Coping and social support did not differ according to HIV stage. As predicted, adjustment was related to social support and coping. Contrary to expectation, the relationships between coping and adjustment did not vary as a function of HIV stage. The relationship between adjustment and some elements of social support varied as a function of HIV…

This study of 258 girls (ages 6-12) found that sexually abused girls and clinical controls had more developmental and psychiatric problems prior to the abuse and more past stressors than normal controls. In the sexually abused girls, prior developmental and psychiatric problems were associated with increased behavioral and emotional problems,…

Reviews research related to oral communication and discourse. Asserts that discourse analysis is the theory and method of studying social practices and the actions that constitute them. Recommends collecting naturalistic records of interaction that will allow analysts to consider activities in their sequential context. (CFR)

Studied self-efficacy and treatment outcomes in a sample of opioid addicts. Results show self-efficacy influenced subsequent drug use in parallel with previous behavior. Suggests that psychological constructs like self-efficacy may hold promise for understanding and decreasing illicit opioid use during long-term methadone detoxification treatment.…

Study explored the relationship between curriculum and teacher development. Preservice English teachers wrote education-related life histories and discussed them in class. Observations and interviews indicated emphasis on four types of knowledge helped students negotiate satisfying teacher roles: content-specific, the curriculum/teacher role…

Reports the results of interviews with three-, four-, and five-year-old children at various child care centers in Columbia, South Carolina, concerning their fears. The fear of "monsters" was most often reported. Suggests what parents and teachers can do to help children cope with their fears. (BB)

Gifted and talented adolescents have two primary social needs: to have normal social interaction with others and to develop an identity as a person who is gifted and talented. The choices an individual makes are always influenced by personal needs in a social context. Gifted children are members of a subgroup--the gifted--which has negative and…

A survey of 177 Hispanic and 93 Anglo college freshmen examined acculturative stress within a multivariate framework that includes social class, gender, and ethnicity as precursor variables; demographic and psychological indexes of acculturation; college role stresses experienced by most students; and minority stresses especially relevant to…

A discussion of the psychological impact of the African-American experience with the U.S. educational system focuses on how this psychological conditioning affects African-American students' performance on standardized tests and in college courses. It draws on theories of intellectual development and recent research on testing in African Americans…

Reviews the descriptive empirical literature on homeless women, using a theoretical perspective on stress. Finds that homelessness is highly stressful, and examines the sources and mediators of homelessness. Suggests that more is known about the risk factors than about the mediating factors that may decrease the stressful circumstances' impact.…

Two studies with 277 intermediate grade students (106 males, 107 females, and 64 males and females) show that motivational orientations, measured by the scale of S. Harter (1981), are not distributed similarly across gender but that girls are more likely to be extrinsically motivated and influenced by adult feedback. (SLD)

Eighteen mothers of children with severe disabilities participated in classes led by a counselor on topics relating to cognitive processes associated with guilt and self-blame. Results showed significant reductions in measures of guilt, negative automatic thoughts, internal negative attributions, and depression, compared to control group mothers.…

A study found the incidence of psychological trauma in the families of 116 social work master's degree students to be significantly higher than in 46 counterparts in a nonhelping profession (master's-level business administration). Implications are seen for effective social work practice, education, and professional responsibility. (Author/MSE)

Examined association between understanding of psychological causation and ability of young children from low-income families to produce goal-based episodes in narratives. Participants "read" book and resulting narrative was coded for psychological causation and goal-based episodes. Use of psychological causation was related to age and…

Summarizes this special issue on how children develop emotional and social strengths, as well as difficulties. Highlights three areas of focus among the seven articles: (1) the relation of emotional competence to social competence; (2) the socialization of emotional competence; and (3) attachment as the foundation. (SD)