Explored the latent structure of adolescent alcohol use and its construct validity. Using data from 2,096 American Indian high school students, a double cross-validation design uncovered a three-dimensional latent structure of adolescent alcohol use: quantity/frequency, negative consequences, and serious problem drinking. These distinct, yet…

Describes a study of student attitudes in a mixed-age classroom, examining perceptions of student-professor relationships and attitudes toward different-age students. Finds students enjoyed being in a mixed-age classroom. Although many believed professors had different relationships with older students, older students were insecure about…

A common belief is that residential treatment of juvenile delinquents reinforces rather than inhibits their patterns of delinquent behavior. Findings of this study clearly indicate that, at least in Israel, incarceration in a residential treatment facility did not increase the level of delinquency among the inmates in the period following…

Describes a prevention program, the Peer Group Connection (PGC), which uses peer influence to help teenagers cope with the problems associated with becoming adults. Discusses peer leadership training, the goals and objectives of PGC, teacher selection and training, student leader training, and also provides evaluations of the program. (RJM)

Describes social skills training procedures that can be used in group formats. Procedures provide a systematic approach to teaching social skills to children between the ages of 6 and 16 years. Presents a system for classifying social skills deficits based on acquisition/performance deficits and presence/absence of interfering problem behaviors.…

Analyzes the development and implementation of a teen hotline that utilizes skilled student volunteers. A comprehensive and meaningful training program combined with a high level of acceptance among the general youth population resulted in a valuable service for both the client callers and the student volunteers. (RJM)

Studied the evolution of knowledge of the rules of a children's game, and children's capacity for putting them into practice at ages ranging from four to seven. Results showed distinguishable evolutive levels of knowledge and practice through age, with the development of the capacity for putting the rules into practice before being able to…

Draft and revised computer-written narratives were produced by 34 fourth graders in individual writing and revising, individual writing and revising with a peer, or paired writing and revising conditions. Results show that children, especially when working with a peer, can carry out revisions even without explicit training. (SLD)

Studies common explanations for juvenile involvement in Satanism (participants manifest unique attributes that promote involvement or participants become involved through processes common to other deviance types). Data from interviews with 530 Texas youths incarcerated over 6 months for delinquency suggest that Satanism may emerge from unique and…

Interviews conducted over a 10-year period assessed the political attitudes of Chicano adolescents and young adults living in 3 U.S. cities. Subjects' attitudes were affected by the social and economic conditions in their city; and by family, school, peer, and media factors. (BC)

A study of 17 bright underachievers aged 8 to 15 attributed low achievement to emotional issues, peer group pressure, lack of an appropriate curriculum, undiagnosed learning disabilities, and poor self-regulation. Teacher researchers discovered that involving these students in creative productivity reversed the cycle of underachievement. (12…

Presents study results determining the effect of incentives on willingness to participate in experiments involving varying degrees of aversive treatments. Reports methods, procedures, and results for three different experiments. Concludes that willingness to participate was greater with larger incentives but lower for aversive treatments. Argues…

Study explored possible correlates of both vigorous physical activity and walking for exercise in 127 middle-class, healthy adult Latinos. Questionnaire results indicate correlates of physical activity are different for Latinos than for Anglos. Important variables associated with vigorous activity are self-efficacy, friends' support, childhood…

Presents drinking and driving project focusing on friends and peers of high risk teenage drivers using modeling, positive peer pressure, and assertive skills training. Program includes schoolwide assembly and classroom development of strategies to prevent friends from drinking and driving. Evaluation survey results indicated that majority of…

Describes a three-phase stress inoculation program for health educators teaching adolescents. The program focuses on students actively interpreting and reshaping their perceptions of stress and students' ability to cope with and confront peer pressure situations. The article presents considerations for using stress inoculation in grades 7-12…