In order to evaluate writer control of global coherence under various contexts, writer texts produced by 13 college freshmen enrolled in a basic skills section of a composition course were collected as a natural part of the ongoing instruction. The texts examined were written on five different topics: misuse of power, a personal experience of the…

Several researchers have examined the relationship between scales of the Inventory of Learning Processes (ILP) and the academic performance of college students. This study sought to determine whether there were significant correlations among levels of processing, locus of control, and achievement for college students. Subjects (N=50) enrolled in…

Results support Sherman's hypothesis that sex differences in tests of field independence, such as Witkin's Rod-and-Frame Test and Embedded Figures Tests, are artifacts of the well-known sex differences in space perception and are therefore not evidence that females are less analytical than males. (Author/BJG)

Tested the theoretical basis for using attributional interpretations by giving individuals who had received a negative social evaluation no information or information that stressed internal/controllable, internal/uncontrollable, external/controllable, and external/uncontrollable causes. Results indicated stressing internal/controllable causes…

A study examined the relationship of personal control-of-learning beliefs (learning locus of control) and three separate components of self-directed learning: cognitive strategy use, metacognitive self-regulation, and resource management. Subjects were 88 undergraduate and 2 graduate students from 3 institutions of higher education in Western New…

Suggests that income and need-for-approval may be potent variables in the control orientation of black male students, but are not significantly related to control orientation of white male students. (Author/AM)

Assessed reliability and validity for an instrument designed to assess depressiform cognitions. The results suggest that the scale is promising, however, a strong sex effect was noted in some of the characteristics of attribution. Suggests the need to evaluate sexual-cultural differences in attributional processes associated with depression.…

Study determined whether student teachers' self-talk differentially related to personality characteristics of locus of control and self-esteem. Subjects (n=69) recorded self-talk and completed personality assessments. They mainly engaged in negative, child-oriented, external self-talk. Those with high self-esteem and internal locus of control used…

Feminist therapy, a form of psychotherapy which reflects an androgynous view of sex roles, strives to identify the constraints of traditional sex role expectations and to help women take control of their lives. Women's studies courses may also achieve similar goals. Female students (N=32) enrolled in a psychology of women course were tested to…

Investigated the efficacy of self-administered cognitive therapy (RET) in the treatment of high and chronic social anxiety in 45 college students. Results indicated that self-administered cognitive therapy significantly decreased social anxiety and fear of negative evaluation and also suggested a generalization of effects as trait anxiety…

This experiment examined the effects of headings and adjunct questions embedded in expository text on the delayed multiple-choice test performance of college students. Subjects in the headings-present group performed significantly better on the retention test than did the subjects in the headings-absent group. The main effect of adjunct questions…

Interpersonal power has been defined as the ability of an agent to alter the behavior of a target through means-control, attractiveness, and credibility. To identify and delineate situations of influence in personal relationships, undergraduate students either wrote influence descriptions (N=96), made similarity judgments on the original 96…

Investigated relationships among college students (N=76) science achievement, engaged time (observed and perceived), personal characteristics of academic aptitude, reasoning ability, attitude toward science, and locus of control. Among the results reported are significant relationships between engaged time measures and achievement, and between…

Presented are abstracts and abstractors' analyses of 10 studies related, in some manner, to learning. These studies focus on: (1) problem-solving processes used by experts and novices as they worked five mechanics problems (J. H. Larkin and F. Reif); (2) formal reasoning patterns of Italian high school students (M. L. Aiello-Nicosia, et al.); (3)…

Describes a study of undergraduates that examined the effects of behavioral versus cognitive review strategies on learning outcomes and depth of processing during computer-based instruction. Near and far transfer learning are discussed, the use of locus of control is explained, and posttest differences are examined. (eight references) (LRW)