The effects of gender‐role expectations upon perceptions of communicative competence

Several researchers have proposed that power, rather than gender, accounts for women using more powerless language than men. The present study examined the specific interaction context of bargaining and compared power with gender as potential predictors of the use of threats, one particular form of powerful language. Grounded in an interactional/social exchange view of power as dependence in social transactions, this study represented a marked departure from past studies of gender‐based language. The results largely supported power rather than gender as the best predictor of the use of powerful language in an interactional context involving bargaining.     

Childhood adversity, poly-substance use, and disordered eating in adolescent Latinas: mediated and indirect paths in a community sample

OBJECTIVE: Although many studies have identified associations between childhood maltreatment and later substance use and disordered eating, few have examined causal or explanatory pathways, and whether victim characteristics predict the development of one versus the other of these outcomes remains uninvestigated. Furthermore, relatively little childhood maltreatment research has examined Latino samples. To address these gaps, this study examined among Latina adolescents the effects of sexual abuse, physical/emotional abuse, neglect, disconnection from family, and parental alcohol problems on poly-substance use and disordered eating, and whether five individual characteristics explain or differentiate these outcomes. METHOD: Data from a community sample of 361 Latina adolescents were analyzed using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: Physical/emotional abuse predicted poly-substance use and weight concerns, and these associations were mediated by impaired current attachment. Disconnection from family predicted bulimic behaviors, and this association was mediated by dysphoria. One indirect path also emerged: Disconnection from family predicted low social conformity, and low social conformity predicted poly-substance use. Childhood sexual abuse did not uniquely predict any adverse outcome or individual characteristic examined. CONCLUSIONS: Dysphoria and impaired current attachment appear to play important roles in the development of substance use and disordered eating in Latina adolescents when physical/emotional abuse or disconnection from family predicts these outcomes. Dysphoria and low social conformity may differentiate the development of bulimic behaviors and poly-substance use, respectively, when family disconnection predicts these outcomes.     

AECT and NCATE

AECT is a committed partner with NCATE in its belief that every child in America has the right to be taught by a well-prepared, qualified teacher. AECT, always a strong proponent of accreditation and licensure, has been a strong ally and supporter of NCATE for over thirty years. In recent action, AECT’s Board of Directors reaffirmed its commitment to, partnership with, and acknowledgement of NCATE as the national organization that authorizes the professional accreditation programs that produce America’s teachers and other education specialists. We call upon all such programs to seek national accreditation     

Conceptualising and measuring student engagement through the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE): a critique

Student engagement has rapidly developed a central place in the quality agenda of Australian universities since the introduction of the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE). The AUSSE is based on one developed in the USA. The main arguments given for adopting this survey in Australia are that it provides a valid instrument for measuring engagement and that it enables international comparisons. However, the survey instrument and scales have been adopted with little scrutiny of these arguments. This paper examines these arguments by considering different perspectives of engagement, examining the importance of contextual differences and evaluating the AUSSE engagement scales in the light of both. The paper concludes that the AUSSE results should be used by universities and policy‐makers with caution.