Reviews controversies over intelligence and intelligence testing, focusing on impacts on Canadian society in the past century. Discusses eugenics movements and related immigration policies. Suggests that both "tails" of "The Bell Curve" (cognitive elite and underclass) are influenced by inaccurate methods, and that the middle…

Describes the interdisciplinary research of Myrtle B. McGraw; examines the controversy about McGraw's concept of critical period; and assesses her impact on current research. McGraw contended that the overlapping phases involved in neuromuscular integration demonstrate that learning and maturation interact during development. (BC)

The author recounts his experiences investigating alleged fraud by Cyril Burt (1976) in his work on the genetic foundations of human intelligence. The evidence fails to prove Burt guilty, and his assertions about the genetic factors of individual differences in intelligence are finding corroboration in contemporary psychology. (SLD)

Data used to support Spearman's hypothesis have been incorrectly and inconsistently reported and do not support the claim that African-American-white differences in intelligence are not environmental in origin. Deaf children should not be considered a single population with respect to linguistic deprivation. (SLD)

Outlines what developmentalists can do with genes associated with behavioral dimensions and disorders once they are found. Suggests that genes can be used to answer questions about developmental continuities, psychopathological patterns such as heterogeneity and comoribidty, and environmental-risk mechanisms informed by studies of gene/environment…

E. Paul Torrance believed that creativity, like other skills, could be taught. His test to assess creativity is described. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi believes that the right combination of personal characteristics and encouraging environment produces creativity, and that children cannot be taught creativity. The adventure process creates an…

Parents who were identical twins, fraternal twins, or adopted siblings completed questionnaires assessing attitudes toward parenting and specific parenting practices, the emotional atmosphere of the home, and parental personality. Model-fitting results implicated modest genetic effects on affect-related aspects of parenting, such as parental…

Discusses how the genetic aspects of schizophrenia must be described within the interactive context of psychosocial stress. Suggests that the mental health profession must consider the environmental and social components of this condition, including the clients' relationships, families, and communities. States that psychotherapeutic interventions…

In 1949 the newly-inaugurated president of Northern Illinois University (NIU), Dr. Leslie Holmes, announced his intention to establish a program in outdoor teacher education. The program would provide opportunities for teaching and experiential learning in a naturalistic setting. Two years later, NIU acquired a 66-acre camp near Oregon, Illinois,…

A multifactorial model is presented that depicts a representative set of dimensions involved in child abuse and neglect. The model includes parental, ecological, and child factors linked to precipitating situations and/or events that result in child abuse or neglect. An excerpt from the records of an abused child illustrates the model. Also…

A chronicle of controversies over testing (heredity-environment, experimenter bias, social class bias, tests as sorters for schools and society) and the difficulties that ensue when the scholar enters the arena of public policy. The thesis is offered that the hearing given to social evidence and issues depends on the times and the audience, with…

Ethnic, racial, and religious discrimination in selective college admissions was commonplace in the 1920's, but it is doubtful that the College Board's 1926 innovation, the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), was developed to be used as an instrument of prejudice. By 1926, the use of quotas by elite colleges had made discrimination in admissions…

Deficiency theories of racial inequality are basically inadequate in explaining observed racial differences between groups. Nonetheless, throughout the history of our country, both political leaders and prominent educators have propounded the notion that the inferior social status of blacks is due to some inherent deficiency in their make-up.…

Briefly describes the teaching method used in an outdoor education program at the Frederick County (Maryland) Outdoor School. (PEB)

In this study an effort was made to determine the effects upon learning of subclinical degrees of nutritional stress in an urban black ghetto. The study population index and control groups were selected from healthy babies born between 1964 and 1966 in Kansas City, Kansas. In the first part of the study, newborn anthropometric measurements and…