Preferences of 40 nonretarded children, aged 7-12, for 40 mildly mentally retarded schoolmates were assessed before and after participating in a cooperative game together. Participation improved nonretarded children's preferences for and attitudes toward their retarded peers, regardless of the level of interaction permitted or the performance…

Forty-six intermediate grade students expressed their attitudes toward an unknown mentally retarded student presented in a videotape, and indicated their social acceptance, rejection, or neglect of a mentally retarded peer in their classroom. Children's attitudes toward the videotaped child were related to their sociometric choices of the retarded…

A study of drinking behavior at four sites in the upper midwest found considerable variation by site in the reported drinking behaviors of adults and teenagers. The degree of attachment to either parents or friends seemed to be related to drinking among both teenagers and their younger brothers and sisters. (JHZ)

The experience of siblings of a child with a life-threatening illness may be seen at the juncture of the following perspectives: (1) the family system; (2) a focus on living rather than on dying; and (3) a view toward positive adaptation rather than toward psychopathology. The most critical focus is on the sibling-patient relationship itself. (BJV)

Siblings as teachers and therapists are viewed from the following perspectives: (1) within the context of the family system; and (2) as a distinct dyadic relational system. Both possibilities and limitations of sibling helping are discussed. (Author/BJV)

The assigned and received social status of mildly learning-disabled, mildly behaviorally disordered, and nonhandicapped high school students (n=66) was examined. The samples' social status differed significantly from a larger nonhandicapped population. Cross-categorical comparisons of assigned social status showed no significant differences,…

Considers four questions related to humorous activity: What events evoke laughtor and smiling in classrooms and do these events change as children grow older? Are there differences in frequency and type of events produced and appreciated? How do teachers and peers react to humorous events? and What are the other behavior patterns of children who…

Disruptive behavior in a six-year-old boy attending a London primary school was successfully reduced following application of three planned interventions: positive teacher attention and praise for appropriate behavior; placement of the child in deliberately structured small-group cooperative activities; and classroom assistance from a school…

Investigates the manifestations and socialization processes of only and sibling children for improved implementing of the Chinese one-child family program planning. (HOD)

Trends and patterns of adolescent drug use were examined through consideration of over 125 psychosocial correlates with drug use and nonuse. A sample of over 480 Philadelphia high school students was given personal interviews and a survey questionnaire that included several psychological scales and test batteries. (Author/LMO)

Study results indicate that positive social interactions between nonhandicapped and handicapped students in the integrated music classroom, with increases in nonhandicapped students' acceptance of handicapped students, are not a result of music classroom experiences and music instruction alone, but also of the degree to which teaching conditions…

The effects of structured academic conflict, controversy, and debate were compared with individual study. Results indicated controversy promoted the most cross-ethnic verbal rehearsal and exchange of assigned material, concern that all students master assignments, active search for information, highest self-esteem, and accepting and supportive…

Girls' bullying is more subtle and less physical than that perpetrated by boys; however, it can be just as powerful, and the emotional repercussions of bullying among girls can be more destructive and longer lasting than the effects of more obvious forms of bullying. Teachers report that quarrels between girls are far more time-consuming and…

This research brief summarizes a survey about the effectiveness of programs from Break the Cycle, a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing and fielding dating-violence prevention programs. The study evaluated "Ending Violence," a three-class-session prevention program. Developed by a Los Angeles-based nonprofit group called Break…

This survey presents statistics on secondary school student culture by school district and race/ethnicity, using data from approximately forty thousand secondary school students in Minority Student Achievement Network districts. Information is presented in six areas: (1) "Family Background Resources and Living Arrangements (racial/ethnic…