Compared perceptions of hyperactive children with those of a nonhyperactive matched control group on sense of coherence, life satisfaction, and perceptions of parental roles. Results indicated hyperactive children demonstrated lower levels of sense of coherence: their environment seemed to them to be less ordered, to be less manageable, and to…

Teachers' (n=78) and students' (n=2,347) perceptions of actual and preferred classroom environments were compared in 78 sixth grade classes in 43 schools in Israel. The Classroom Environment Scale was administered to all of the subjects. Teachers and students agreed more about the ideal than the real classroom. (SLD)

Examined the effects of Bright Start, an early-education program for providing children in Israel with the cognitive tools for school learning, on first graders' cognitive performance and achievement tests in math and reading comprehension. Found improvements in the test group's performance over all measures. (JPB)

Examines the relations among reciprocal nominations, reciprocal rejections, and loneliness among children with learning disorders (LD). Reveals that sense of coherence, peer reciprocal rejection, and conception of friendship qualities predicted loneliness. Discusses the examination of intra- and interpersonal variables in understanding loneliness…

Six same-different matching tests, both verbal and nonverbal in three modalities along with a set of reading tests, were administered to 120 Israeli children in second, third and fourth grade. (MS)

First- and fifth-grade kibbutz and city children (320 in two studies) individually were requested to distribute rewards between themselves and a partner who had produced either more or less than the subject had. Fifth graders were also asked about the level of effort and merit displayed by themselves and their partners. (Author/RH).

Examines pattern of mental abilities exhibited by first-grade, Israeli-born children whose parents emigrated from Europe, Iraq, North Africa, and Yemen. Results indicate that the groups of culturally different children tended to exhibit different patterns of cognitive abilities. Concludes that historical-cultural background of a population has a…

The differential effects of computer-assisted instruction for high-achieving and low-achieving students were examined for seven elementary students of varied background. Higher-achieving students were more able to adjust to the requirements of computer work and to derive benefit from it than were lower-achieving students. Implications for teaching…

The hypothesis that student groups working under conditions of intergroup competition will adopt different motivational orientation than will groups not in competition was studied using 89 Israeli fourth graders (50 males and 39 females). The impact of prior socialization on group behaviors and implications for cooperative learning are discussed.…

Assessed the moral reasoning of Israeli third and sixth graders living in a city or a kibbutz. Kibbutz children's direct reciprocity reasoning increased, while pragmatic reasoning increased with age only for kibbutz children. (Author/BB)

Describes a study designed to differentiate between universal and culturally specific aspects of children's biological understanding. A group of 363 kindergartners, second graders, and fourth graders from Israel, Japan, and the United States matched 16 attributes to people, animals, plants, and inanimate objects. Results revealed how cultural…

Four experiments with 23 second graders in Haifa (Israel) tested the hypothesis that comprehension gains in fast-paced reading are attributable primarily to changes in short-term memory (STM) functioning. Results confirm the hypothesis, providing support for a causal role of STM functioning in text processing. (SLD)

Investigated relationships between deception and self-perception of traditionally masculine and feminine characteristics. Elementary students completed sex role inventories, then boys completed questionnaires on masculine, feminine, and neutral topics. Questionnaires allowed opportunity for deception regarding knowledge level. Feminine boys…

The three studies involved attempt to assess the nature of cooperative and competitive behavior of young children in different socioeconomic classes. In the first study, 36 pairs of Head Start children, representing Mexican-American, Negro and Caucasian ethnic groups, were investigated concerning their cooperative-competitive behavior in relation…

To assess sex differences in vulnerability, 80 Israeli middle-class mothers of elementary school children predicted difficulty of low- and high-stress life events for child protagonists in 8 vignettes. Boys' mothers (n=39) predicted greater child stress difficulties than girls' mothers (n=41) and that boys would have more difficulty than girls.…