This preliminary investigation assessed preservice elementary teacher's attitudes toward homosexual parents and their children. The study populations included 195 college students enrolled in an elementary school health methods course at a large northeastern university. A 51-item " and Lesbian Parenting Questionnaire" was used for data collection purposes. Reliability estimates for the scales were: attitudes toward lesbians and gay men (alpha = .90), comfort toward gay and lesbian families (alpha = .92), and knowledge about homosexuality (alpha = .52). Most respondents agreed gay men: were not disgusting, should be allowed to teach, were not perverted, and should not overcome their feelings of homosexuality. Most respondents disagreed lesbians cannot fit into society or were sick. Nearly all agreed female homosexuality should not be a basis for job discrimination. Females were significantly (p < .001) more comfortable with gay or lesbian parents and their children than were males. Females had significantly (p < .01) more favorable attitudes toward gay fathers than did male respondents. Respondents with stronger religious attitudes had significantly (p < .01) more negative attitudes toward lesbian parents than respondents with weaker religious attitudes.

This study, a secondary analysis of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, used a representative sample of 7th-through 12th-grade students enrolled in US public schools between April and December 1995. Data were collected in respondents' homes using trained interviewers. A subset of 4,485 adolescents aged 12-17 were surveyed with regard to alcohol-use practices and related health-risk behavior, interpersonal problems, and demographic characteristics. Results showed adolescent males as significantly more likely to drink at high risk than adolescent females. Among those who drank one or more times in the past year, older adolescents were significantly more likely to report high-risk drinking than younger adolescents. Significantly more high-risk adolescents reported having a hangover, vomiting, regretting a behavior, having trouble with parents, regretting a sexual activity, having dating problems, fighting, having trouble with friends, and experiencing school trouble than did low-risk adolescents. These findings underscore the long-range significance of a coordinated school health program; in particular, school health services, school health instruction, and school health environment. Implications for school-based and community-based prevention and intervention programs are presented.

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The purpose of this study was to report the relationship among perceived intoxication, performance impairment, and actual blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels. Fifteen subjects, aged 21 to 40, completed both single- and double-dose sessions of alcohol consumption. BACs, reaction and anticipation time, and perceived intoxication data were collected during both sessions. Analysis of data showed that perceived intoxication was significantly related to performance impairment, but the actual BAC was not.

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