A Pilot Phase of an evaluative study of adult basic education was included to develop and evaluate data-gathering instruments to measure sociopsychological variables bearing on levels of, and potentials for, adjustment; to describe participants and nonparticipants by these measures and assess changes over time; and to examine changes in potentials for adjustment and certain teacher variables. The population studied included 360 ABE participants and 34 teachers in North Carolina community colleges and technical institutes, and 30 nonparticipants. Before, and after about 60 hours of instruction, participants and controls were tested for educational achievement and for changes in internal-external control, anomia, work beliefs, and attitudes toward education, law and economic conservatism. Preliminary examination of data shows gains and loss in achievement by both groups, positive and negative changes in self-concept, decrease in anomia, improved attitudes toward education and work, and improvement in internal-external control. Testing instruments were discovered to be not sufficiently precise for accurate measurement. It was concluded that a longitudinal study would be feasible if the inadequacies of current instrumentation can be corrected. (author/pt)