This study investigates (1) whether infants in a day-care setting exhibit sexual preferences in the choice of a playmate, and (2) whether males exhibit more overt acts in play than do females. Eight male and eight female infants, attending a day-care center, paired by age (ages twelve to twenty-four months), were selected as subjects. Each of the sixteen children was observed for a ten-minute period on four separate days, over a two-week period, a total of forty minutes' observation time per child. No significant differences were found between male and female infants involving the preference of the sex of a playmate, or between male and female overt behaviors.

Although most research has focused on adults, studies indicate that children also experience detrimental psychological effects as the result of natural disasters. The purpose of the present study was to determine if the tornado which struck Wichita Falls,, Texas, on April 10, 1979, had any negative effects on the academic performance or social behavior of school children. Three groups of students were studied: (a) victims of the tornado who suffered a significant loss, (b) observers of the disaster who did not suffer a significant loss, and (c) newcomers who arrived after the disaster. Achievement test scores, grades, and attendance over a 4-year period were studied. The overall results do not indicate significant differences among the three groups.

A comparison of contingent word and phonics drilling exercises on oral reading errors was made and the effects of a work skipping contingency on reading comprehension were examined. Five learning disabled elementary school children served as subjects. Reading comprehension increased from 30 to 50% over baseline, while subjects progressed an average of two years through a reading series. Subjects responded differentially to the two drills on oral reading errors, but the combined effects of the drills produced a 50% average reduction in errors. Pre- and post-tests of reading achievement showed increases in reading grade levels ranging from .8 to 1.5 years during the 10 week, 30 session study. Results supported the efficacy of a behavioral approach to reading remediation.

Twenty-one special education children failing to persist after failure on arithmetic problems were given 15 days of treatment in three arithmetic training programs, equivalent in all respects except that success experiences occurred either 46.2%, 76.9%, or 100% of the time. Following training, children in both the 46.2% and 100% reinforcement, groups continued to show serious performance deterioration following failure, while children in the 76.9% group showed marked improvement. An inventory measuring attributions to failure before and after training indicated that the 76.9% reinforcement group showed significantly greater tendency to attribute failure to lack of effort than did either of the other two groups.

In Texas, placement of educable mentally retarded (EMR) students has required three factors-- intellectual assessment, educational appraisal, and adaptive behavior. This study examined 28 reclassified EMR students to determine which assessment factor is least stable in defining EMR and to determine significance of change in assessment scores. Data were secured from school records. Type of intellectual assessment test used varied greatly and was found to be the most inconsistent placement factor. However, educational appraisal scores contributed to over half the reclassifications. Adaptive behavior did not contribute to any reclassification. Due to limited sampling and variety of assessment tests, significance of change in scores was not determined. Generally, on retest,performance IQ scores were elevated while verbal IQ scores remained the same.