Objective: Thin body preoccupation and social pressure to be thin (TBPSP) in adolescence are risk factors for the development of full and partial bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. This study examined precursors of these potent risk factors. Method: A prospective study followed 134 children from birth to 11.0 years and their parents.…

Early adolescent alcohol use and abuse has become a public health issue. Research studies indicate that early adolescent drinking may lead to emotional, social, and academic impairments, health and developmental problems, and even death. This study emphasized the need to better understand the predisposing triggers of adolescent alcohol use…

This study investigated the relationship between sexual aggression and date rape and the character traits of anger, hostility, impulsivity, psychopathology, peer pressure, and pornography use. Male college students (N=480) completed a questionnaire that consisted of 10 instruments measuring character traits and sexual aggressive behavior. Areas…

This study explored the interaction of multiracial identity development and college campus contexts in the experience of 24 biracial or multiracial college students attending three institutions an Ivy League university, a Catholic university, and a liberal arts college. The study applied qualitative grounded theory as framed by postmodern racial…

To encourage students of an upper division writing class to recognize the nuances of voice or tone in their written work, one instructor began the first day of each class by discussing voice and tone. After the instructor reviewed their first-day writings, students were paired with a peer partner. At the end of each semester students were…

This study examined the role of colleges and universities, particularly faculty environment and student social groups, in shaping the attitudes of students about race. Specifically, the study analyzed the relative importance of the effects of the peer environment, the environment created by faculty, and student involvement in a variety of college…

Older job seekers are more likely than younger individuals to discontinue their search efforts because of the frustration inherent in job finding. Because of its ability to effectively increase job placement among other groups, due in part to the support and tangible assistance available in its small group format, a job club program was developed…

While data on the onset of cigarette smoking among younger adolescents has been investigated extensively, it is less clear whether the same social factors influence older adolescents. To examine these social factors, as well as the influence of personality and beliefs, 1,977 high school participants in an anti-smoking study completed a…

This document was conceived and developed to provide a better understanding of the pressures and tasks associated with adolescence, the empirically-based evidence of factors associated with drug use and other forms of problem behavior, different peer program approaches, and ways in which peer programs can be implemented. In Chapter I, "The…

Drug and alcohol abuse remains one of the most serious problems facing our society today. This study proposed that expected consequences of resisting peer pressure to drink alcohol may be important influences on actual drinking behavior and focused on describing these expectations. Sixth-graders (N=70) were presented with a hypothetical dilemma…

This paper offers a synthesized review of the literature on student peer facilitator programs, in order to investigate and substantiate many of the ways in which peer facilitator programs extend and strengthen a guidance counselor's mission in the school. After an introductory discussion of the foundations and goals of successful peer facilitator…

Substance abuse among adolescents is modeled and reinforced by the peer culture. Experimentation with drugs seems to have become a typical part of normal adolescent development. The solution to adolescent substance abuse will only be arrived at through gathering facts and designing intervention programs based on those facts. Since the two most…

Efforts to fight drug abuse must occur in the schools, as well as in homes and the community, since schools provide one major influence in transmitting values, standards, and information to children. This digest discusses the extent of drug abuse among youth, why drug abuse occurs, the effects of drug abuse, what schools can do to combat the…

Since principals are chiefly responsible for school improvement and effectiveness, professional development opportunities must be provided throughout their administrative careers. Research has identified certain behavior patterns causally related to principals' effectiveness. Since the summer of 1984, the North Central Regional Staff Development…

The purpose of this study was to measure the effects of day care and preschool experience on children's measured honesty, and to compare program participants' honesty scores with those of children cared for exclusively at home. It was hypothesized that children who had been in a child care program for several months would score lower when asked to…