A discussion of the assumptions about the composition of intelligence which underlie preschool intervention efforts today offers theoretical evidence of a hierarchical arrangement of learning processes. International studies on cognitive development have concluded that the emergence of symbolic or conceptual thought occurs at a transitional age…

Research assessing the impact of consistently negative motivations versus mixed negative and positive motivations for a televised character's aggressive behavior and the consequences on children's subsequent behavior is provided. This study is also reported in related document SO 008 573. Second and sixth graders viewed one of two edited versions…

Current activity in the area of television research was reviewed, with an emphasis on some of the factors which will influence future research. An analysis was made of: (1) the priorities held by the scientific community in regard to research on television and human behavior, (2) the perspectives within the community that are likely to influence…

The effects of low, full (normal) and high birthweights on the broad range of neonatal behaviors measured by the Brazelton Neonatal Assessment Scale were investigated in a study which also attempted to replicate results of the authors' earlier study of the Brazelton Scale. Data from the original sample of 52 infants were included in the later…

The needs of children have not been major forces in shaping child development research; the pressures of such influences as war, violence and poverty on their lives have received little attention. Changes in the child development sciences have been linked primarily to changes within the discipline. Educational research has been no more relevant to…

The expanding complexities of American society and the demands placed upon educating American youth are causing the trainers of teachers to give increasing attention to developing innovative methods for improving teacher education. Since there is a lack of information concerning cognitive processes in the classroom and the effects of cognitive…

To identify parameters of teacher effectiveness, this study uses an ecological approach. Since setting, which includes not only physical surroundings but also the dynamic of activity, has a coercive effect on behavior, a teacher's ability to establish appropriate settings should be an accurate measure of effectiveness. Five head teachers in a…

This report describes an observational study of one family-grouped classroom, a system in which elementary school children remain with the same teacher for two or more years. The class was composed of junior kindergarten, senior kindergarten, and grade 1 pupils. Each child was observed over a period of one year. A detailed observation schedule,…

A description is provided of a computer-based simulation of an instructional system which adapts the learning environment to the individual's unique attributes for processing information and for being motivated. The main purposes of the simulation are: 1) to introduce, as attributes for individualizing instruction, information processing variables…

This paper presents a moderately detailed overview of research and development needs through an analysis of past, current, and planned research efforts, in conjunction with recommendations of a sociological, political, and moral nature. This approach is in line with pleas for more comprehensive theories and for assessment and programming which…

This study investigated the kinds of dimensions that children use to compare and contrast two sets of social stimuli--houses and jobs. The research was based on the assumption that obtaining knowledge of how similarity structures are formed for social domains would be useful in explaining the development of personal preferences and conceptions of…

This report is one of a regular series on the status and progress of studies on the nature of speech, instrumentation for its investigation, and practical applications. The reports contained in this particular number are state-of-the-art reviews of work central to the Haskins Laboratories' areas of research. The papers included are: (1)…

Two problems related to early childhood are studied: the specification of goals and the problem of measurement. Methods used to study these problems are to define objectives in the affective domain and to develop instruments to measure the attainment of these objectives. It is pointed out that the interrelationship between what the child is able…

The purpose of this study was to examine self-reinforcement as an agent of behavior change with children who were deficient in desired attention behaviors. Twenty three first and second grade school children were taught through external reinforcement procedures to raise their level of attention on a simple discrimination task. Subjects in one…

The problem of a steadily rising crime rate and an apparent inability of existing legal, judicial, and penal procedure to serve as either deterrents to or modifiers of criminal behavior are presented. The point is made that the principles of behavior modification derive primarily from basic research performed within the framework of the…