The study evaluated the total cholesterol and high density lipoprotein cholesterol of 40 adults (mean age 37.5 years) with mental retardation residing at an intermediate care facility. Results indicated that 59 percent of the males and 68 percent of the females were at moderate to high risk for coronary heart disease. (DB)

Developed and evaluated instrument, College Student Reasons for Living Inventory (SCRLI), to assess suicidal risk in college students. First study concerned development of SCRLI; second study involved initial evaluation of CSRLI through use of correlational, confirmatory factor, and discriminant analyses. Findings suggest that the CSRLI holds…

Survey of 58 physicians revealed that they did not routinely ask their pregnant patients about alcohol consumption for several reasons: physician bias resulting from own abuse, lack of training, poor awareness of problem and effects, denial that Fetal Alcohol Syndrome occurs in private practice, time limitations, disinterest, fear of offending…

The Clark's Drawing Abilities Test was administered to 177 secondary-level students and found to effectively identify gifted/talented visual arts students. Students draw a house, a person running, friends playing, and a fantasy drawing, and these drawings are scored on sensory, formal, expressive, and technical properties. (JDD)

Surveyed 56 gay and bisexual men tested for antibody to human immunodeficiency virus. Subjects who tested positive experienced increased anxiety, depression and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome anxiety; subjects who tested negative experienced decrease in these feelings after learning results. Subjects who chose not to learn results experienced…

The convergent validity of the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) (Morey, 1991) was examined with 80 referrals in a correctional facility. Comparison of PAI results with those from four other measures reveals moderate to good convergent validity for screening for feigned profiles, clinical correlates of common disorders, and evaluating…

"Authorized" genetic testing may be obtained from employees with coercion or threat. Unless protections are put in place, employers and health insurers will use genetic screening to hire and fire. (JOW)

The adequacy of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression (CES-D) as screening instruments for adolescent depression is examined. Both are correlated with the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, a clinical measure. BDI correlates more highly with Major Depression subscale, CES-D to Dysthymia…

Presents data on the High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire, a 27-item checklist for completion by lay informants when assessing symptoms characteristic of Asperger syndrome and other high-functioning autism spectrum disorders in children and adolescents with normal intelligence or mild mental retardation. Reliability and…

The Auditory Continuous Performance Test (ACPT) was evaluated with 12 children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and 11 children without ADHD. The study found that the ACPT has acceptable specificity but very low sensitivity and thus cannot currently be recommended as a screening test for ADHD. (Author/DB)

Confirms low positive identification rates when kindergarten teachers were asked to predict future reading achievement using a traditional rating scale, while a project-developed, theory-based screening battery correctly identified 81% of poor readers. Suggests that both teacher ratings and screening tests be used to identify the largest number of…

Describes a current research study which is attempting to identify autism susceptibility loci by a systematic screening of the whole human genome by using multiplex families. It reviews the resources and methods used in the study including extensive collection of family data, semiautomated genotyping technology, and specialized statistical…

A study involving 570 individuals with mental retardation developed the Screening Tool of Feeding Problems, an assessment designed to identify feeding problems presented by persons with mental retardation, and thus facilitate the process of identifying who would benefit from some type of behavioral or medical intervention. Psychometric data are…

Examines the diagnostic utility of subtest variability for identifying students with learning disabilities (LD) by surveying students (n=2,200) in a normative sample and students (n=684) identified as LD. Results indicated that LD students did not differ from normative sample students at levels above chance. Concludes that deviation of individual…

Survey conducted of public and private school districts (N=755) in New York ascertained procedures and instruments used to conduct kindergarten screening. The Developmental Indicators for the Assessment of Learning, and the Brigance K and 1 Screen were the most widely used instruments. The majority of respondents (95%) reported that screening is…