A functional approach to the psychology of helping

In this paper a critical review of psychotherapy and counselling is undertaken and an alternative approach, basedon concepts from cognitive, accupational and social psychology is proposed to help people overcome their problems.     

Sensitivity to lateral information on a perceptual word identification task in French third and fifth graders

This study aimed at examining sensitivity to lateral linguistic and nonlinguistic information in third and fifth grade readers. A word identification task with a threshold was used, and targets were displayed foveally with or without distractors. Sensitivity to lateral information was inferred from the deterioration of the rate of correct word identification when displayed with distractors. Results show that the two reader groups were sensitive to both right and left lateral information. The area of sensitivity to this information was more extended for the identification of easy words than difficult words. Examination of the detrimental effect of distractors suggests that in both third and fifth graders, the impact of lateral information on foveal processing is the result of a general distraction effect, but also of linguistic processing whose nature remains to be clarified.     

La performance des élèves des communautés noires aux examens ministériels du secondaire Québécois: Cohortes 1994, 1995, 1996

This article discusses the results of various sub-groups of Quebec students from the Black community (originating from the West Indies or Africa and having French, English or Creole as their maternal language) who started high-school in the French or English sector in 1994, 1995 or 1996, on various departmental exams: history, physical sciences, written French and written English, language of instruction or second language, depending on the sector. The authors begin by presenting the socio-demographic, educational, and socio-economic profile of the population under study. The performance of the various sub-groups within each sector is then discussed and certain elements are put forward to explain the differences encountered. Finally, the authors add some concluding remarks about the potential contribution of the research, especially as it regards the identification of factors influencing schooling outcomes of visible minorities, both in Quebec and in other Canadian provinces.