This study investigated factors that promote and inhibit the academic success of elementary African American males in grades 3 through 6 in a rural school in Mississippi. The qualitative study analyzed interview data gathered in 6 face-to-face interviews with 16 African American males over a 3-month period in the 2002-2003 academic year. All…

The historical change in educational status projections of Georgia rural youth was examined from 1966-1972. Used as the sampling unit, counties were: (1) rural, (2) characterized by low socioeconomic status, and (3) representative of all state regions. All schools in each county with a 10th grade class were used, although not necessarily the same…

The study examined the relationship between occupational aspirations and early job attainment of Southern youth. Occupational goal deflection (OGD), defined as the difference between these, was analyzed by race, sex, and residence. Data were gathered in 1966 and 1972 in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas. In 1966, 10th grade…

A study was conducted to examine sex differences in educational and occupational goals among adolescents. Three questionnaires were administered to two samples of high school students. The first sample consisted of 125 students at a Midwestern rural community high school; the second sample consisted of 294 students from a large suburban high…

Historical changes reflected in the educational goals of black and white high school seniors in 1966 and 1972 were compared. The five orientation dimensions studied were aspiration, expectation, goal deflection, goal certainty, and goal intensity. Data were collected in the four contiguous Northeast Alabama counties of Cherokee, DeKalb, Jackson,…

This paper examines the major conflicts and stresses which surround the coming of age in rural Ireland today and which commonly contribute to mental breakdown. The study is based on ten months of participant observation in an Irish-speaking village of Southwest Kerry, combined with weekly visits to the county mental hospital. The author uses a…

This paper reports on attitudes toward welfare and poverty among male and female students at a university in rural eastern Kentucky. The area has high poverty rates and low educational and employment levels, particularly among women. A 60-statement survey covering a wide range of social issues was completed by 390 undergraduates. About two-thirds…

In 1965, a youth aspiration study was initiated in six southern states. Data were first collected in 1966 from 10th grade students in selected high schools. In 1968, 12th grade students attending the same schools completed questionnaires. Then, in 1972, a stratified random sample was taken of 1,226 young adults who were previously examined. This…

The document tested the level of generalization of a recent conclusion from past research (see ED075156) on nonmetropolitan (NM) south and southwest Texas Mexican American teenagers: that these youths have predominantly high and strong status aspirations and expectations. Earlier findings on NM Mexican American youth supported Merton's thesis that…

Early onset of at-risk behaviors has been recognized as an important predictor of severity of negative outcomes during adolescence, but little is known about rural children's involvement in such behaviors and related variables. In two rural Midwest counties with high concentrations of child poverty, a survey of 162 predominantly Caucasian fifth-…

To investigate whether low school attendance rates in Guatemala (about 35% of primary school aged children do not attend) are due primarily to the need for children in low income families to contribute to family income or child care and other housekeeping tasks, time use data were collected in 4 rural villages from mothers of 369 children, aged…

To determine if the greater the degree of personal or social control the individual experiences, the less likely it is that he or she will behave in a deviant, delinquent manner, 257 male and 229 female high school and introductory-level college students residing in rural Tennessee were group-tested by their instructors during regularly scheduled…

Results of surveys (in 1967, 1973, and 1978-1979) of nonmetropolitan Mexican American high school sophomores from South Texas indicated that, although broad similarities existed between males and females, there were also specific patterned gender differences in social behavior and orientations. In status projection levels, particularly educational…

Career and career related preference expressed by a number of rural Southern high school youth were found to moderately predict their early adult behaviors. Preferences for post high school education were the dominant influence and single best predictor of subsequent educational attainment. Moderate linkages were also found to exist between…

Teachers, especially home economics teachers, would be better prepared to evaluate subject matter and to separate fact and personal opinion if they had a better understanding of diverse student backgrounds. To find out such background information, a study was conducted to analyze attitudes and values held by junior and senior students in home…