Parents struggle with kindergarten readiness, seeking advice from early childhood educators. The author offers suggestions for helping with this decision, along with definitions of readiness, accountability pressures, and "redshirting." The article compares maturationist assumptions with current research, concluding that delaying kindergarten…

Although previous findings have shown that parents react intensely to the initial diagnosis of their child's disability, studies focused on long-term outcomes and adjustment are needed. We interviewed 21 mothers whose adolescent or young adult was diagnosed with Down syndrome or fragile X syndrome. Qualitative analysis of data focused on the…

The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 (PL 96-272) provided major federal initiatives to reform the state child welfare system. The goals of the act were to keep families together by providing them with services and to find permanent adoptive homes for children who could not be reunited with their parents. This report examines the…

This book contains a collection of 14 original essays. The purpose of the book is to inform teachers, librarians, and other professionals working with young people about aspects of African-American literature and to stimulate further thinking about this literature. After an introduction, chapters in the book are: (1) "African-American Young…

Kentucky's PACE program, which was designed to provide adult basic education and parenting skills training for parents, early childhood education for children, and parent-child interaction and learning, lacks proof for the validity of its theoretical base and service model. Questions that need to be resolved before widespread replication of the…

This research describes sex roles and divisions of labor observed in families of origin by contemporary Japanese (n=1,000) and contemporary preferences for division or sharing of family tasks. It then compares these preferences to determine whether significant differences exist between men and women in contemporary Japan. For their present and…

A diagnosis of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has both a physical and psychosocial impact that require substantial support. Relating to the families of origin concerning an AIDS diagnosis is a difficult task which sometimes results in rejection and sometimes results in support. In this study subjects (N=32) with AIDS described their…

A 2-year study examined the leisure reading of 60 and other language arts instruction in elementary school classrooms in west Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, led to the conclusion that many school practices were based upon assumptions of the out-of-school lives of students that were of questionable accuracy. Consequently, the researchers were asked to…

The report presents findings from interviews with 10 families with children (4-19 years old) with severe mental retardation and multiple disabilities regarding the need for technical aids and adaptations in their homes. The following areas are addressed and examples of solutions proposed: hygienic aids (hot water adaptations, travel adaptations,…

A college of veterinary medicine in a large state university compared its male and female students on the influences on their career choice, including attitudes of family and school personnel, and students' academic experiences, gender-role expectations and conflicts, attitudes regarding professional dedication and competence, and their need for…

An overview is provided of societal events and factors contributing to social change and how these relate to leisure behavior patterns. It is primarily addressed to students in leisure studies and park management curricula in community recreation, programming, and administration courses. The book is divided into three parts: Section I includes…

This paper discusses a study undertaken to determine the influence of Catholic parents on the prayer-related religious behavior of their adolescent children from 1963 to 1974. Frequency of prayer was selected as a measure of religious behavior because, while it is a traditional behavior which indicates the intensity of one's religious belief, it…

This report of President Carter's Commission for A National Agenda for the Eighties discusses the dynamics of American society and world affairs that they believe will determine events in the 1980s. The analytical report of the Commission was accomplished by 45 Americans, a bipartisan group representing business and labor, science and the…

The psychological treatment of rape victims is complicated due to the nature of the crime; the trauma which may occur in four main areas of the victim's life (social, emotional, physical and sexual); community agency involvement and treatment, if any; and the societal attitude that places the blame on the victim. Therapists, in treating rape…

Chicanos comprise both the oldest and newest minority in the United States with the largest number being second and third generation. They are characterized by great intra-group diversity along generational, locational, socioeconomic, and acculturational lines. There is also evidence of increasing differentiation in social relations with…