In a study of the effect of task demands on attention allocation, 20 9-year-olds and 20 13-year-olds were presented with a primary and a secondary task. Subjects were instructed either to respond to the primary task or to respond to both tasks. Overall, findings indicate that ability to allocate attention in accordance with task demands improves…

Examines videotaped excerpts of treatment sessions from an intervention study to explore the changes occurring during social skills training and their relation to treatment outcome. Children who received social skills training displayed more conversational skills and received more positive peer support than children who were not coached.…

Data indicate that for girls, affective dispositional factors (empathy, depressive affectivity, aggression, and self-concept) are intimately linked to cognitive development and academic achievement. (PCB)

Compares second-, fifth- and eighth-graders' reasoning about their relative ability and that of another child (who applied more or less effort) with their reasoning about the relative ability of two others (who differed in effort). Responses to specific questions may be more sensitive to situationally induced motivational influences than responses…

Study examined peer sensitivity to (1) differences in the social behaviors of hyperactive and normal comparison peers, and (2) medication-related behavioral differences. Discussion focused on children's detection of treatment-related differences in social behaviors of peers, as well as on the imperfect relation between social behavior and social…

The social adaptation of mainstreamed mildly retarded children was assessed. Results indicated that mildly retarded children were very much rejected by their peers. In comparison with nonretarded classmates, they reported significantly more dissatisfaction and anxiety about their peer relations. (PCB)

The stability of standard score and probability method sociometric group assignments was examined over a two-year period with an initial group of 334 fifth graders. Popular, neglected, and controversial groups evidenced low stability of group members over intervals of approximately 1, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. (Author/RH)

The study attemped to link cognitive and social problems seen in girls with Turner syndrome by assessing the girls' ability to process affective cues. Seventeen 9- to 17-year-old girls diagnosed with Turner syndrome were compared to a matched control group on a task which required interpretation of affective intention from facial expression.…

Two word/nonword decision experiments were carried out to investigate differences in reading between congenitally blind children reading Braille and sighted children dealing with print. Three aspects of single-word recognition were studied: semantic processing, word frequency effects, and phonological recoding. (Author/RH)

Developed a framework for describing and assessing the qualities of sibling relationships by interviewing upper elementary school children and administering a self-report questionnaire to fifth- and sixth-grade children. Component analysis yielded four underlying factors: warmth/closeness, relative status/power, conflict, and rivalry. Relative…

Assessed the effect of the amount of physical detail in pictures on the picture recognition memory of 7- and 9-year-olds, young adults, and adults over 68. For each age group, recognition accuracy was significantly higher for pictures presented in the simple rather than the complex form. (PCB)

Relations among hormone levels, emotional dispositions, and aggressive attributes were examined in 56 boys and 52 girls, aged 9 to 14 years. (PCB)

The purpose of this study was to elucidate the psychological concomitants of discrepancies between fourth- to sixth-grade children's perceptions of academic competence and two measures of their competence (teacher ratings and achievement test scores). (PCB)

Assesses the information used by 5- to 13-year-olds to make dispositional attributions. Children were shown a boy interacting with others harmfully. Results of trait adjective ratings and predictions of causal responsibility for subsequent property damage revealed that the use of frequency and covariation information differed with age. (Author/CB)

The effects of classroom climate, organization of instruction, and class racial composition on the interracial friendliness of students in desegregated classrooms were studied. (PCB)