This study concerned standardization and refinement of an instrument to measure assertiveness in adolescents, and use of that instrument to compare alternative-school students with each other and with students in a traditional school. Most instruments measuring assertiveness are normed on white adult populations. Of the few designed for adolescents, only the Adolescent Assertiveness Discrimination Test provides a tripartite breakdown of subject responses into aggressive, passive, and assertive responses. The test is unpublished and is in the process of standardization and refinement. Multiple linear regression procedures were used to test the three hypotheses. Each hypothesis was tested four times on different groups (alternative versus traditional school students; dropouts versus disciplinary referrals) and on different instruments (AADT; A Scale). Hypothesis 1, which stated that demographic variables, and their interactions with school group, were related to assertiveness, was not supported. Hypothesis 2, which stated that the demographic variables were related to assertiveness, was not supported. Investigations into which of the demographic variables singly contributed to assertiveness showed that gender was significant. Females scored higher on the AADT and males scored higher on the A Scale. Hypothesis 3, which stated that school group was related to assertiveness, was supported on all comparisons except between …

The purpose of this study is to compare the drug abusing adolescent, along with his family, with a non-drug abusing adolescent and his family by (l) a comparison of the adolescents on measures of self esteem and perceived parental behavior, (2) a comparison of the parents of drug abusing adolescents with the parents of non-drug abusing adolescents on child-rearing attitudes and on distortion in perceived parental behavior, and (3) an identification of the salient factors contributing to the prediction of drug-using behavior in adolescents. The adolescent's self esteem, his perception of parental behavior, the ability of the parents to predict the child's parental perceptions, and the professed parental attitudes toward confidence and responsibility in child-rearing, all combine to suggest a set of factors differentiating the drug abusing adolescent from the non-drug abusing adolescent.

The problem of this study was to determine the perceived needs of selected Texas public school administrators in the areas of competence addressed in the PEEL (Performance Evaluation of the Educational Leader) definition of administrative competence. The conclusions included the following: 1. Between levels of administrative activity, differences were indicated in the high indexes of perceived need on the competency statements between the superintendency-level staff members (superintendent and his advisory staff who hold "line" positions) and the building-level administrators (elementary principals, junior high principals, and senior high principals). 2. Superintendency-level staff members tend to exhibit higher perceived needs on the competency statements relating to instruction and student-oriented responsibilities than do building-level administrators. 3. The size of a school district in which an administrator is employed, the number of years that an administrator has in educational administration, and the highest degree earned by an administrator cause no significant differences to appear in the manner in which an administrator assesses his perceived need on a particular competency statement.

The purpose of this study is to develop a set of behavioral objectives for the Second Year Chemistry Course in Kuwait Secondary Schools. This set of behavioral objectives will help school teachers to choose their activities, teaching methods, questions, and evaluation procedures; it will be useful in the preparation and use of behavioral objectives in their other courses. As a conclusion, the Chemical Education Material Study (CHEMS) appears more beneficial than the traditional chemistry course by its effect on student achievement and the stimulation of the cognitive abilities such as application and analysis processes. The present Kuwaiti chemistry course appears more organized than previous courses and the movement is toward the modern approach. Use of behavioral objectives appears more effective than the use of general objectives (or no objectives) in the area of students' achievements and attitudes, in the area of course content, and organization of complex cognitive processes. Recommendations for improvement of the Kuwaiti chemistry course and for further studies on behavioral objectives are listed.

The study has a twofold purpose. The first is to compare the priority order of the seven fundamental areas of skill among the three sample groups, The second is to compare the differences between actual and ideal teacher performance in the seven fundamental skill areas. The conclusions are generalizable only to the population of Texas teacher educators, members of the Texas Science Supervisors Association and members of the Science Teachers Association of Texas, All of the groups had basic agreement as to the priority order of the science teacher competencies being demonstrated by teachers, The profession's success in educating teachers in the content areas is reflected by the priority of the rankings. The position of the science supervisors' ratings of teacher performance between teachers and teacher educators indicated that supervisors have the most accurate view of teacher performance, The least discrepancy among groups occurred in the ideal rating of teacher performance, indicating general agreement as to the level at which teachers should be demonstrating skills, The greatest discrepancy occurred in the identification of actual level of teacher performance.

