Richard W. Warner

Alienation and Drug Abuse: Synonymous?

Alienation from society has been cited by many as a cause of drug abuse among youth. The authors in this article describe their research to substantiate alienation as a cause of drug abuse. They conclude, however, that peer in fluence may account for young peoples use of drugs more than does alienation.

Perspectives on high school environments

In an era when student unrest has moved from the cloistered halls of higher academia to the secondary schools, increasing numbers of educators are beginning to examine this circumstance from the perspective of the social scientist. This perspective has led to an awareness that solutions to the dilemmas confronting secondary education do not reside solely in improving instructional techniques, exploiting teaching technology, or introducing increased relevance to educational content. Rather it recognizes the fact that there are structural properties and environmental characteristics of secondary school which influence both student and teacher behavior. The purpose of this paper is to examine selected concepts from the social sciences through which the environmental properties of secondary schools can be viewed.

Environmental Press, Student Needs, and Academic Adjustment.

AbstractThis study was an investigation of the relationship of students’ perceptions of the high school environment and their personal needs to their academic adjustment. Randomly selected sophomores numbering 179 completed the High School Characteristics Index, Activities Index, and the Inventory of Academic Adjustment. An inter- correlational matrix revealed that students’ perceptions of the intellectual press of the school and their intellectual needs were significantly related to their academic adjustment. Their perceptions of the dependency press and emotional expression press; and their dependency and emotional expression needs were related to selected areas of academic adjustment.