THERE WAS A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT RISE IN THE MEAN IQ SCORE OF CHILDREN WHOSE PARENTS OBTAINED THEIR LIVING BY FARMING IN MAHASKA COUNTY, IOWA, DURING THE TWENTY YEARS PRECEEDING 1961-63. HOWEVER, THIS INCREASE WAS NOT PARALLELED BY THE NONFARM CHILDREN LIVING WITHIN THE SAME RURAL COMMUNITY. SELECTIVE MIGRATION WAS SHOWN TO BE AN ACTIVE…

Of 883 Iowa high school seniors, 60% lived in towns, 40% on farms. Both groups had a high level of congruence between educational and occupational aspirations and perceived minimal barriers to goal achievement. Farm and town students had equally diverse aspirations. (Contains 23 references.) (SK)

This study examined the relationship of psychosocial factors with alcohol use for adolescents residing in rural Iowa. This association was also tested separately for boys and girls. Seventh graders (N = 1673) self-reported alcohol use, peer drinking norms, adult drinking norms, drug refusal assertiveness, drug refusal techniques, life skills,…

Focus groups conducted with urban and rural middle school students showed that they had typical stereotypes about agriculture and farmers and found farm careers unattractive. Results suggested that agriculture be tied to youth interests and addressed before middle school. The project also elicited information about using focus groups with youth.…

THIS PAMPHLET DISCUSSES FACTORS WHICH INFLUENCE OCCUPATIONAL CHOICES OF RURAL YOUTH. IT ALSO COMPARES (1) THE CAREER CHOICES OF RURAL AND URBAN YOUTH, (2) THE OCCUPATIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS OF RURAL AND URBAN YOUTH, AND (3) THE FACTORS WHICH DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN FARM-REARED BOYS PLANNING TO FARM AND THOSE PLANNING NONFARM CAREERS. SUGGESTIONS FOR…

This report covers the first phase of a three-phase research program entitled "Developing Model NYC Programs for Rural Youth". The report contains three sections. The first section, "An Experimental Rural Youth Program for the North Central States" contains a detailed description of the general framework of a program for rural…

The purpose of this review is to indicate the need for longtitudinal research to evaluate the significance of aspirations in predicting occupational attainment. Data for this study were collected from a longitudinal study of 152 males and females interviewed as high school seniors in 1948 and re-interviewed in 1956. The analysis of data suggests…

A study to obtain follow-up information on graduates from small Iowa school districts was conducted in 1988 to identify rural youth's "educational pathways" during the first 5 years after high school graduation. The sample of high school graduates was randomly drawn from 11 of 98 rural Iowa school districts with an enrollment fewer than…

This issue focuses on Iowa's role in the historical development of the 4-H youth program. "Roots in Iowa" and "Jessie Field Shambaugh: The Mother of 4-H" (J. Friedel) describes the rural Iowan roots of the 4-H program, which today is located in 80 different countries, and give the story of its founder. Jessie Shambaugh, a rural…

Ranking 49th in total employment growth between 1978 and 1986, Iowa actually lost 0.48% of its workforce each year. Income fell 2.2% annually between 1978-86 (10% per annum in the farm industry) and unemployment rates doubled since the mid-1970s. This 1988 study describes the school-to-work transition of a sample of high school graduates, class of…

Analysis of data from the Iowa Youth and Families Project establishes that parents' social involvement is a source of social capital for their children. Rural children's connection to a civic culture and their involvement in community groups are encouraged by parental social participation and further enhanced by parents' ties to farming. (Contains…

Purpose: The purposes of this pilot study were to examine prevalence of depressive symptoms among rural adolescents and identify related social and environmental variables. Methods: A convenience sample of 299 14- to 18-year-old agriculture class students at 5 rural high schools in Kentucky and Iowa completed a survey that included demographic…

The causal linkage between socioeconomic status, occupational and educational aspiration, and attainment was examined in this attempt to test an existing theoretical model which used socioeconomic status as a major input variable, with significant other influence as a crucial intervening variable between socioeconomic status and aspiration. The…

Problem: Various demographic and familial risk factors have been linked to runaway behavior. To date, there has not been a systematic investigation of the impact of size of community on runaway behavior. This study will compare runaways from smaller cities and rural areas to their urban counterparts. Methods: A convenience sample of 602…

The study's objectives were to: (1) compare differences in social-psychological behavior between 1948 high school graduates in central Iowa who migrated and those who remained in their home areas; (2) examine social behavior which may have resulted from the migration experience; (3) examine migration behavior in relation to occupational mobility…