The purposes of this study were to determine the perceptions selected school personnel had of public school teachers' fulfillment of the code of ethics for Texas educators, if these perceptions differed significantly, and if the code had any significant impact on teachers' behavior. The subjects consisted of board members, superintendents, principals and teachers within seven urban, fourteen suburban, and fifty rural Texas school districts. Subjects’ responses to an instrument derived from the Code of Ethics for Texas Educators provided the data for testing. The findings of this study included the following: 1. Board members perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to be slightly higher than did teachers and principals and significantly higher than did superintendents. 2. Superintendents perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to a lower degree than did the other subjects surveyed. 3. Subjects selected within urban and suburban school districts are in perceptual agreement concerning teachers' fulfillment of the code. 4. Rural board members perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to a slightly higher degree than did rural superintendents. 5. Urban teachers perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to a significantly higher degree than did suburban teachers. 6. The code of ethics was perceived as having low to …

The problem of this study was to examine the effect of reading preference on reading comprehension of low socioeconomic high school students. Subjects were 61 participants in the Upward Bound program at a major southwestern university; they represented urban high schools with high proportions of students of low socioeconomic status. Subjects completed cloze procedure reading passages in four categories: high preference independent level, high preference frustration level, non-expressed preference independent level, and non-expressed preference frustration level. From the results gathered, it was recommended (1) that reading ability assessments include measuring performance with high preference materials, (2) that instructional personnel ascertain and utilize student preferences as foundations for reading instruction, (3) that reading material not be withheld from students on the basis of difficulty, (4) that high preference reading materials be used in reading instruction by secondary reading and content area teachers, and (5) that school patrons be made aware of the value of free preference reading in reading skill development.

The purposes of this study were (1) to determine the immediate effects, if any, on marital adjustment of a marital enrichment program entitled Marital Skills Training. Program (MSTP); (2) to determine the residual effects, if any, on marital adjustment after MSTP had been terminated; and (3) to determine the differences, if any, in the effect on marital adjustment of an on-going group and extended session group using MSTP. Measures of marital communication and marital adjustment served as the dependent variables while the MSTP training served as the independent variable. Instruments used for data collection were the Marital Adjustment Test (Short Form), the Primary Communication Inventory, and the Semantic Differential. The study concluded that teaching marital communication skills in a conjoint couples' group in an on-going setting is an effective way to increase marital adjustment. However, the passage of time appears to be a necessary factor in integrating MSTP into behaviors which affect marital adjustment since the significant increase did not appear until five weeks following training and was found to exist only in the On-going training group.

The purposes of this study were (1) to determine if 4th grade students improve in computation efficiency being taught Chisanbop; (2) to determine if 4th grade students show an increase in application skill efficiency being taught Chisanbop; (3) to determine if 4th grade students show an increase in concept skill efficiency being taught Chisanbop; (4) to determine if 4th grade students show an increase in problem solving skill efficiency being taught Chisanbop; and (5) to determine if 4th grade students show an increase in composite skill efficiency being taught Chisanbop. The conclusions drawn from the findings of this study were that Chisanbop instruction assisted students in the experimental group in scoring significantly higher than students in the control group in application skill efficiency, concept skill efficiency, problem solving skill efficiency, and composite skill efficiency. Other indications are that Chisanbop instruction did not significantly affect students in the experimental group in regard to computational skills. In regard to the composite skills of the students in the upper one-third and the lower one-third of the experimental group, there were no statistically significant differences from their counterparts in the control group. In light of these findings, it is recommended that school districts utilize …

