Investigated the relationship between sleep patterns and behavioral adjustment with 4- to 5-year-old children from low-income families. Found that disrupted child sleep patterns, including variability in parentally reported amount of sleep, variability in bedtime, and lateness of bedtime, predicted less optimal adjustment in preschool, even after…

Analyzes the importance of vocational education in the careers of six cohorts born in the Federal Republic of Germany between 1919 and 1961. Questions how the behavior of the cohorts regarding vocational training and further education changed over a period of four decades. (CMK)

In surveys conducted in different countries over four years, the authors investigated why entrepreneurs in the same sector and during the same period were not equally successful. From the findings of this research they developed a new three-day training programme to address primarily skills and techniques relating to personal initiative, planning,…

This paper focuses on firm behaviour within business clusters and cluster-type environments. Using survey data to distinguish cluster members by the perceived degree of participation, the authors categorize them as leading, proactive or reactive players. They then examine the clustering behaviour of each of these categories. They find that (a)…

The professional literature provides ample evidence that individuals with autism exhibit a myriad of unusual social, communication, and behavioral patterns of interactions that present challenges to their families and service providers. However, there is a dearth of quality works on multicultural issues regarding autistic spectrum disorders. In…

Polygraph testing is becoming increasingly important in sex offender treatment. Polygraph advocates cite dramatic increases in historical disclosures that presumably allow more precise targeting of treatment interventions, earlier detection of risky behaviors that often lead to new offenses, and improved treatment and supervision compliance. Based…

The goal of this laboratory exercise is to increase student understanding of the impact of nervous system function at both the organismal and cellular levels. This inquiry-based exercise is designed for an undergraduate course examining principles of cell biology. After observing the movement of "Caenorhabditis elegans" with defects in their…

This analysis of third and fourth graders suggests that enemy relationships are common, often of short duration, and partially reflective of negative behavior patterns between boys and girls in elementary school. (Contains 4 tables.)

The authors explore the division of labor between the basal ganglia-dopamine (BG-DA) system and the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) in decision making. They show that a primitive neural network model of the BG-DA system slowly learns to make decisions on the basis of the relative probability of rewards but is not as sensitive to (a) recency or (b) the…

Three years of evaluation activities were conducted by the Institute for Developmental Studies (IDS) at New York University for the 1973-1976 program years of Project Mainstream, a Title III, ESEA project in New York's Lower Hudson Region. This work was carried out with the cooperation and support of the Yonkers, New York school system. Objectives…

Research in structured equation modeling (SEM) suggests that nonnormal data will invalidate chi-square tests and produce erroneous standard errors. However, much remains unknown about the extent to which, and the conditions under which nonnormal data can affect SEM application, especially when excessive skewness and kurtosis are present in data.…

This booklet explores various aspects of drug addiction, with a special focus on drugs' effects on the brain. A brief introduction presents information on the rampant use of drugs in society and elaborates the distinction between drug abuse and drug addiction. Next, a detailed analysis of the brain and its functions is given. Drugs target the more…

Problem-based learning (PBL) as a new instructional method is becoming increasingly popular. PBL is hypothesized to have a number of advantages for learning because it applies insights from cognitive learning theory and it fosters a lifelong learning strategy. As in all learning programs there are individual differences between students. This…

The personal effects of racial discrimination were studied through the responses of 50 adolescents enrolled in a precollege summer program to hypothetical scenarios. Half of the participants were female, 2 were European American, 8 Asian American, 21 African American, and 19 Latino. Expected response categories derived from the work of J. Feagin…

This digest reviews a variety of the policies, programs, and practices to prevent youth violence so that local leaders can base decisions on the experience of other communities. The effectiveness of school violence prevention initiatives is increased by public policies that reinforce their message and by community programs that attempt to prevent…