Outlines adolescent self-concept as a method for understanding the adolescent experience and major controversies involved in this age span. Defines adolescence and reviews theoretical understanding of adolescent self-concept. General issues regarding cognition are discussed. A model of the boundary organization of adolescent self-concept is…

Results of a study of 23 7th-grade students revealed that underachievers are less self-confident, less socially and emotionally mature, less able to focus on one concern at a time, less accurate in their perceptions about themselves and their work, and less hardworking than achievers. (IAH)

The position advanced in this paper is that the nature of the confrontation between the institution of school and the children who attend it is different and is experienced differently by the four sex-color groups: white girls, white boys, black girls, and black boys. Data for this study were collected from approximately 475 children at the…

This digest offers guidelines to parents and educators helping gifted adolescents adjust to problems related to their giftedness. Challenges to adjustment are noted in the areas of: ownership (talented adolescents simultaneously "own" and yet question the validity of their abilities); dissonance (between their high standards and their…

A cohort study of 172 high-school leavers, who were followed over a two-year period, found that employment and school continuation were unrelated to self-esteem and depression. Factors influencing the transition process included money and activity problems, internality, stability, and controllability both of attributions about general transition…

The psychosocial difficulties that usually accompany learning disabilities are examined from a framework of developmental theory, particularly that of Erik Erikson. The implications of this perspective for treatment of adolescents with learning problems is discussed, and the summer residential program at Goddard College described. (Author)

This paper examines the writings of Dorothy Harris and other authors, from a psychosocial perspective of sport involvement. It explores ways self-perceptions, social factors, and cognitive and biological maturity interact to explain females' physical activity participation; it proposes a heuristic model to represent an interactional approach. (SM)

This is a curriculum guide for multiethnic studies. The introduction explains the importance of such studies as a part of values clarification even for young children. After the introduction there is a resource model which is divided into four sections. The first three sections (levels A-C) correspond with developmental stages in the learner.…

The author investigated the discrepancies between self-perceptions and the perceptions of others, in order to examine the assumption that perceived personality characteristics might be used as a basis to identify communication problems within an organization. Through the use of the Interpersonal Check List, staff members of the University of…

One hundred thirteen undergraduates completed measures of career decision-making (CDM) self-efficacy, career locus of control, CDM attitudes, and CDM skills. Results proved the self-efficacy theory superior to the locus of control model in predicting college students' CDM attitudes. No significant gender differences emerged among the variables.…

In this discussion of Fritz Redl's model of ego dysfunction in disturbed children, tasks the mature ego must accomplish are described, such as frustration tolerance, temptation resistance, realism about rules and routines, and exposure to competitive challenges. The model's educational applications involve assessment of discipline problems,…

Using the Self-Descriptive Inventory, compares development of self-concept, self-esteem, self-ideal in physical maturity, peer relations, academic success, school adaptiveness in 50 rural children (Hatch, New Mexico) and 50 urban children (Las Cruces New Mexico). Finds negative patterns in academic success and school adaptiveness more pronounced…

Unpopular students in grades 5-11 were compared with average and popular students among 319 high ability students. Unpopular students were distinguished by lower social self-concept, lower academic self-esteem, and less prestigious paternal occupations. Unpopular students were not found to be academically less capable, less mature, or more…

The present investigation reviews the racial comparison literature in order to make specific predictions about racial differences on the psychosocial maturity scale developed by Greenberger, Campbell, Sorensen, and O'Connor (1971). On the basis of this review, it was predicted that blacks would score lower than whites on the scale, and that this…

The topic of predicting black student success in higher education is discussed. The Cultural Study Center (CSC) at the University of Maryland has begun a three phase research program aimed at answering the broad research question "Is there anything that could be called a unique black experience or experiences which could be measured and translated…