The problem this investigation considered was the effect of student evaluation feedback upon subsequent classroom behavior and attitudes of university faculty. The results of analysis of the data revealed that neither the amount of feedback, nor the time of semester the feedback was given produced any significant change in the teachers' self-evaluation. The discrepancies between students' evaluations and teacher's self-evaluation which were present also had no effect upon the teacher attitudes or classroom behaviors. Other variables that were without effect upon the teacher attitudes were number of years of teaching experience of the teacher, elective versus required course offerings, level of course, and academic department. These results refute much of the findings in current literature concerning the effects of various external consequences upon the attitudes of both teachers and students. However, the associated procedural difficulties require further explanation of the results. A possible explanation for the lack of significant results is detailed in the conclusion section. The reasons include procedural difficulties associated with external considerations which could not be controlled through experimentation; however, these processes have a large effect upon the final results.

The problem of this study was a comparison of female administrators' self-perceived leadership styles to those of their superordinates' perceptions in five major junior/community college districts in Texas. The population included 59 female administrators submitting biographical information with 53 of the 59 submitting information on their leadership styles. The leadership data were paired with 53 superordinates for comparison of the perceptions of each group. In conclusion both groups agreed on the leadership style exhibited most often by female administrators as being high relationship-low task. Even though the female administrators exhibited this dominant style, the majority of the women and their superiors agreed they could span the other styles in an effective manner.

An increasing number of empirical investigations have demonstrated that a wide variety of extra-legal factors are influential in the jury deliberation process and in the verdicts rendered. The purpose of this investigation was to determine if mock jurors possessing high levels of self-actualization would be more resistant to the biasing effects of the courtroom. One hundred eighty subjects were selected on the basis of their scores on the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI). Subjects were divided into two groups, those scoring within the high self-actualized range, and those scoring within the low self-actualized range. From this subject pool, thirty six-person juries were selected; ten high self-actualized simulated juries (HSA), ten mixed self-actualized simulated juries (MSA), composed of fifty percent high and fifty percent low self-actualized subjects, and ten low self-actualized simulated juries (LSA). Statistical analyses of the five hypotheses produced the following results. Hypothesis 1, HSA juries make more pertinent legal evidence remarks than LSA juries, was not supported. Hypothesis 2, HSA juries make more accurate legal evidence statements than LSA juries, was not supported. Hypothesis 3, HSA juries would render more relevant punishment than the LSA juries, was not supported. Hypothesis 4, HSA juries would require less deliberation time than …

The problem was to develop a model of thought within the basic structure provided by general or "point-set" topology. To do this, it was necessary to make four basic assumptions. It was assumed that each individual possesses more than the classical five senses and that for each of these there exists a category of sensory data. Also, it was assumed that the Cartesian product of these categories formed a set M of thought elements for each individual, and that certain subsets of M provide support for cogitation. The relation, function, continuous function, and homeomorphism, which are used to relate sets in topology, are discussed as a possible ramification of the model for communication. The global properties of the homeomorphism and continuous function present each as a viable support for strong and meaningful communication between thought spaces of individuals.

The problem of this study was to determine teachers' perceptions of their school organizational climate, to determine teachers' perceptions of their principal's leadership behavior, and to ascertain the relationships between teachers' perceptions of school organizational climate and principal's leadership behavior. The study had three major purposes. The first was to determine teachers' perceptions of their school organizational climate as measured by the Organizational Climate Description Questionnaire (OCDQ) across selected variables. The second was to determine teachers' perceptions of their principal's leadership behavior as measured by the Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire (LBDQ) across selected variables. The third was to ascertain whether significant relationships existed between teachers' perceptions of school organizational climate and their principal's leadership behavior. Based on the analyses of data, the conclusions could be drawn that: 1. The school organizational climates as perceived by secondary school teachers tended to fall into the closed end of the open-closed climate continuum. It is interesting to note that teachers with more years of teaching experience perceived their school organizational climates as being open. 2. All of the teachers in this study perceived their principal as an effective leader. 3. There was a significant relationship between organizational climate and principal's leadership behavior; however, …

