The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a one-semester career decision-making course, implemented using the Exploring Career Decision-making materials developed by the Appalachia Educational Laboratory, on the career maturity and knowledge of career concepts of tenth grade non-college bound students.;The study was implemented at Denbigh High School in Newport News, Virginia. Denbigh is a four-year comprehensive high school with a total enrollment of 2100 students. The subjects for the study were 47 non-college bound tenth grade students who had just completed the one-semester career decision-making course and 50 non-college bound tenth grade students who were just beginning the one-semester career decision-making course.;The Career Maturity Inventory (Crites, 1978) and the pre/post test of the Exploring Career Decision-making Course Assessment Package (Appalachia Educational Laboratory, in press) were administered to both groups--those who had just completed the course and those who were just beginning the course. The same tests were administered to the second group again after they had completed the course.;An analysis of the test data produced the following results: (1) There was a significant difference between the career maturity scores of students who had just completed the career decision-making course and those who were just beginning the course. (2) There was no difference between the career maturity scores of the same two groups of students when both groups had completed the career decision-making course. (3) There was a significant difference between the scores on the pre/post test of the Exploring Career Decision-making Course Assessment Package of students who had just completed the career decision-making course and those who were just beginning the course. (4) There was no difference between the scores on the pre/post test of the Exploring Career Decision-making Course Assessment Package of the same two groups of students when both groups had completed the career decision-making course.

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The purpose of this descriptive study was to investigate the relationship between diploma status, disability status, family configuration, socio-economic status, IQ function, race, participation in a career development program coordinated by the school counselor, and post-secondary educational plans among students with learning disabilities. A further purpose of this study was to assess the educational experiences of students with learning disabilities relative to their post-secondary educational outcomes. to explore these questions, this study used a constructionist theoretical framework as a implemented in Social Cognitive Career Theory. The participants for this study included high school graduates from the years 2001 through 2007 from a rural high school in the southeastern United States. The majority of participants included students who were economically disadvantaged, African-Americans, and first-generation college students. Results indicated that a career development program coordinated by the school counselor made a significant difference in post-secondary educational plans of students with learning disabilities included in the study. Qualitative results based on student interviews revealed perceived barriers, strategies for coping with a stigmatized identity, preferred teacher attributes, and the importance of a supportive and positive educational infrastructure for building self-efficacy and increasing the likelihood of post-secondary educational planning of students with learning disabilities.

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The purpose of this study was to investigate differences, if any, in the psychological characteristics of separated and/or divorced non-custodial fathers involved in child custody litigation. Three groups of fathers were investigated and delineated by length of time involved in litigation. Psychological characteristics examined included self-concept, affective states, depression, locus of control, and parental attitudes of confidence, causation, acceptance, understanding, and trust.;The sample of the population used in this study was 49 volunteers obtained from such sources as counselors, attorneys, and support and advocacy groups.;The specific variables proposed were investigated using discriminant function analysis with the direct method. No significant discriminant function was derived on any of the variables as indicated by chi-square (x{dollar}\sp2{dollar} {dollar}\{lcub}{dollar}18{dollar}\{rcub}{dollar}, 10.6, p {dollar}>{dollar}.05).;The results of this study suggest that litigating and non-litigating non-custodial fathers are much healthier than current literature based on observation, and not empirical data, suggests.;Further study is needed on non-custodial fathers and their ability to nurture. In addition, studies concerning loss and the effects of loss for non-custodial fathers is also needed. There is such a paucity of empirical data on non-custodial fathers that any study conducted on this group could only add to our knowledge of these parents.

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate the impact of the AIDS crisis on gay men relative to self-concept, intimacy, and sexual behavior changes. Additionally, this research examined the sources, amount, and accuracy of AIDS information currently available to gay men in a middle-sized, urban area.;The sample for the study consisted entirely of adult, self-identified gay men who were anonymous volunteers recruited through a networking process. The research design for this status study was a within group comparison which utilized non-probability, purposive sampling procedures.;It was concluded that gay men, participating in this study, utilize a wide variety of mainstream and gay oriented information sources and that they have extensive and accurate information on AIDS. It was concluded also that while gay men's self-concepts and personal adjustment have not been significantly affected by the AIDS crisis, intimacy levels have increased and sexual behavior changes have occurred for a large majority of the sample. The investigation identified further a significant relationship between accuracy of AIDS knowledge and the extent of change in sexual practices.;Further study is needed in this area making use of a more diverse sample so as to increase the external validity of the study's findings. Additionally, the possibility of homophobia as perceived by gay men relative to family, church, and professional service providers needs to be explored. Finally, the effect of the AIDS crisis on gay male relationships merits close examination.

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