This study examined to what extent adolescents' and their friends' risk behaviors (i.e., delinquency and alcohol use) hinder or promote their academic achievement (grade point average [GPA]), and vice versa. Longitudinal data were used (N = 1,219 seventh- to ninth-grade adolescents; M[subscript age] = 13.69). Results showed that risk behaviors…

Student-teacher relationships that improve over time may help slow or prevent declines in student motivation. In a diverse sample of 1,274 middle and high school students from three schools, this mixed-methods study found that those who improved in developmental relationships with teachers reported greater academic motivation, and more positive…

Student-teacher relationships that improve over time may help slow or prevent declines in student motivation. In a diverse sample of 1,274 middle and high school students from three schools, this mixed-methods study found that those who improved in developmental relationships with teachers reported greater academic motivation, and more positive…

Executive functions (EFs) show promise as important mediators of adolescent academic performance. However, the expense of measuring EFs accurately has restricted most field-based research on them to smaller, non-longitudinal studies of homogeneous populations with specific diagnoses. We therefore monitored the development of 259 diverse, at-risk…

This longitudinal study of Mexican-American youth and emerging adults examines several ecodevelopmental factors longitudinally predicting high school and college graduation. Data from 1257 Mexican-American youth (including those born in Mexico and whose families are from Mexico) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add…

Stereotype threat has been shown to have deleterious impacts on the short- and long-term academic performance and psychological well-being of racial and ethnic minority students. Psychological variables related to this identity threat represent significant sources of achievement and attainment gaps relative to nonstereotyped Asian and white…

The present study examined the role that adolescents' dyslexia plays in their educational expectations, as well as their parents' expectations concerning their offspring's future education. To investigate this, 170 adolescents were asked to report their educational expectations on two occasions while they were still attending…

The self-equilibrium hypothesis underlines the importance of having a strong core self, which is defined as a high and developmentally stable self-concept. This study tested this hypothesis in relation to body image (BI) trajectories in a sample of 1,006 adolescents (M[subscript age] = 12.6, including 541 males and 465 females) across a 4-year…

Social psychological interventions in schools have gained popularity in education research for their ability to often dramatically increase student academic performance through simple exercises. Many of these interventions are designed to address stereotype threat, which is defined as "being at risk of confirming, as self-characteristic, a…

This study investigated the contributions of child and parents' sociodemographics, daily stressors, family environment, and coping strategies, to academic achievement, cognitive functioning and aggression in a sample of 600 children at the intermediate grade levels from Gaza Strip. Each of the predictor variables exhibited a different pattern of…

Few studies have investigated school-based, positive development for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) youth, despite knowledge of their heightened negative school experiences compared to heterosexual youth (e.g., school victimization). This study examines associations among participation in Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA)--related social…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between the perceptions of school membership, risk factors, and behavioral and academic engagement among a sample of alternative school students. The study subjects were 48 7th-9th graders who were at high risk for school failure because of their serious and chronic behavioral and…

This study examined the intercultural sensitivity of Finnish 12-16-year-old secondary school students (N=549) with a 23-item Intercultural Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire (ICSSQ). The ICSSQ is based on Bennett's (1993) Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS), which is a conceptual tool to situate certain reactions towards cultural…

This report details the development and validation of the ENGAGE Grades 6-9, a measure of academic behavior designed to determine students' levels of academic risk. The work presented in this report is part of a comprehensive research program of educational risk assessment based on key academic behavior predictors (also known in the literature as…

Proponents of positive psychology have argued for more comprehensive assessments incorporating positive measures (e.g., student strengths) as well as negative measures (e.g., psychological symptoms). However, few variable-centered studies have addressed the incremental validity of positive assessment data. The authors investigated the incremental…