Adolescent pubertal status and affective family relationships: A multivariate assessment

This research attempted to more adequately dimensionalize the study of affective family relations during adolescent pubertal maturation by employing a multivariate approach. Fifty-one families responded to an assessment battery consisting of a series of questionnaires designed to measure affective relations between parents and their adolescent children. Families were classified into prepubertal, transpubertal, or postpubertal groups according to their modal response on pubertal status criteria. A stepwise discriminant analysis was performed to identify measures that maximize between groups differences. Based on this analysis, a correct classification rate of 70% was achieved for all families. The two significant discriminant functions that emerged indicate that differences in family relationships are due to the transformation of mother-adolescent and father-adolescent relations. The pattern of results replicate those of other researchers and provide elaborations concerning the affective nature of family relations during adolescence.Received his Ph.D. in Life-span Developmental Psychology from West Virginia University in 1984. Research interests in dialectical models of adolescent development.Received his Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas in 1979. Research interests in decision-making in adolescence and adulthood.     

Student teachers' perceptions of the identity formation process

Student teachers were asked to respond to profiles of various styles of dealing with adolescent identity issues. Student teachers responded most favorably to the profile indicating adolescent exploration of occupational and ideological alternatives (Moratorium) and least favorably to an apparent nonconcern with adolescent issues (Diffuse). Commitment to plans and beliefs with closedness to alternatives (Foreclosure) received intermediate evaluations. Consistent with Eriksonian notions, but at variance with empirical findings, the Moratorium style was rated highest in psychological health. Student teachers preferred the Moratorium-style individual as prospective students; the Diffuse-style one the least. Implications for teacher training and educational practice were examined, and areas of further research were outlined.Funding for this project was received from a grant by the Faculty of Education, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada.He received his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. Research interests include adolescent personality development and teacher training.His Ph.D. was received from the University of Oklahoma in Experimental Social Psychology. Current research interests include varied aspects of consumer behavior with focus upon the effects of credit card stimuli upon consumer behavior.He received his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. Research interests focus upon special education and learning disabilities.     

The nonpartisan ballot and the decline of American parties: A contextual effect?

The nonpartisan municipal ballot is one of several turn-of-the-century reforms intended to weaken political parties. Through its effects on individuals' political contexts and voting experiences, it might have contributed to the twentieth-century decline in public support for political parties. This paper tests this hypothesis with items available in the 1980 CPS presidential election survey augmented with a ballot form variable. There are no significant differences in measures of party support among residents of partisan and nonpartisan communities, and thus no measurable evidence that nonpartisan elections discouraged the public from supporting political parties.This is a revised version of a paper delivered at the XIII World Congress of the International Political Science Association, Paris, July 1985.     

The effect of some aspects of low temperature and radiation on the survival of Latheticus oryzae eggs

In an attempt to delay hatching without affecting their viability, the eggs ofLatheticus oryzae W. were subjected to cold treatment at 5° for varying periods and at different stages of their development. A small dose of 0.5 krad of gamma radiation was also given at each of those temperature treatments. Most of the eggs hatched at 30° following low-temperature exposures of 1 and 2 days. There was a significant decrease in hatch as the exposure period increased further (P<0.05). An egg exposure to 5° also led to an increase in egg period and the increase was nearly equal to the period of cold exposure. Radiation did not alter the situation.

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Zusammenfassung Kühllagerung ist eine der gebr?uchlichsten Methoden für die Aufbewahrung von Insekteneiern. Um die optimalen Bedingungen für eine Vorratshaltung zu bestimmen, wurden 0–1 d alte Eier vonL. oryzae Temperaturen von 5° w?hrend 1–7 d ausgesetzt, nachdem sie verschieden lange bei 30° gehalten waren. Eine kleine Dosis von 0.5 krad Gammabestrahlung wurde bei jeder Temperaturbehandlung ebenfalls gegeben. Alle Eiproben wurden nach den verschiedenen K?ltebehandlungen in 30° zurückgebracht und die Wirkung auf Schlüpfprozentsatz und Eidauer bestimmt. Die Eidauer nahm zu, wenn die Eier bei 5° gehalten wurden, was anzeigt, da? die Embryogenese bei 5° unterdrückt wurde. Die Lebensf?higkeit der Eier wurde nicht beeintr?chtigt bei einer 5°-Einwirkungsdauer von 2 d, nahm aber bei weiterer Verl?ngerung der Expositionsdauer ab. Nur etwa 37% der Eier schlüpften (44,1% der Kontrolleier) nach 7-t?giger K?ltebehandlung. Bestrahlung beeinflu?te weder das Schlüpfen noch die Entwicklungsdauer.

     

Sketches for a Democratic Utopia

I want to sketch the general shape of several new structures that would in my view provide stronger support for democracy than is provided by any existing society. I call these sketches for a democratic Utopia not because I would expect these structures to inaugurate a perfect democracy, whatever that might be, nor because they are beyond human reach. On the contrary the institutions I want to suggest are well within human reach. I call them Utopian only because I am not able to point with confidence to the historical forces that are likely to bring them about.
The structures I have in mind are designed to strengthen freedom and equality among citizens of democratic orders.     

An extension of Black's theorem on voting orders to the successive procedure

Duncan Black (1958) stated his voting order theorem — ‘the later any motion enters the voting order, the greater its chance of adoption’ — exclusively for the amendment procedure. Niemi and Gretlein's (1985) extension is similarly limited. Here we show that with a change in the focus from social preferences to individual preferences, both Black's theorem and that proved by Niemi and Gretlein apply as well to the successive procedure.     

Decentralized planning in Kenya

In 1983 the Government of Kenya embarked on an accelerated programme of decentralization known as ‘District Focus’. This exercise in devolution is aimed at promoting more effective and efficient use of scarce domestic resources through efforts to strengthen planning capacity at the district level, improve horizontal integration among operating ministry field agents, and expand authority to district heads of operating ministries for managing financial and procurement aspects of local project implementation. Given the importance of this initiative to the economic growth of Kenya and the current search for administrative reforms that could help accelerate rural development in Africa, District Focus merits close attention by development experts. This article reviews the historical background, content, and implementation progress of District Focus.     

Risk factors related to suicidal behavior among male and female adolescents

This study examined gender differences in self-reported suicidal behavior in relation to the risk factors of tobacco use, alcohol use, drug use, school misconduct, academic difficulties, home environment, sexual activity, and violence among seventh-through twelfth grade students (N=3461)in a northern Midwest school district. Data were gathered from the Survey Instrument of Attitude/Behavior administered in the school district during the spring of 1993. The dependent variables were suicidal activity and suicidal tendency. Stepwise forward regression ordered the independent factors in predicting suicidal activity and suicidal tendency for the male and female samples. The comparison of regression results revealed the following: (1) the independent factors accounted for more variance in male suicidal activity and tendency than in female suicidal activity and tendency; (2) as the level of suicidality increased, so did the frequency of violent behaviors among both genders; (3) leading predictors for suicidal activity were similar between gender; and (4) gender differences were displayed in predictors of suicidal tendency.Major interests include risk taking behaviors, youth suicide, and educator use of research.