To assess sex differences in vulnerability, 80 Israeli middle-class mothers of elementary school children predicted difficulty of low- and high-stress life events for child protagonists in 8 vignettes. Boys' mothers (n=39) predicted greater child stress difficulties than girls' mothers (n=41) and that boys would have more difficulty than girls.…

Tested serial work recall of young and old adults in an effort to examine developmental reserve capacity in old age. Results showed magnification of differences early in training, and prediction of posttraining scores by the digit symbol substitution variable. (BC)

A study investigated the extent to which 2 Australian college entrance examinations, sex, and field of study predicted first-year performance of 1,695 students entering the University of Western Australia. Results show that in some fields, students are being admitted with an unacceptably low chance of successfully completing the first year. (MSE)

A study investigated the relationship of students' age, race, gender, father's occupation, anxiety, and field independence with grade point averages, first-term grades, and standardized test scores in 85 freshman medical students in a variety of courses. Implications of the findings for different fields are discussed. (MSE)

A study of 539 foster parents found that some of the factors influencing their satisfaction were feeling competent to handle placed children, wanting to take in children who needed loving parents, no regret about investment in foster children, foster mother's age, and agency social worker providing information and showing approval. (Author/CR)

Investigated implications of body-fat differences for dating and sexual activity and implications of heterosexual activity for dieting and weight concerns in adolescent girls. Found that among white girls, and blacks with college-educated mothers, more body fat was associated with lower dating probability, even among non-obese girls. Body fat was…

Examined variation in and relationships among delinquency, attachment to adults, optimism about occupational future, and disposition toward aggressiveness in German adolescent apprentices. Found considerable variation across the four variables. Attachment to adults predicted attitudes toward delinquency and optimism regarding occupational future.…

This study examined factors associated with better employment outcomes for young people with disabilities, especially young women. Factors predicting better outcomes included having two or more job experiences while in high school and having used the self-family-friend network to find their postschool job. Some factors, such as low household…

To assess factors affecting parental relinquishment of infants with Down syndrome, a study was conducted of infants with Down syndrome who were born in Israel during 1979-1983 and 1987-1991. Overall relinquishment rate was 25 percent. Major influencing factors were mother's age, birth order, infant health status, and study periods. (Contains…

This article presents information on the characteristics and post-school outcomes of youth (N=3,024) who participated in the Bridges School to Work internship program at seven sites from 1993 to 1997. Neither gender, race, nor primary disability made a significant difference in employment status at 6 months post-internship. Work behaviors during…

Investigates the efficacy of student motivation, prior achievement, and previous instructional experience for predicting performance in college mathematics. Findings indicate that student attitudes were significant predictors of grade performance; previous instructional experience was more significant for predicting pass/fail outcomes than…

A study examined contributions of sexual abuse, physical abuse, family cohesion, and conflict in predicting psychological functioning of 131 adolescents receiving residential vocational training services. In addition to child sexual abuse and physical abuse, family conflict and cohesion predicted development of psychological distress and…

Examined the contribution of biological and environmental variables to 11-year-olds' phonological development. Found that temporal lobe (planar) asymmetry, hand preference, family history of reading disability, and SES explained over half the variance in phonological and verbal performance, demonstrating a linear association between cerebral…

This study examined factors associated with the medical severity of suicide attempts focusing on demographic characteristics, and circumstances of the suicide attempt. Results show that young age was significantly associated with a nearly lethal suicide attempt. Prior attempts, hopelessness, depression, and help-seeking were significantly and…

A study contrasted the childhood environment of Norwegian adult psychiatric outpatients reporting to have been bullied at school (n=74) with those who were not (n=85). Men who were bullied tended to grow up without biological fathers. Women who were bullied reported higher parental abuse and neglect in childhood. (Contains references.) (CR)