A longitudinal study explored high school completion among African Americans. Male and female high school students aged 14 to 17 (N ϭ 166) completed a theory of planned behavior (I. Ajzen, 1991) questionnaire early in their 2nd year. Intentions to complete the year were accurately predicted from attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control (R ϭ .71; p Ͻ .01). Attitudes were related to beliefs about short-and long-term consequences; subjective norms reflected perceived expectations of family, teachers, and friends; and control considerations included requisite academic abilities, conflict with peers and teachers, and distracting life conditions. Intentions and, to a lesser extent, perceived behavioral control, predicted graduation almost 3 years later (R ϭ .50; p Ͻ .01). The findings indicate opportunities for early interventions.
The practice of rehabilitation counselors has been affected by significant changes in rehabilitation counseling practice settings and service delivery systems, evolving federal legislative mandates, and the licensure movement in the field of counseling. The purpose of this study was to identify and examine the major knowledge domains and job functions required for rehabilitation counseling practice in today's rapidly changing practice environment. Results revealed seven job functions (vocational counseling and consultation, counseling intervention, community-based rehabilitation service activities, case management, applied research, assessment, and professional advocacy) and six knowledge domains (career counseling, assessment, and consultation; counseling theories, techniques, and applications; rehabilitation services and resources; case and caseload management; health care and disability systems; and medical, functional, and environmental implications of disability). Participants' ratings of the importance of job functions and knowledge domains and implications for practice are also discussed.
Choosing the most appropriate method to handle missing data during analyses is one of the most challenging decisions confronting researchers. Often, missing values are just ignored rather than replaced with a reliable imputation method. Six methods of data imputation were used to replace missing data from two data sets of varying sizes; this article examines the results. Each imputation method is defined, and the pros and cons of its use in social science research are identified. The authors discuss comparisons of descriptive measures and multivariate analyses with the imputed variables and the results of a timed study to determine how long it took to use each imputation method on first and subsequent use. Implications for social work research are suggested.
An examination of social cognitive career theory (SCCT; R. W. Lent, S. D. Brown, & G. Hackett, 1994, 2000) factors contributing to the college expectations of high school students (N = 87) in rural Appalachia was conducted. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed support for the role of SCCT variables in predicting expectations to attend college. Specifically, the SCCT variables of perceptions of parental support and self‐efficacy beliefs independently predicted Appalachian youth's expectations to attend college. Results are discussed in relation to SCCT, and implications for counseling and future research are presented.
There is increasing divergence in the academic outcomes of African American males and females. By most accounts, males are falling behind their female peers educationally as African American females are graduating from high schools at higher rates and are going on to college and graduate school in greater numbers. Some have suggested that school completion and performance is associated with how students feel about themselves. The purpose of this study was to explore gender differences in the relationship between self-perceptions and two academic outcomes among a sample of 243 African American high school sophomores. The results suggest that, overall; females are more favorably oriented toward high school completion. Both male and female students with more positive self-perceptions have stronger intentions to complete the current year of high school. Higher grade point averages were more strongly associated with greater self-efficacy for females than for males. Given these findings, increased attention to educational programming, societal messages and future research is warranted.
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