This investigation emphasized relationships between adjustment level in the intermediate grades and measures that differentiated it, or were related to it. Special attention was devoted to sex differences that might help account for the higher incidence of disturbance and school difficulty encountered by boys. Strong emphasis was given to investigating the postulation that physical inability to meet early school demands will be a frequent cause of failure and frustration, which might, in turn, precipitate a cycle of reading retardation and general underachievement.

The purpose of this study was to compare a group of successful and unsuccessful pupils who were in the fifth and sixth grades. It was the purpose to make comparisons between these two groups in terms of (1) school achievement, (2) mental ability, (3) personality, (i|) pupils as perceived by teachers and peers, (5) pupils' perceptions of teacher and school, (6) self perception, (7) school attendance, and (8) socioeconomic status.

Depressive symptomology was examined in this study as a function of conflict and intimate support with parents, friends, and siblings among a non-clinical sample of 223 predominately white sixth-grade early adolescents. Moreover, sixth-graders' depressive symptomology was examined as a function of conflict management self-efficacy and intimate support self-efficacy. The purpose of the present study was twofold: 1) to explore the effects of intimate support and conflict in family and friend relationships on sixth-grade early adolescent depressive symptomology, 2) to determine whether poor conflict management skills self-efficacy and poor intimate support self-efficacy are linked with depressive symptomology in sixth-grade early adolescents. Friend relationship qualities had little impact on depression in sixth-graders. However, the presence of conflict and deficits in family intimate support, especially from parents, was associated with increased depression. Increased levels of depression also corresponded with lower ratings of conflict management self-efficacy and intimate support self-efficacy. Moreover, relationship difficulties combined with self-efficacy deficits to affect depression.

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Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

A solid understanding of basic mathematics is essential for many practical, everyday tasks and good mathematical skills are increasingly necessary in the workplace. For some, however, mathematics can evoke an adverse emotional reaction, increasingly recognised in both psychology and education as 'Mathematics Anxiety' (MA); nationally funded projects are currently undertaking research in this area. Studies show that MA can develop in early childhood and increase in intensity with age; this emphasises the importance of early intervention and educational psychologists are well-placed to promote and support this. Paper One details a systematic literature review evaluating the impact and effectiveness of interventions on the reduction of MA in school-aged children. Nine studies, published between 2010 and 2017, met inclusion criteria and were assessed using quality frameworks. Findings indicated that MA might be amenable to intervention in children aged between seven and eighteen years; potential factors contributing to effective amelioration were identified and discussed. In Paper Two, the relationship between MA and working memory (WM) is highlighted and explored. Having established a possible bi-directional relationship, a quasi-experimental, empirical study aimed to assess the potential benefits of WM training for reducing MA. A comparison group completed activities encompassing many of the potentially effective factors identified in Paper One. 50 children, aged between eight and nine years, participated in six-week long interventions. MA was measured through self-report and qualitative questionnaires; data were analysed quantitatively (using descriptive and inferential statistics) or qualitatively (using content analysis) respectively. Findings question the validity of self-report measures of MA in this age group and implications for effective intervention are considered. Paper Three provides an overview of the concepts of evidence-based practice and practice-based research in addition to considering current literature in relation to effective dissemination of research. Implications resulting from the current research are discussed alongside the proposed dissemination strategy.

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