The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of self-efficacy on academic success of first-generation college sophomore students. The participants in the study consisted of college sophomores from 5 of the 23 California State University campuses. An online College Self-Efficacy Inventory was employed to measure participants’ self-efficacy levels. The study explored four areas: the relationship between self-efficacy scores and academic success as defined by GPA and persistence rates, the academic success and persistence rates between first-generation and second-and-beyond-generation college sophomore students, the effects of the demographic factors of gender and ethnicity on self-efficacy, and the relationship between institution size and self-efficacy. Findings show that self-efficacy beliefs affect GPA and persistence rates of sophomore students and second-generation college sophomores outperform their first-generation peers.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the violation of the assumption of independence when combining correlation coefficients in a meta-analysis. In this Monte Carlo simulation the following four parameters were used with the values specified: N-the sample size within a study (20, 50, 100), p-the number of predictors (1, 2, 3, 5), rho( i)-the population intercorrelation among predictors (0, .3, .7), rho( p)-the population correlation between predictors and criterion (0, .3, .7). When cnly one predictor was used or when the intercorrelation among predictors equaled zero, the assumption of independence was not violated. The assumption of independence was violated when more than one predictor with an intercorrelation exceeding zero were used. Therefore, rho( i) the index of nonindependence was the main parameter of interest. For both r's and Fisher's z's, the means, medians, and standard deviations showed no discernible change over levels of rho( i) or p, but the precision of estimation of the expected values improved as N increased. The 90%, 95%, and 99% confidence intervals for both r's and Fisher's z's showed no change over levels of rho( i) or p, but the intervals narrowed as N increased.

This study explored the counselling self-efficacy of students in a counsellor education programme, in regard to age, gender, and ethnicity characteristics. To assess counselling self-efficacy, the Counselling Self-Estimate Inventory (COSE) of Larson et al. (Counsellor Education & Supervision 41: 120–130, 1992) was administered at the end of a semester to counselling students engaged in different stages of a counsellor training program. No significant differences were found in regard to gender and age-group categories, but significant differences were found among ethnic groups. It was found that Asian and White students generally had similar and also lower counselling self-efficacy means than the other ethnic groups in the sample in regard to several counselling-specific categories. Implications for counsellor educators in training counselling students of diverse characteristics are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to assess differences in physical activity (PA) among university employees with and without a formal health promotion program. Three state university campuses without health promotion programs and four campuses with a program participated in this study. PA participation was assessed via survey to all campus employees. PA was compared for those with (n=426) and without a program (n=371). The results indicated that there was no significant difference (p>.05) in the amount of vigorous PA days per week between those with (M=1.87 ± 2.29) and without a program (M=1.6 ± 1.87).There was no significant difference (p>.05) in the amount of moderate PA days per week between those with (M= 2.18 ± 2.43) and without a program (M= 1.88 ± 2.03). There were significant differences (p

Students (second through fifth graders) in 2 elementary school programs with very different structures in 2 districts were compared over 4 years on measures of social development. One program (EXS) emphasized an external motivational orientation with a focus on student accountability and a management system based on competition. The other (CDP program) focused on helping children develop an internal commitment to values and norms through a focus on developmental discipline, cooperative learning, helping activities, social understanding activities, and prosocial values. The 1 EXS school, 3 CDP program schools, and a group of 3 CDP comparison schools that were not implementing any specific intervention program, shared generally similar demographic characteristics. Over the 4 years students were assessed on a number of instruments including structured classroom observations, individual student interviews, large-group questionnaires, and small-group tasks (4-person and dyadic). In addition, teachers completed an extensive questionnaire related to program philosophy and implementation. Results showed the schools to be different in ways consistent with their intended philosophies, with the EXS classrooms using more external controls and the CDP classrooms using more prosocial activities. The EXS teachers described their school as more active, businesslike, traditional, creative, innovative, and supportive. Students in the EXS school demonstrated higher self-esteem than did the CDP students over a 2-year period. Motivation for prosocial behavior was more extrinsic in the EXS school and more intrinsic in the CDP program schools. Third-grade students' interpersonal behavior was more helpful and supportive in the CDP schools.Substantial knowledge has accumulated over the past few decades concerning the effects of school instructional approaches on students' academic achievement. Much less attention has been devoted to investi-