Academic Support Services and Career Decision‐Making Self‐Efficacy in Student Athletes

This study examined the relationship between evaluations of academic support services and student athletes’ career decision‐making self‐efficacy. One hundred and fifty‐eight NCAA athletes (68% male) from 11 Division I teams completed measures of satisfaction with their academic support services, career decision‐making self‐efficacy, general self‐efficacy, and locus of control. Results indicated that evaluations of academic support services were positively related to levels of career decision‐making self‐efficacy. In addition, this relationship was moderated such that student athletes with lower levels of general self‐efficacy and internal locus of control benefited more from positive experiences with academic support services. Limitations and implications are discussed.     

College Students' Attitudes toward Shared Responsibility in Decisions about Abortion: Implications for Counseling

Abstract

College students' (112 males and 152 females) perceptions of the extent to which males should share in abortion decision making in seven situations of unplanned pregnancy were surveyed by questionnaire. Associations between gender, religious preference, level of religious activity, and students' attitudes toward extent of shared responsibility for abortion decision making were compared. Results indicate that many male students are more willing to assume decision-making responsibility than females, in some situations, are willing to allow.     

Urban areas may serve as habitat and corridors for dry-adapted,heat tolerant species; an example from ants

We collected ants from six urban and one forest land-use types in Raleigh, NC to examine the effects of urbanization on species richness and assemblage composition. Since urban areas are warmer (i.e., heat island effect) we also tested if cities were inhabited by species from warmer/drier environments. Species richness was lower in industrial areas relative to other urban and natural environments. There are two distinct ant assemblages; 1) areas with thick canopy cover, and 2) more disturbed open urban areas. Native ant assemblages in open environments have more southwestern (i.e., warmer/drier) distributions than forest assemblages. High native species richness suggests that urban environments may allow species to persist that are disappearing from natural habitat fragments. The subset of species adapted to warmer/drier environments indicates that urban areas may facilitate the movement of some species. This suggests that urban adapted ants may be particularly successful at tracking future climate change.     

Children's Perspectives on Their Relationships With Grandparents Following Parental Separation: A Longitudinal Study

Following parental separation, children's closeness to grandparents has been reported to be linked to their family situation and differences in adjustment. This relationship has not been investigated longitudinally. This study investigated children's relationships with grandparents over time in different family settings, and associations with intergenerational relationships. Data from 385 children, with longitudinal analyses on 140, were collected at two time points over a five‐year period. Associations between closeness of the child–grandparent relationship and adjustment were not found at the later time point. There was a mean drop in frequency of contact over time, but not in closeness. However, there was stability of individual differences in both frequency of contact and closeness; closeness to the maternal grandmother was particularly stable for children living with a single mother. Intergenerational links were found with the mother's own childhood experiences, particularly in single‐mother families. Following parental separation, the matrifocal bias in kinship patterns was accentuated.