouds, wander to class between picturesque gothic towers fortifying quads of freshly cut grass. He pictured Frisbees and roommates, intramural sports and…

English in schools is a productive curriculum space for young people to learn about sexuality, to develop a sense of their identity as sexual beings, and to understand the importance of equality and social justice. Drawing on John Dixon's theory of "personal growth," the author (a British educator) explains how teachers' attitudes about learning…

A connection between servant leadership and constructive developmental theory is proposed. A theoretical framework is offered that examines the subject and object relationship for servant leaders at progressive stages of meaning making, showing how the way leaders make meaning of service evolves with their constructive development. The framework…

This dissertation addresses the question of how structured out-of-school-time settings, such as afterschool programs and summer camps, are positioned to support children's engagement and learning in science. This study addresses a gap in the research literature that does not fully specify the nature of the out-of-school-time (OST) setting and that…

The aim of this phenomenographic study was to identify student teachers' ways of experiencing the teaching of health education, and to determine the aspects that are educationally critical in gaining a deeper understanding of the teaching. Qualitative data (written essays, semi-structured interviews) were gathered twice during health education…

There is a presumption among many policy makers that higher education is not necessary for economic growth and development; it is literacy and basic education and at best secondary education that are argued to be important. Estimates of internal rate of return contributed to strengthening of such a presumption. Accordingly, higher education has…

Nurse Researchers need to explore study abroad programs and identify their impact on the development of cultural competence and global perspectives in nursing students. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experience of nursing students who study abroad and to identify benefits and impediments that may be used to spawn future…