Examined predictive relations between infant assessments and behavior problems at age 7 in a low-income sample. Found that disorganized infant attachment behavior and below average mental development at 18 months were associated with externalizing behavior at 7 years. Avoidant infant attachment behavior was associated with later internalizing…

Using a nine-year study, examines the extent to which selected admissions criteria predicted the future performance of 34 family therapy doctoral students. Age and clinical background were positively related to clinical ratings and letters of recommendation and student autobiographies were positively related to publications. Entrance exams and…

Determined whether family characteristics, particularly family cohesion and social support, can explain why teenagers from alcoholic families are more likely to use a variety of recreational and addictive substances. Found that a combination of characteristics, such as a lack of bonding, produces particularly high rates of adolescent alcohol and…

A study of 29 single-parent families, 35 two-parent families, 17 families of children with Down syndrome, 16 families of children with hearing impairment, and 29 families of children with developmental delay, found that parents of children with Down syndrome or with developmental delays experienced a greater proportion of child-related stress. (CR)

Examined performance of Canadian French- and English-speaking preschoolers on four number tasks. Found that French-speaking preschoolers performed more poorly on rote-counting and number-recognition than English-speaking preschoolers. Found no difference between groups on counting objects. Variability in counting and number recognition was…

This study of perceived social support and weapon possession surveyed 461 students in an urban middle school. Students who reported carrying weapons to school reported less overall or total perceived social support (from peers, parents, teachers, classmates, and school) than did their peers who did not carry weapons. Perceived social support was a…

Examines data from 358 African American students and 229 European American students to determine if the phenomenon of academic disidentification occurred. Analyses revealed that among African American male students, the relationship between academic self-concept and grade point average (GPA) significantly decreased, whereas the relationship…

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.)…