Examined how child and family factors influence individual differences in the language development of African-American children between 18 and 30 months of age. Found that vocabulary and utterance length increased linearly. Children from more stimulating and responsive homes had larger vocabularies, used more irregular nouns and verbs, and had…

In order to better understand contributing factors of moral judgment development, gifted youth and college students were compared. Moral judgment development, ACT scores, attributional complexity, and descriptors of personality were assessed among 140 college students and 97 gifted youth. Important distinctions favoring the gifted sample were seen…

In seeking to explore theorists' claims that learning, education, and development in old age are linked, this qualitative study investigated how seeking a graduate or undergraduate degree functions in late-life development. Sixteen participants, ages 70 to 84, enrolled in higher education, were interviewed with a view to exploring their major…

Identifying the effects of the New York State Experimental Prekindergarten Program on the development of children requires that a broad array of data be analyzed. In studying the effects of the program, the evaluation unit is interested in determining whether there is an overall effect, and whether children of different ages and different levels…

Two empirical studies were conducted in Indiana to ascertain the types of contributions residents of small towns and rural areas feel their community can perform for their subjective well being and to determine the degree to which these contributions are comparable among elderly and younger rural and urban residents. An "individual level…

The present paper is part of a long range research project in Developmental Kinesics. The gist of the project is empirical: the object is to find out what happens rather than look for anything in particular or test a hypothesis. The methodology for the analysis is ethological in approach. Empirical observations are carefully described.…

Noting that scientific observation of children's dreaming offers unparalleled opportunities to study experience of conscious mental states, this book presents findings from two studies on children's dreaming. Following an argument outlining the problems in equating dreaming with perception, the book explains the use of sleep laboratories and…

To test possible cultural differences in strength of individualistic motivation and explore reliability of different individualism measures, two individualism measures were administered to 476 Anglo American, 156 Mexican American, and 101 Black children, aged six to 12. Results indicated age but not cultural differences in strength of…

Examined intraindividual and interindividual differences in self-esteem among 142 rural adolescents during a four-year period encompassing the transition to high school. Cluster analysis identified three distinct, divergent trajectories of self-esteem change from early to middle adolescence: (1) consistently high; (2) small increase; and (3)…

Asked adults and children ages 7 to 15 to detect changes in an unaccompanied drumbeat. Found significant differences in performance as a function of age when drumbeats fluctuated. Found musical training more influential than age when drumbeat was constant. Discusses a multiprocess model for the perception of tempo. (NL)

This study with 82 gifted males (grades 1-12) used a questionnaire which focused on self-confidence, perfectionism, relationships with parents, relationships with peers, hopelessness, and discouragement. Findings indicated a significantly higher level of discouragement and hopeless feeling for junior high school boys as compared with senior high…

Examined age differences in objectified body consciousness (OBC) based on cultural, developmental, and familial contexts of women's body experience in undergraduate women and their middle-aged mothers. Found that mothers scored lower on surveillance and body shame. Found no differences in appearance-control beliefs, body-esteem, or restricted…

The contributions of dating status, grade, gender, and family structure to the frequency and intensity of normative conflict and to behavioral autonomy were studied in 859 10th and 12th graders. The importance of focusing on developmental patterns as well as age in assessing adolescent conflict is highlighted by the findings. (SLD)

Researchers have found it difficult to measure various forms of indirect aggression, such as exclusion from groups, because such behaviors are difficult to observe in field settings such as school playgrounds. This study examined gender and developmental differences in aggression, investigated across-gender aggression, and looked at teachers'…

Formal guidance and counseling cases have been opened on 397 Indochinese adolescents between 11.5 and 16.5 years of age since mid-1987 as they passed through the Philippines for 18 weeks of training in English as a Second Language, U.S. culture, and mathematics, preparatory to entering the United States and U.S. secondary schools. Demographic data…