In many African American communities, violence and poverty are often part of daily living. As a result, children are at risk for difficulties in all aspect of their lives, particularly their emotional well-being. This study explored the relationship between exposure to chronic community violence and the development of complex post-traumatic stress…

With passage of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in 1990, autism was recognized as a distinct special education category. Subsequently, there has been a steady increase in the number of students qualified in the schools to receive special education services under this category. There are a number of questions as to the types of…

This is an activity-based teacher's guide to fostering positive group interaction through imagined experience and discussion at Key Stages 2 and 3. In a series of interactive workshops, each one providing a context, a scenario and a list of characters; pupils are invited to engage in discussion, debate and negotiation to solve problems and meet…

Background: This study examined the effects of maternal anger, partner transitions and partner conflict on later oppositional and angry behavior of the children of teenage mothers. Methods: One hundred and twenty-one teenage women were interviewed prior to the birth of the baby and at 3 points subsequently, when children were newborn, 7 years old…

Background: Depressive symptoms can be triggered by negative social experiences and individuals' processing of these experiences. This study focuses on the interaction between temperament, perceived parenting, and gender in relation to depressive problems in a Dutch population sample of preadolescents. Methods: The sample consisted of 2230…

In this study, data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY 97) were used to examine early adolescent functioning as a result of being bullied. The NLSY 97 asked 4807 youths from age 12 to 14 whether they had been the victims of repeated bullying before the age of 12. In this study, 19.1% of the youths responded that they had…

This study sought to determine the effects of using a talking pedometer on walking behavior and the value placed on walking by 22 children who are visually impaired or deaf-blind. The results revealed that the children were motivated to set challenging goals for increasing daily activity levels through the feedback provided by the talking…

This paper arises out of a longitudinal study, which provides an in-depth exploration into the emotional and social dynamics of pre-adolescent girls' friendship groups as they relocate from their inner-city state primary school to their secondary schools (R. George & N. Browne [2000] "Are you in or are you out? A study of girls'…

Fostering Healthy Futures (FHF) is a randomized, controlled trial of an innovative preventive intervention for preadolescent youth (ages 9-11) placed in out-of-home care. The program is designed to promote child well-being by identifying and addressing mental health issues, preventing adolescent risk behaviors, and promoting competence. This paper…

Based on the social cognitive perspective which assumes that children and teenagers internalize social values, this study focused on the psychological processes involved in the internalization of responsibility by young adolescents. The study examined whether preadolescents experienced social goals, ethical evaluations, and perceptions of efficacy…

In recent years, society has emphasized the desirability of being thin. Although children may learn the attractiveness of being thin from society, another influential component may be their parents' attitudes toward food, eating, and eating restraint. This study investigated the dieting practices and beliefs in fourth-grade children and their…

Drawing on theoretical and empirical studies, this paper hypothesized that attitudes towards the use of violence and the use of aggressive and violent behavior among preadolescent African American males would be affected by verbal aggression in the home, violence observed in the community, family environment, and peer models. Data on aggressive…

Inner-city mothers (N=86) and their 8- to 12-year-old children completed a 60-minute interview on the consequences of drug use, and overall concepts of health. A 15-minute conversation between mother and child regarding health was taped and coded for content and nature of the messages exchanged. Mothers and children also independently completed…

This paper describes the KIDLINK Project, a worldwide e-mail exchange with children from 10 to 15 years of age, which was created as part of the 1990 Children's Cultural Week in Arendahl, Norway, by Odd de Presno, a Norwegian journalist and author of computer books. The goal of the project is to create a global dialog among as many children as…

A study at South Carolina State College examined the psychosocial effects of relaxation training on student dropout, disruptive behavior,and absenteeism of rural preadolescents between 10 and 14 years of age. Phase 1 of the study was composed of 62 preadolescents selected randomly from 167 middle school students with no previous instruction in…