This review of research discusses how children with autism may acquire equivalence classes after learning to supply a common oral name to each stimulus in a potential class. A proposed methodology for researching referent naming and class formation, analysis of stimulus classes, and generalization is offered. (CR)

Infant abuse and neglect were investigated in five families of group-living pigtail macaques over five generations. Neglect was mostly limited to first-born and newborns; closely related rather than distantly related females were more prone to abuse; and infants with siblings previously abused were at highest risk. Results provide evidence of…

Investigated the cross-cultural measurement equivalence of items in the English-language version of the NEO Personality Inventory. Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analysis of item responses from 432 Filipino and 610 American college students reveals significant cultural mean differences in the raw scores; however, after a reanalysis with DIF…

Three methods used in applied behavioral analysis research and appropriate for conducting a functional assessment of problem behavior in persons with mental retardation are described. They are informant assessment (e.g., behavioral interviews, rating scales, and questionnaires), direct observation assessment, and experimental analysis. (Author/DB)

Reports a study that examined the relationship among classical authoritarianism, directiveness, and attitudes toward institutional authority among young adolescents in Adelaide, Australia. Concludes that the concept of classical authoritarianism has limited relevance to the social attitudes of children, and that attitude towards authority is not…

A functional analysis of distinct topographies of aberrant behavior displayed by 4 individuals (ages 6-28) with moderate to profound mental retardation indicated that hypotheses of separate functions for distinct behaviors can be generated using both extended and brief functional analyses when results are graphed in the aggregate and separated by…

Assessed maternal sensitivity and infants' attachment behavior to test validity of a system of classifying attachment relationships at home. Subjects were 47 mothers of preterm and 42 mothers of full-term infants. Results reaffirm Ainsworth's conceptualization of distinct attachment relationships. (HTH)

This review of classroom interventions for students with attention deficit disorders discusses attentional weaknesses, the use of observation and behavioral analysis to clarify issues that need to be addressed in intervention planning, and subsequent determination of the behavior management programs and academic strategies that will result in…

This essay reviews research on mother-infant roles during early interactions and how these serve to foster the development of infant emotion regulation. It provides illustrations of the ways in which physical unavailability (resulting from hospitalization or other separation) and emotional unavailability (resulting from mental illnesses such as…

Evaluates empirical studies on child development. Suggests that most such research consists of studies of a priori, nonempirical, logical relations between concepts, whose definitions guarantee the relationship studied. Argues that hypotheses are empirical if variables involved are semantically and logically independent. Research that is not based…

Principles of statistical process control are applied to a clinical setting through the use of control charts to detect changes, as part of treatment planning and clinical decision-making processes. The logic of control chart analysis is derived from principles of statistical inference. Sample charts offer examples of evaluating baselines and…

Presents a study of parental influence on leadership styles. Reports that correlations between students and their role models show early influence is important to leadership qualities. Suggests that gender related influences are operational. Concludes that early influences are emulated rather than opposed and are strongest in male students with…

Reports a study involving students who were exposed to an educational intervention curriculum designed to facilitate moral development. Describes a means of promoting moral reasoning through conceptualizing and integrating essential philosophical concepts. Concludes that the curriculum is effective in stimulating moral development and principled…

Presents results of a study of cultural differences in causal attributions and self-serving bias. Reports more self-serving attributional bias among U.S. than Finn students. Suggests that cultural differences in self-serving bias may result from differences in need to protect self-esteem, coping mechanisms, and cultural differences in coping with…

Describes two studies involving chimpanzee mother-infant pairs in Tanzania between 1980 and 1987 that implemented control theory concepts. The first identified behavioral development in infant chimps; the second observed the growth of independence and parenting patterns. Concludes that the hierarchy of controlled variables develops consecutively…