To broaden the knowledge base of factors related to rapid subsequent births among teenage mothers, subsequently pregnant mothers (N=5), one-time mothers (N=5), and non-pregnant teenagers (N=10), between the ages of 14 and 22, were compared on use of contraceptives, educational goals, and family relationships. All subjects completed a personal…

A number of researchers have described individual differences in achievement goals and performance standards. To explore similarities and differences in these theories, and to provide an instrument to measure them, 273 female and 88 male college students responded to items designed to measure each of the dimensions defined by these theories. The…

Black women have been described as being in "double jeopardy" due to the combined effects of racism and sexism. To explore the multiple effects of institutional discrimination and prejudice based on race and/or sex, the experiences of 52 highly successful older black women were examined, using tapes from the Black Women Oral History…

Some feel that a persistent shortcoming of the collective views of human action is that they often advocate a view of the individual as merely a bearer or token for the group to which he or she belongs. These theories do not account for individual choice. This project attempts to arrive at a general critique of individualism, drawing on a number…

Researchers are divided as to whether loneliness is a result of diminished quantity or quality of social interaction. Although results have been produced which support each position, few studies have examined the relationship between the two. To qualify the relationship between the quantitative and qualitative aspects of loneliness by exploring…

In recent years, the study of the self has been concentrated in the areas of self-esteem, individual differences in self-relevant cognition, and the processes of self-relevant cognition. To validate understanding of the individual difference dimensions of public and private self-consciousness and self-esteem, college students (N=101) completed the…

Data from four studies answer Carey's (1982, 1983) critical questions about the validity of the original Infant Temperament Questionnaire (ITQ). Discussion illuminates the complexity of establishing the construct validity of psychological assessments used with infants. Data suggest that both the original and revised Carey ITQs fail discriminant…

Provides framework for assessing the extent to which problem-solving skills learned through LOGO, a children's graphics-oriented-structured computer language, may be transferred to other contexts. Examines principles governing generalization of learning. Discusses learning transfer and components of the LOGO experience that may affect transfer.…

Two studies with children (n=123) with mild mental retardation were designed to test whether specific clusters of beliefs would predict imitation and persistence behaviors in this population. The studies found that belief scores were significantly related to such behaviors. Implications concerning motivation, the developmental-difference…

A 2-alternative forced-choice task was used to measure the ability of 18 children (ages 3 to 5) to detect varying levels of sinusoids in noise. Results showed that, on average, the children's thresholds were higher and the slopes of their psychometric functions were shallower than those of adults, though between-subjects variability was large.…

This study compared speech intelligibility for sentences spoken either conversationally or in a clear manner under three conditions: auditory only, visual only, and audiovisually. Overall, in each condition, speech intelligibility improved significantly for the tokens of clear speech. Some interaction between speaker and manner of speech was…

This study investigates the latent structure of individual differences in vocational, leisure, and family interests. The participants consisted of 302 French adults who rated their like or dislike for activities based on Holland's RIASEC typology and presented in three life domains: work, family and leisure. The multitrait-multimethod model…

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the domain specificity of multidimensional motivation and engagement (adaptive cognitions, adaptive behaviors, impeding/maladaptive cognitions, maladaptive behaviors) in mathematics, English and science high school subjects, with an additional focus on three key educational correlates (educational…

Previous research has suggested that behavioral differences between shy and not shy persons may be explained by differences in inhibition rather than differences in interpersonal skills. To investigate the behavior of high and low social anxiety subjects in both ambiguous social situations and in explicitly structured ones, three studies using…

Three studies explored age, sex, and individual differences in children's defensiveness about four feelings: happiness, anger, sadness, and fear. Also investigated was the relation between children's defensiveness and their mothers' comfort with and expression of feelings. Participants included children ranging in age from 4 through 11 years of…