Summarizes a study using the Children's Scale of Social Attitudes to compare the factor structure of conservatism in seventh-grade Israeli children of Western ethnic origin with Israeli children from Eastern cultural backgrounds. Results indicated a marked similarity in factor structures reconfirming the universal nature of general conservatism…

Certain highly able and motivated young adolescents can successfully pursue full-time college-level studies without unreasonable compromises to psychological and social adjustment. Ways in which an adequate program facilitating early college entrance might be structured are suggested. (Author/MLW)

Reports a British study that explores relationship between social class and personality among 11-year-olds, using the Junior Eysenck Personality Inventory-Short Form. Social class was determined by the father's occupation, and alternatively, by neighborhood. No correlation was found between father's occupation and any of the four personality…

Describes how a fifth-grade teacher intervened to bridge the language and cultural social divisions in her classroom. By experiencing a key math lesson entirely in Spanish, native English speakers quickly began to understand what it is like to not be able to understand. Teachers reported a profound effect of this experiment on the classroom. (ET)

Thirty-two preadolescents were observed in a longitudinal study of attachment and subsequent social development, and case studies of four friendship pairs were conducted. Findings suggest a process model of friendship formation based on repetition of infant attachment history in establishing children's preadolescent friendships. Proposes a 3-stage…

Tested three competing structural equation models concerning auditory inspection time (AIT) and cognitive ability. Found that auditory inspection times near age 11 correlate most strongly with later high IQ. (ET)

Explored the role of relationship orientations, gender-related characteristics, and perceptions of friendship quality during preadolescence and adolescence. Results indicated that grade and sex differences are evident in the early adolescent years and are linked to perceptions of friendship quality. Preliminary evidence showed that relationship…

This article discusses word definitions within the context of language development in school-age children and adolescents. It explains the importance of the ability to define words, reviews the growth of word definition during school years, describes standardized tests, and offers suggestions for expanding the normative database for word…

Describes a pilot group developed to address the traumagenic stigmatization, powerlessness, betrayal, and sexualization that characterize victims of sexual abuse. Treatment modules developed within this framework focused on: group cohesiveness, discussion of specific abuse experiences, coping strategies, sexuality, victimization prevention, and…

Longitudinal study investigated how economic crisis and value change in society affect family life and the development of preadolescent girls. Economic difficulties together with value differences between the parents had a negative influence on marital happiness, which in turn led to lower nurture and higher parental hostility towards the…

Focused on mental health and protective factors in early adolescence. Significant relations between coping strategies and mental health were found, which are different according to gender: girls invest in more social relations, negative feelings, and consumption habits; boys often use sense of humor, or practice a hobby or sport. (JBJ)

Provides direction for developing appropriate, meaningful social studies instruction for the middle school. Identifies characteristics of early adolescents that have a direct relationship to curriculum design and the selection of appropriate social studies instruction strategies. Offers National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)…

Summarizes and discusses results of the longitudinal study that comprises this monograph issue. Results concern: (1) marital, parent-child, and sibling relationships in families with single and remarried mothers; (2) the relationship between parenting style and adolescent adjustment; and (3) the relationship between marital transitions and…

From fourth graders rating their classmates, assigned 296 children sociometric classifications of popular, neglected, average, controversial, or rejected. Five years later, 267 of classified children were evaluated on academic performance, social behavior, and psychological adjustment. In general, children classified as rejected or controversial…

Discusses perceptions that sixth graders and their parents have about their relationships. Sociable children were more likely to agree with their parents about the supportiveness of the relationship than were withdrawn or aggressive children. Mothers of withdrawn or aggressive children, and fathers of aggressive children, felt less supportive than…