Previous research has shown that early maturing girls at age 11 have lower subsequent physical activity at age 13 in comparison to later maturing girls. Possible reasons for this association have not been assessed. This study examines girls' psychological response to puberty and their enjoyment of physical activity as intermediary factors linking pubertal maturation and physical activity. Participants included 178 girls who were assessed at age 11, of whom 168 were reassessed at age 13. All participants were non-Hispanic white and resided in the U.S. Three measures of pubertal development were obtained at age 11 including Tanner breast stage, estradiol levels, and mothers' reports of girls' development on the Pubertal Development Scale (PDS). Measures of psychological well-being at ages 11 and 13 included depression, global self worth, perceived athletic competence, maturation fears, and body esteem. At age 13, girls' enjoyment of physical activity was assessed using the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale and their daily minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was assessed using objective monitoring. Structural Equation Modeling was used to assess direct and indirect pathways between pubertal development at age 11 and MVPA at age 13. In addition to a direct effect of pubertal development on MVPA, indirect effects were found for depression, global self worth and maturity fears controlling for covariates. In each instance, more advanced pubertal development at age 11 was associated with lower psychological well-being at age 13, which predicted lower enjoyment of physical activity at age 13 and in turn lower MVPA. Results from this study suggest that programs designed to increase physical activity among adolescent girls should address the self-consciousness and discontent that girls' experience with their bodies during puberty, particularly if they mature earlier than their peers, and identify activities or settings that make differences in body shape less conspicuous.

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Purpose: The objective of this study is to investigate and characterize principals’ backgrounds, individual and school level factors associated with leadership stability, and principal career paths and exit behaviors in Missouri. Method: In this study, the authors construct two data sets of practicing school principals in the state of Missouri: (a) one consisting of approximately 2,700 school principals across grade levels for each year from 1999 to 2006, and (b) one consisting of three cohorts of principals who were new to a given school in 1999, 2000, and 2001. With the first data set, the authors construct “stability” ratios identifying the amount of time a principal spent in any given school as a percentage of the total time that principal was in the data set. With the second data set, the authors create indicators of the time period at which a cohort member (a) left the principalship altogether (in Missouri), (b) made a first move to another school, or (c) made a second move to another school. Using the first data set, the authors estimate truncated regression models to identify the relationship between principal characteristics, school context, and principal stability. Using the second data set, they estimate Cox Proportional Hazard models to determine the relationship between principal characteristics, school context, and exit or move behavior. Findings: The authors find that a principal’s relative salary, compared to peers in the same labor market, exerts a consistent influence on stability— the higher the salary, the more likely a principal is stable and less likely he or she is to move to another school. Principals were able to leverage school-to-school moves for an average change in relative salary of about +5%. The authors also find that school racial composition—specifically percentage of students who are Black—may lead to instability and greater likelihood of a second move and that middle school principals are less stable.

Girls experiencing early pubertal maturation at age 11 reported lower subsequent physical activity at age 13 than their later maturing peers. Pubertal maturation, in particular early maturation relative to peers, may lead to declines in physical activity among adolescent girls.

Purpose: This article sheds light on some basic questions about the distribution of educational leadership preparation degree programs among different types of institutions and the distribution of advanced degrees, by type, exploring change over time and the relationship to regional labor market estimates. Method: We used data from five major national data sets (Institutional Postsecondary Education Data System, Survey of Earned Doctorates, Schools and Staffing Survey, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data, and Census data) to explore the production of graduate degrees in educational leadership by institutions of higher education and the distribution of graduate degrees across building level leaders in K-12 public education systems. We used two institutional classification systems— the Carnegie Classification and the U.S. News & World Report higher education classification—to group postsecondary institutions by resources and rank. The time period for our analysis is 1990 to 2003. Findings: On the production side, we found that the number of graduate degree programs and degrees granted in educational leadership increased considerably from 1993 to 2003, with master's degree programs increasing by 16% and the number of master's degrees granted increasing by 90%. Degree production shifted by institutional type, with the role of research universities in producing master's, specialist, and doctoral degrees declining dramatically and Comprehensive colleges and universities showing over a four-fold increase in the share. Degree production fluctuates widely among states, unrelated to school population estimates, suggesting areas for further research and policy analysis.