bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Discriminating Geriatric and Nongeriatric Patients Using Functional Status Information: An Example of Classification Tree Analysis Via UniODA
Authors: Yarnold Paul R.
Published: March 2007

A procedure is described that involves iterative use of univariable optimal discriminant analysis (UniODA) in order to construct a classification tree model for discriminating observations from different groups, say A and B. In the first step of the procedure, which involves the entire sample, the single best discriminator is selected. On the basis of this step, some portion of the total sample is predicted to be from group A (some of whom may actually be from group B, and are thus misclassified), and the remainder are predicted to be from group B (some of whom may actually be from group A, and are thus misclassified); these are partitions of the total sample. In the second and subsequent steps of the procedure, UniODA is employed to identify attributes that improve classification accuracy for successively smaller subsets (partitions) of the total sample. This procedure yields hierarchically optimal classification performance that may surpass the classification performance achieved using linear methodologies. The procedure is illustrated using an application involving discriminating between geriatric and nongeriatric adult ambulatory medical patients on the basis of their self-reported functional status.
A Graphical User Interface Psychometric Meta-Analysis Program for DOS
Authors: Stauffer Joseph M.
Published: March 2007

MetaDOS is a Pascal program that provides a user-friendly, Windows-type interface for DOS systems. Its statistical procedures basically follow those developed by Hunter and Schmidt and their colleagues.
Conducting Self-Adapted Testing Using Microcat
Authors: Roos Linda L. , Wise Steven L. , Yoes Michael E. , Rocklin Thomas R.
Published: March 2007

This article describes MCATL program code for using the MicroCAT 3.5 testing software to administer several types of self-adapted tests. Code is provided for a (a) basic self-adapted test, (b) self-adapted version of an adaptive mastery test, and (c) restricted self-adapted test.
Deliberation and Resolution in Decision-Making Processes: A Self-Report Scale for Adolescents
Authors: Friedman Isaac A.
Published: March 2007

The article describes the development and validation of a scale for measuring the prevalence of typical decision-making processes used by adolescents. Two studies are reported. In the first, a total of 82 high school students (14 through 17 years) participated in special workshops, and gave details of their typical concerns and the way they tackled them. In the second study, a total of 652 high school students filled out 1,272 questionnaires in which they rated the frequencies of using certain procedures in decision-making, based on different levels of deliberation and resolution. Data were factor analyzed and three factors, containing 17 items, emerged: (a) Vacillation-high level of deliberation and no or unstable choice, (b) Undeliberated Conclusion-where action is based on very little consideration or on dependency on others, and (c) Thoughtful Determination-clear and determined choice based on serious deliberation.
Validity Studies the "Things I Worry about" Scale: Further Developments in Surveying the Worries of Postprimary School Pupils
Authors: Millar Rob , Gallagher Mary
Published: March 2007

The present article reports further findings relating to the "Things I Worry About" Scale as a method of recording the self-expressed personal. and social concerns of adolescent school pupils. A revised 138-item scale that encompasses 13 categories of worry was administered to a sample of 3,983 young people between 13 and 19 years of age, all of whom were attending postprimary schools throughout Northern Ireland. Compared with previous findings, the results suggest a slightly modified 13-category structure and provide preliminary evidence of content validity. The findings also indicate that the scale reflects a number of predictable differences in the domain of adolescent concerns.
The Factor Structure of the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI): Confirmatory Analysis of Long and Short Forms
Authors: Campbell Todd , Gillaspy James Arthur , Thompson Bruce
Published: March 2007

In the early 1970s Constantinople wrote a seminal article that subsequently led to the elaboration of the construct of psychological androgyny. The Bem Sex-Role Inventory is a popular measure of the construct, but the measure remains controversial. We explored construct validity of scores from the measure using confirnatory factor analytic methods on data from 791 subjects. Measurement characteristics of both long and short forms were investigated, in that the short form has paradoxically been shown to generally yield more reliable scores.
An Investigation of Self-Adapted Testing in a Spanish High School Population
Authors: Ponsoda Vicente , Wise Steven L. , Olea Julio , Revuelta Javier
Published: March 2007

This study, using Spanish high school students, compared four types of a computer-based English vocabulary test: (a) a self-adapted test (SAT), (b) a computerized adaptive test (CAT), (c) a conventional test of randomly selected items, and (d) a test that combined SAT and CAT (SCAT). No statistically significant differences were found among the test types for either estimated ability or posttest anxiety. Statistically significant differences were found for the number of correct responses (co = .091) and testing time (Co2 = .023). The results suggest caution in generalizations made by researchers and practitioners regarding the effects of SAT on examinees.
On Agreement of Diagnostic Classifications from Parallel Subtests: Score Reliability at the Micro Level
Authors: Birenbaum Menucha , Tatsuoka Kikumi K. , Nasser Fadia
Published: March 2007

