The accuracy of teacher reports in the identification of middle school students with depressive symptomatology

This investigation examined the ability of teachers to identify depressive characteristics among middle school students. Participants were 356 students and 52 teachers. Teachers' perceptions of students' depressive characteristics were obtained via Likert ratings and nominations of students the teachers judged to be depressed. The depressive status of students was evaluated with a multiple‐gating procedure using the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale (Reynolds, 1987) as an initial measure and the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, Edition IV as a final measure. A correlation of .22 (p < .001) was obtained between teachers' ratings of student depression and students' self‐reported depressed moods. Further analyses examined teachers' ability to identify high‐depression students, as well as the impact of teacher and student variables on teachers' ability to discern students' depressed moods. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 41: 379–389, 2004.     

Cumulative and Differential Effects of Early Child Care and Middle Childhood Out-of-School Time on Adolescent Functioning

Effects associated with early child care and out-of-school time (OST) during middle childhood were examined in a large sample of U.S. adolescents (N = 958). Both higher quality early child care AND more epochs of organized activities (afterschool programs and extracurricular activities) during middle childhood were linked to higher academic achievement at age 15. Differential associations were found in the behavioral domain. Higher quality early child care was associated with fewer externalizing problems, whereas more hours of early child care was linked to greater impulsivity. More epochs of organized activities was associated with greater social confidence. Relations between early child care and adolescent outcomes were not mediated or moderated by OST arrangements in middle childhood, consistent with independent, additive relations of these nonfamilial settings.     

Factors Affecting the Adoption of an Internet-Based Sales Presence for Small Businesses

The Internet has doubled in size every year in recent years and now spans the globe, facilitating the exchange of all matter of digital data. Recent development has been categorized by an explosion in new commercial activity. Despite overwhelming coverage in the popular press, relatively little is understood regarding the impact the Internet is having on firms that use this medium to facilitate commerce. Even less is understood about the impact on small enterprises-the largest segment of U.S., Japanese, and Western European businesses. This article reports the results of an exploratory study examining critical issues surrounding the use of the Internet in emerging enterprises. The survey (1) describes how small businesses develop and use their on-line sales presence, (2) explores factors that motivate firms to invest in electronic commerce, (3) assesses the importance of the expected benefits of an on-line sales presence on the decision to go on-line, and (4) examines some of the barriers that prevent small businesses from further developing their on-line presence.     

Child care and family processes: Bi-directional relations between child care quality,home environments,and maternal depression

The current study examined whether within-family changes in child care quality and quantity predicted subsequent changes in home environment quality and maternal depression across early childhood (6 to 54 months of age). Data were drawn from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (n = 1239; 77% White; 48% female; data collection from 1991 to 1996), and were analyzed using Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Models. Within-family increases in child care quality predicted modest increases in home environment quality (β = .13–.17). These effects were most robust from child age 6 to 15 months. Increases in child care quality produced small, statistically non-significant, reductions in depression. Time-specific increases in child care quantity were not consistently predictive of either outcome.