The study in this article investigated factors that distinguish the increasing number of Latino students who continue their education beyond high school from the small and stable number who complete a baccalaureate degree. The sample included a cohort of 866 Latino men and women who participated in the National Educational Longitudinal Study…

This paper presents the research and methodology and analyses used for the "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades" research. This appendix contains the following sections: (1) Overview; (2) Constructing the Survey Data File; (3) Constructing Composite Independent Variables (Subdomains); (4) Constructing Longitudinal Outcome Variables; (5)…

Background: To provide a national picture of the academic achievements of American students, the National Center for Education Statistics has administered the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) periodically since 1969, but there has been no similar national picture of the academic achievement of youth with disabilities. Purpose: To…

More attention and resources have been devoted in recent years to early childhood development (ECD) in low- and middle-income countries. Rigorous studies on the effectiveness of ECD-related programs for improving children's development in various dimensions in the developing world are scant. The authors evaluate an important ECD initiative of the…

This study explores the relationship between social capital and adolescent violent behaviors for a national sample of secondary school students (N = 4,834). Cross-sectional data from The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used to evaluate multivariate models examining the family school and neighborhood correlates of violent…

In this article, a heterogeneous latent growth curve model for modeling heterogeneity of growth rates is proposed. The suggested model is an extension of a conventional growth curve model and a complementary tool to mixed growth modeling. It allows the modeling of heterogeneity of growth rates as a continuous function of latent initial status and…

Changes in sibling intimacy and conflict were charted from middle childhood through adolescence, and family structure and relationship correlates of change were examined. Participants were mothers, fathers, and firstborn (M=11.82 years at Time 1) and secondborn (M=9.22 years) siblings from 200 White, working/middle class, 2-parent families.…

Relations of the components of cognitive adaptation theory (self-esteem, optimism, control) to quality of life and benefit finding were examined for 70 women (91% Caucasian) diagnosed with Stage I, II, or III breast cancer over 5 years ago. Half of these women experienced a recurrence within the 5 years; the other half remained disease free. Women…

Students at a midsized public university in the southeast completed the Student Development Task and Lifestyle Inventory at the beginning of their first year, beginning of their sophomore year, and end of their senior year. More involved students reported greater development in moving through autonomy toward interdependence and establishing and…

We used a longitudinal study with 55 middle- and upper middle-class children to investigate the relation between early mother characteristics (e.g. mental state talk, general parenting style) and later child characteristics (e.g. theory of mind, conflict/cooperation). Children were tested once when they were around 3 years and then again around 4…

This study tests the impact of an in-school mediated communication campaign based on social marketing principles, in combination with a participatory, community-based media effort, on marijuana, alcohol and tobacco uptake among middle-school students. Eight media treatment and eight control communities throughout the US were randomly assigned to…

We examined individual differences in developmental trajectories of emotion situation knowledge (ESK), at three time points throughout elementary school in a sample of children from economically disadvantaged families. Results showed that ESK and the subscales of joy, fear, anger, shame and interest exhibited positive growth from the first to the…

The stress response systems of the human child are highly sensitive to social challenges. Because stress hormones can have negative developmental and health consequences, this presents an evolutionary paradox: Why would natural selection have favored mechanisms that elevate stress hormone levels in response to psychosocial stimuli? Two…

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to determine if there were changes in familism scores among a sample of African American and non-Hispanic White youths as they progressed through middle school, and if changes differed by race. Results indicated that African American subjects reported higher levels of familism than their non-Hispanic…

Diagnosing ADHD based primarily on symptom reports assumes that the number/frequency of symptoms is tied closely to the impairment imposed on an individual's functioning. That presumed linkage encourages diagnosis more by "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (4th ed.) style symptom lists than well-defined,…