The Tasks of Emotional Development is an apperceptive test that has the additional advantage of a specific developmental focus. Test administration and interpretation are described, focusing on use with adults with mental retardation. It is concluded that the test minimizes many biases plaguing accurate psychodiagnosis with this group. (JDD)

Therapeutic recreation is important in treating substance abuse problems. It addresses attitudes and behaviors leading to substance abuse (inability to experience pleasure or control). It encourages participation in activities that help abusers cope and obtain enjoyable states, reducing reliance on drugs. The article discusses the theory of flow…

This paper reviews the school histories of five extremely gifted Australian children (IQs 160-200) who had been radically accelerated. A combination of grade skipping and radical subject matter acceleration gave the children access to curricula commensurate with their abilities as well as healthier levels of social self-esteem. (Author/DB)

Examined developmental changes and individual variations in the ways children use expressive information from others. Concluded that processing deficits are more probable for younger children or for children with low perceived control than for other children. (BB)

Businesses can utilize the concepts of multidimensionality and multipotentiality of gifted and talented young people in apprenticeship and vocational training programs. By considering dimensions of self-concept, abilities, work preferences, and personality, and by matching these with business trends and future needs, increased productivity can be…

Posits that an evolutionary perspective can unite the study of the typical development for and individual variation within a species and that environments within the normal range for a species are required for species-normal development. Individual differences in children reared in normal environments arise primarily from genetic variation and…

Investigated developmental patterns of cognitive performance over first 3 years of life in sample of 762 low birthweight premature children. Intelligence test scores were obtained at 12, 24, and 36 months adjusted age. Five developmental patterns were identified. Results reveal patterns of cognitive development can be discriminated by three…

It is argued that there are only three core instructional models (behavior, development, and apprenticeship) and that within the framework of these models, only five types of knowledge can be acquired: (1) declarative; (2) procedural; (3) conceptual; (4) analogical; and (5) logical. Examples are presented. (SLD)

Presents demographic information about biracial persons, reviews previous models of racial identity development, discusses their shortcomings when applied to biracial persons, and presents new model of racial identity development focusing on unique aspects of the experience of biracial individual in the United States. Presents counseling…

Studies showing the effect of improved self-concept on learning support the training of teachers to identify the needs of adult learners with poor self-concepts. Classroom strategies that respond to personal development needs can reduce attrition and enhance teaching satisfaction. (SK)

As experiences of two first graders show, learning occurs in split-second initiatives that children take with others as they try to attend, engage, interact, communicate, and reason. Before children can learn reading, writing, and arithmetic, they must know how to learn. Children cannot learn two-way communication with gestures, words, or symbols…

A prison reading club can provide motivation to learn to read and write, reinforce conventional learning, and support individual development. The literate environment created is a tool for resocialization of incarcerated youth and young adults. (SK)

This interview with Joseph Bates, a computer scientist at Carnegie Mellon University (Pennsylvania), recounts his development as a highly gifted child who entered Johns Hopkins University (Maryland) after the seventh grade. Doctor Bates describes his family background, his reaction to radical acceleration, his attitudes toward heterogeneous…

Analyzes multiple components of planning, including problem representation, goal selection, a decision to plan, strategy choice, strategy execution, and monitoring. Analyzes three tasks typically used to study planning: the Tower of Hanoi; errand scheduling; and story comprehension. Argues that the components required to perform a planning task…

Discusses the nature of spirituality and the resources people use in responding to spirituality based on Robert Coles' book, "The Spiritual Life of Children." Answers questions as to how to use the camp experience to afford campers opportunities for spiritual growth while respecting the many expressions of spirituality in society. (LP)