OUR NATION IS PLAGUED WITH RURAL POVERTY EXTENDING THROUGH MOST AREAS OF OUR COUNTRY AND ENCOMPASSING SOME 14 MILLION RURAL PERSONS. THIS TOTAL NUMBER WOULD BE EVEN LARGER IF SO MANY RURAL PERSONS HAD NOT MIGRATED INTO THE URBAN AREAS OF OUR COUNTRY. THE RURAL POOR POPULATION IS CHARACTERIZED BY--LOW INCOME, A HIGHER UNEMPLOYMENT RATE (4 PERCENT…

The papers in this volume are concerned with rural development, with emphasis on the problems of low-income groups. Stephen McDonald explores economic factors in farm outmigration. Virgil Christian, Jr. and Adamantios Pepelasis discuss the extent and importance of economies of size in agriculture. Thomas Till analyzes the nature and extent of…

"Rural Sociology: A Field of Basic and Applied Research" was the theme of the 1977 annual meeting. Participants at the convention heard 50 reports in 14 sessions, as well as five special panels and two special sessions. Most of the papers, research reports and essays presented in the sessions are included in this document and serve as…

This report describes a group of demonstration projects for the provision of early childhood development services in 14 Texas communities (mostly rural) and evaluates their activities from a cost-benefit perspective. The 3-year state-funded program was designed to determine how well such projects could generate additional non-state funds from…

In order to measure the effectiveness of information leaflets, circular letters, and cartoon booklets in disseminating basic foods and nutrition information to low-income homemakers, a sample of 700 North Carolina homemakers involved in the Expanded Foods and Nutrition Education Program sponsored by the Agricultural Extension Service was divided…

A comprehensive look is taken at the rural-urban variation in extended familism among a segment of the population for which extended familism purportedly is especially salient: lower and working class black Americans. The study is guided by the general hypothesis that rurality/urbanism affects extended familism when nonecological variables are…

Conducted in Iowa and North Carolina, the experiment included 809 families randomly selected and assigned to a control group or to 1 of 5 experimental treatments. Eligibility required a family income at the experiment's beginning of less than l 1/2 times the official poverty line. Of the 809 families, 729 remained in the program for the entire 3…

The Child-to-Child (CtC) project involved school-age African children in monitoring younger children's weight and health (since much of the daily infant care in Africa is performed by preadolescents). CtC emphasizes local autonomy and is based on respect for children as morally responsible community members with a basic right to health and…

Explores the economic and demographic factors fueling rural homelessness, based on field research in scattered rural communities. Data were collected by interviewing low-income families and local service providers and from community agency and school records. Suggests strategies for preventing and responding to homelessness that would be…

This document presents a strategy that sets a direction for governments, industry, and training providers to address women's needs consistently as a priority in policy making, planning, resourcing, implementing, and monitoring vocational education and training (VET). Section 1 is an overview of Australia's National Women's Vocational Education and…

A Rand study develops a model concerning mothers in Peninsular Malaysia's three major ethnic groups (Malay, Chinese, Indian), investigating relationships between their early life experiences and their expectations for education levels of their children. The model examines three of the women's early life experiences that are governed by their…

The estimated three million United States migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families suffer from a variety of occupational hazards and ailments exacerbated by limited, or nonexistent, health care services. Although existing migrant and seasonal farmworker health data is incomplete, general statements can be made about the health risks…

Rural America and its schools (which encompass nearly two-thirds of the 15,600 school districts in the United States) face an incredible array of challenges. Changes in demographic, economic, and social conditions are creating a new rural America which is beset by many problems. Rural poverty does not appear to be diminishing and researchers…

The report provides information on the social situation, the family, and the educational system in Turkey. The social situation is discussed in terms of the history of the Turkish political system, forms of society and social stratification (including causes for migration of Turkish workers abroad), the linguistic situation, religions represented,…

A conference was held to discuss concerns in adult education for women, in India, where only 18 percent of the women, compared to 40 percent of the men, are literate. A major theme of the conference was motivation--how does one motivate women to attend literacy education? For what reasons should they become literate? Many women see no need or have…