Examines the role of achievement goals, ability, and high school performance in predicting academic success over students' college careers. Results reveal that mastery goals predicted continued interest, whereas performance-approach goals predicted performance. Ability measures and prior high school performance predicted academic performance but…

Eighty-nine high school seniors completed a questionnaire on their feelings and activities, including their use of drugs. Adolescents with a low grade point average, high popularity, and high depression were more likely to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, and smoke marijuana than were their peers. Cigarette and alcohol use predicted marijuana use,…

Purpose in life and coping skills are hypothesized to mediate association between cognitive abilities (e.g., fluid and crystallized intelligence) and polydrug use. Results indicated relationship between crystallized intelligence and alcohol use was mediated by purpose in life. Older age predicted higher cognitive abilities, stronger coping…

A study examined rates of labor induction using pitocin in 41 boys with autism and 25 matched controls with either typical development or mental retardation. There were no differences in pitocin induction rates as a function of either diagnostic group (autism vs. control) or IQ level (average vs. subaverage range). (Contains references.)…

This study investigated relations between social interaction during infancy and children's subsequent theory of mind (ToM). Findings indicated that children's performance on ToM tasks at 45 and 48 months positively correlated with mothers' appropriate comments on her infant's mental state, but not with attachment security. Mothers' appropriate…

Two studies examined in-group favoritism and out-group prejudice among two samples of white 4- to 7-year-olds. Findings indicated that the two attitudes were reciprocally correlated in the sample from a racially homogeneous school but not in the sample from a mixed-race school. In-group favoritism did not appear until 5 years of age and was…

Examines relations among attachment to parents and peers, cognitive ability, psychosocial functioning variables, and academic achievement in a multiethnic sample of college students. Significant positive correlations were documented between parent and peer attachment and several indices of psychosocial competence. Analyses revealed that indices of…

A study assessed auditory sequential, short-term memory (SSTM) performance in 24 children (ages 5-11) using cochlear implants (CI). The CI group did not have a sequential memory deficit specific to the auditory modality. Visual spatial memory was the main predictor of variance in the language scores of the CI group. (Contains references.)…

Explores the effects of different rates of classroom participation on the peer ratings of three student groups: students with learning disabilities; low-achieving nondisabled students; and average- and high-achieving students. Results suggested that, as the rate of classroom participation decreased, ratings tended to diverge increasingly from…

Examines the effects of high school course-taking on subsequent choice of science and math majors in college. Effects of course-taking on choice of science and math majors were stronger for women than for men. Findings are discussed in terms of career theory and counseling and education practice. (Contains 36 references and 3 tables.) (GCP)

Tracks 1,110 adolescents identified as mathematically precocious with plans for a math-science undergraduate major. Participants' high school educational experiences, abilities, and interests predicted whether their attained undergraduate degrees were within math-science or nonmath-nonscience areas. More women than men eventually completed…

A study investigated the role of speed of processing, rapid naming, and phonological awareness in reading achievement of 279 third-graders. Poor readers were proportionally slower than good readers across response time measures and on the rapid object-naming task. Processing speed, IQ, and phonological awareness explained variance in reading…

Examined whether inclusive practice--involving parental involvement in foster children's (12- and 13-year-olds) lives while in traditional family foster care--was correlated with more frequent visiting and a greater likelihood of reunification. Found that mothers who visited their child and were involved in case reviews and child care activities…

Examines the differential effects of parent, teacher, and peer social support on depression and self-esteem of 217 adolescents. Results indicate that female adolescents perceived significantly more support from friends than male adolescents did, whereas male adolescents perceived significantly more support from fathers. Self-esteem was…

A study that investigated how use of community facilities and feelings of belonging were related to the quality of life of 132 Australian adolescents, half with mental retardation. Life satisfaction scores for students with mental retardation correlated significantly with reported levels of activity, friends, and support in the neighborhood.…