This report is the result of an investigation by the New York State Commission on Quality of Care for the Mentally Disabled of the Bernard Fineson Developmental Center's policies and practices concerning sexual incidents among residents. It also raises broader issues about the meaning of consent when sexual activity involves persons with severe or…

Competing norms for justifying actions and decisions in teaching and their effects on the curriculum and teacher learning are discussed. Interpreting teaching as a moral action, this paper argues that a personal orientation (personal practice, feeling, or beliefs) removes teacher action and decisions from the realm of objective and professional…

Self-directed learning has been a high-interest topic within the field of adult education for the last decade. The following are among suggestions writers have made about how adult educators can best facilitate self-directed learning: (1) encourage learners to appreciate that they can act on their world individually or collectively to transform…

This book presents the ideas of the president of Boston University on how America can change course and restore traditional democratic values. The primary threat to American freedom comes not from foreign nations but from societal and individual attitudes of self indulgence, extravagance, and a declinging educational system. A return to…

Past and present family relationships of a sample of 40 women who were in treatment for childhood experiences of incest were examined. The majority of the women viewed their families-of-origin as generally unhealthy in regard to various dimensions of autonomy and intimacy. Current relationships with families-of-origin were characterized by less…

This resource guide looks at five areas in which freedom of choice can be increased for people with developmental disabilities: assessing needs, planning for services, evaluating services, understanding the service system, and self-advocacy. Needs are assessed through home interviews, personal updates, neighborhood surveys, evaluation of likes and…

A case study of a mixed comprehensive school with an age range of 11-16 investigates the management of the first externally imposed change on the secondary school system during the years 1987-89. Implemented in 1986, the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is a national examination for all 16-year-olds delivered through the subjects…

One of the fastest growing social and economic trends in the latter half of this century has been the entry of women into the labor force, especially women with children. How a mother's working outside the home affects her children is far from clear. This study examined the relationship between maternal employment status and sex-role concept,…

Age appropriate training programs in natural environments for deaf-blind adolescents help to develop functional skills, with the ultimate goal of independent living and work placement. Other approaches to the education of handicapped children entail activity for the sake of activity, or babysitting and fun activities. The actual training of a…

A study examined the nature of audience perceptions of television characters' relationships in "Hill Street Blues" and displayed how relational differences in fictional couples are communicated. Using a relational dimensions instrument, the relationships between Frank Furillo and Fay Furillo and between Frank and Joyce Davenport were…

A study of over 200 personal narratives, in which college freshman writers related their experiences of achieving literacy, offered insights into cultural differences in attitudes toward literacy. The activity of becoming literate was fundamentally the same for males and females, but the myths they used to understand and explain their experiences…

This guide answers questions for high school graduates moving away from home for the first time. The question and answer format begins with reasons for moving and offers ways of finding information about a new town before leaving, meeting people, and fighting homesickness and indecision. Practical advice is presented on money management and…

Dependable Strengths Articulation Process (DSAP) is a self-development process designed to facilitate positive self-constructions and improved personal functioning. This study examined the effectiveness of DSAP interventions. Participants (N=30) were college graduates who had expressed a desire to improve their educational and career planning and…

Sixteen hundred and thirty white male adults living in the Upper Cumberland area of rural middle Tennessee were administered the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST) to classify them by their degree of alcohol abuse into alcoholics, probable alcoholics, and non-alcoholics. These respondents had been referred by the courts to an educational…

This paper addresses some of the ethical and legal components of the issue of adolescence and the right to die. Developmental aspects on which psychologists may be uniquely qualified to comment are also addressed. The paper looks at ethical aspects of right to die decisions, the principle of autonomy, and the responsibility of caregivers. Legal…