The problem of this study concerns the effects of a parent group counseling procedure and an individual consultation procedure upon (1) the attitude of the parents, (2) the school-related behavior of the children, (3) the academic grades of the children, (4) the peer relations of the children, and (5) self-concept of the children. The results of this investigation indicated no significant differences in procedures for affecting behavior changes on the variables examined. Generally, parent group counseling appeared to generate more pervasive changes affecting multiple behaviors in their children than individual consultation with the parents.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the interaction of (1) the secondary school teacher's knowledge concerning both the problem of adolescent suicide and the potential for teacher intervention and (2) selected demographic variables on the dependent variables of the teacher's attitudes concerning both the problem of adolescent suicide and the potential for teacher intervention in order to develop a data base upon which to examine the prospects for realizing the intervention potential of secondary school teachers in the area of adolescent suicide. Findings indicate that there are significant differences in knowledge concerning the problem of adolescent suicide and the potential for teacher intervention as a function of particular demographics. Similarly, there are significant differences in attitude toward the problem of adolescent suicide and the potential for teacher intervention as a function of particular demographics. Findings further reveal that level of knowledge appears to be a significant contributing factor in the secondary school teacher's attitude as a function of selected demographics. Secondary school teachers appear to possess a low level of knowledge concerning both the problem of adolescent suicide and the potential for teacher intervention, and they exhibit a range of predominantly negative attitudes toward the problem of adolescent …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the personality characteristics associated with accuracy in person perception. The particular personality variables chosen (experience, intelligence, cognitive complexity, psychological mindedness, emotional stability, introversion, and empathic style) for investigation were those previously identified by Gordon Allport as being related to person perception. Both types of person perception (sensitivity to individual differences and sensitivity to group differences) were measured. The major findings of the study were the following: 1. The most capable judges of individual differences, in comparison with the least capable judges, were significantly more likely to have the following psychometric characteristics: higher IQ, more extraverted, more psychologically minded, more cognitively complex/flexible, and more empathic. Experientially, the most competent judges were likely to be older, older in age at first job, and have fewer siblings. In contrast to the least able judges, the most competent ones had resided in more different cities, traveled more, experienced more formal education, and were more likely employed in the helping professions. 2. The best judges of group differences, in comparison with the worst judges, were more likely female, older in age at first job, and higher scorers on Neuroticism. 3. Significant multiple linear regression equations were formed …

The problem of this study was to identify a minimum competency-testing framework for the state of Texas, based upon perceptions of superintendents of schools. Additionally, this study attempted to determine whether relationships existed between school district characteristics and the superintendents' perceptions of minimum competency testing. In summary, eight conclusions were reached with regard to minimum competency testing. Two implications have been presented which would direct the application of a minimum competency framework within the state of Texas. Finally, six recommendations have been made. Five recommendations dealt with additional studies, while one recommendation dealt with the Texas Education Agency's use of results from the five recommended studies.

This study investigated leisure interests and leisure participation of executives in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The Leisure Activities Blank and a questionnaire designed to collect demographic information were administered to twenty-five randomly selected executives. Five hypotheses were tested. Four were retained; one was rejected. Gold was found to be the favorite leisure interest of the respondents. They are currently engaged in eighteen leisure interests, and indicated a desire to participate in thirty-six leisure activities at some future time. Leisure interests which the respondents participated in during their past, or are currently engaged in, appear to be those they hope to continue in the future.

The purpose of this study was to investigate and describe the long-term effects of play therapy on social contacts, self-esteem, school-related behavior patterns, level of academic functioning, attitude toward school, and family relations. There were no significant differences between the group out of play therapy one to six years and the group out of play therapy six to ten years on social contact, self-esteem, school-related behavior patterns, or level of academic functioning. Statistically significant differences occurred at the .05 level of significance concerning the effects of time on home and family relations, with subjects in the six- to ten-year group perceiving more independence while parents in the one to six years group perceived more recreational activity occurring in the family. There were no significant differences between play therapy and non-play therapy children on social contact, self-esteem, school-related behavior patterns, or level of academic functioning. There were statistically significant differences at the .05 level of significance on home and family relations, with subjects one to six years out of play therapy perceiving more organization in their homes than their evaluation-only counterparts, while parents of the group one to six years out of play therapy perceived significantly more cohesion than did parents …

The purpose of this study was to determine if the addition of music and sound effects to recorded stories increased the comprehension and retention of information for fourth grade students. The data were analyzed by a two-factor analysis of variance, with repeated measures for both comprehension and retention tests, for the total population. Each reading level group was analyzed separately by an analysis of variance. Of eight hypotheses tested, six showed a significant difference. The conclusions drawn from this study indicated that the addition of music and sound effects 1) Increases the listening comprehension and retention of fourth grade students; 2) Is more effective for retention for students with a high reading level; and 3) Is more effective for initial listening comprehension for students with low reading level but the effect is not significant for retention.

This study investigated the effects of a short-term in-service training program for rehabilitation practitioners. Specifically, cognitive, attitudinal, and behavioral changes were measured. Also examined with respect to the observed changes were the effects of age, sex, education and other variables. Significant information gain was made by the participants of the training program in comparison with the control group. When the program participants reported their attitudes, no significant difference was found between them and the control group. Judging from the supervisors' ratings, the participants of the program seemed to benefit significantly in terms of information gained, attitudes changed, and placement behaviors exhibited. There was a significant positive correlation between the age of an individual and his or her positive attitude change. The higher the level of education of an individual, the more positive the attitude change that occurred, and the less the amount of dogmatism that was measured. Persons who had been trained in the nonhelping professions showed more positive attitude change than those who had been trained in the helping professions. The questionnaire, answered anonymously by the trainees, indicated that virtually all of them found the training program very worthwhile. When the trainees rated their own perceived change after the …

The basic purpose of this study was to investigate if placement in a cottage designated solely for juveniles involved in vocational training significantly improved the institutional adjustment and recidivism rate of institutionalized male juvenile delinquents. An additional purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of an involvement in a vocational training program on institutional and post release adjustment of institutionalized juvenile delinquents. Statistical analysis of the data supported the basic hypothesis that subjects who were involved in the vocational training, regardless of cottage placement, would adjust better to the institution. The two groups of vocational subjects had fewer admissions to the Discipline Cottage and a greater frequency of achievement of privilege-level status than did the group of subjects who did not receive vocational training. The hypothesis that vocational subjects who were housed in a separate cottage would adjust better to the institution than would the vocational subjects who were housed in the regular cottages was also supported. The vocational subjects who were housed separately had fewer escapes, fewer admissions to the Discipline Cottage, and a greater frequency of attainment of privilege-level status than either of the other two groups. The analysis also supported the hypothesis that recidivism rates …

The integrative potential of the division for student affairs was investigated in this study using as the basis for assessment the six determinants for effective integrative units delineated by Lawrence and Lorsch. A review of related literature indicated that three of five of the determinants were at least partially, if not substantially, met by the division for student affairs. Student affairs was found neither to have influence based upon competence within higher education institutions nor operate within a setting of high total organization influence. Analysis of the data indicated that confrontation was not the primary mode of conflict resolution utilized in the southwestern multiversity studied, but rather, the compromise mode was ranked first by upper- and middle-level managers. The sixth determinant, then, was not met. It appeared that since three of the determinants were met and three not met, the potential for student affairs acting as an integrative unit was limited. Other data gathered through questionnaires, interviews, and factor analysis in this investigation suggested that there was a wide disparity between the modes of conflict resolution actually used on campus and those perceived as desirable in handling disagreements. It was shown that the modes were viewed differently in the higher …