The purpose of the present study was to examine the agreement of diagnostic classifications from two parallel subtests assessing a procedural skill in mathematics using three levels of scoring: (a) observed item scores (correct/incorrect), (b) underlying rules of operation, and (c) underlying task attributes. A bug analysis and a rule space analysis were employed to assess categories b and c, respectively. The results indicated that even when the parallel form reliability coefficient of a given test is relatively high, less agreement is evidenced when performance is evaluated at the micro level. This suggests that incorrect responses to equivalent items may result from application of different underlying mal-rules ("bugs"), which in turn may result from nonmastery of the same task attribute(s). The results are discussed in light of their implications for diagnostic assessment and remediation.
New Procedure for Extension Analysis in Exploratory Factor Analysis
Authors: Gorsuch Richard L.
Published: March 2007

Exploratory common factors have been correlated with variables external to the factor analysis by either extension analysis estimates or by correlating the external variables with estimated factor scores. In item analysis, a set of such correlations with possible scales is often computed for final item selection. The purposes of the present article are to document a problem common to both methods of estimating such correlations and to propose a new method of extension analysis that avoids this problem with less restriction assumptions. Solutions for a common data set by all three methods of extension analysis are presented that show the expected difficulties and improvements in the results. Because the new extension procedure gives the correlations without using estimated factor scores, use of this extension procedure eliminates factor indeterminacy from the multiple ways to estimate common factor scores. This method of evaluating possible scales was shown to have advantages over item-remainder correlational analysis.
The Development of a New Measure of Global Work Autonomy
Authors: Breaugh James A.
Published: March 2007

This article reports the results of three studies in which reliability and validity data were examined for scores obtained on a new measure of global work autonomy. The respondents in these studies were 80 employees of a medium-size manufacturing firm, 6,810 employees of a large defense contractor, and 88 MBA students. To examine the convergence of reports of autonomy, data were also gathered from supervisors and coworkers of these students. Coefficient alphas for the autonomy scale for the three samples ranged from .79 to .90. Scores on the global work autonomy scale correlated with scores on theoretically related measures (e.g., in Studies 1 and 3, global autonomy scores correlated .54 and .69, respectively, with scores on the Job Diagnostic Survey Autonomy Scale). Although small in magnitude, in Study 2, predicted work autonomy score differences were found between union and nonunion employees and between supervisors and nonsupervisors.
Using the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory-High School Version Writ Singaporean Females: Examinig Psychometric Properties
Authors: Murphy P. Karen , ALEXANDER PATRICIA A.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the psychometric properties of the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory-High School (LASSI-HS) using a sample of high school students from Singapore. The authors first examined the reliability and validity of scores from the LASSI-HS, one of the most widely used measures of students' learning and study strategies. To further explore these properties, the two latent structure models of the LASSI-HS proposed by Olivárez and Tallent-Runnels were tested using a culturally diverse sample. It was found that the LASSI-HS yields reliable measures of students' learning and studying behaviors; however, the results raise questions about the underlying structure of this measure. That is, not only did the results fail to confirm the 10 latent constructs (i.e., scales) proposed within the LASSI-HS user's manual, but findings also failed to confirm the latent structure models proposed by Olivárez and Tallent-Runnels.
Nonattending Respondent Effects on Internal Consistency of Self-Administered Surveys: A Monte Carlo Simulation Study
Authors: Barnette J. Jackson
Published: March 2007

This research investigated the effects of types and prevalence of response patterns that might be provided by nonattending respondents on Cronbach’s alpha. Three simulated data sets, one for each value of Cronbach’s alpha .700, .800, and .900, were constructed for 100 respondents on 50 one-to-seven Likert items. Participants were replaced randomly in each population by one of eight response patterns at 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% replacement levels. Effects were greater as a function of increased prevalence in the respondent group; however, as few as 5% of certain types of nonattending patterns had strong, inflating effects on alpha.
Spatial Orientation in a Subway System
Authors: Bronzaft Arline L. , Dobrow Stephen B. , O'Hanlon Timothy J.
Published: March 2007

The absence of a clear structural legibility within the New York City subway system tends to make its users dependent on other informational aids about its structural design and operations-such as signs, announcements, and especially the official New York City subway map and guide. The effectiveness of the New York City subway guide was tested by assigning 20 Ss a travel route which consisted of four trip-segments of varying difficulty. Of the total 80 trip segments, only 37 were traveled via acceptable (as determined by authors) solutions, with subjects having more difficulty planning acceptable solutions for more complex trip-segments. Interviews revealed that subjects felt insecure traveling the subway because the graphics in the system did not serve to reinforce their train selections. The findings suggest that the New York City subway system needs an improved map to guide its passengers as well as better systemwide graphics.
Awareness Space Characteristics in a Migration Context
Authors: Brown Lawrence A. , Malecki Edward J. , Philliber Susan Gustavus
Published: March 2007

The overall pattern of human movements is constrained and molded by the individual's knowledge of his environment. Thus, the migrant's awareness (or lack thereof) of alternative destinations affects the evaluation of these alternatives and the ultimate choice of a new place of residence. This paper focuses upon the characteristics of awareness spaces in an interurban migration context, employing a sample of recent migrants to Columbus, Ohio. The study indicates that the likelihood of a town being included in an individual's awareness space corresponds with gravity model predictions, so that model could be employed to effect an I approximate mapping of awareness spaces. The respondents' familiarity with a town was more important than its gravity model characteristics. The findings, I then, suggest the importance of more specific place characteristics (e.g., job I opportunities, entertainment, and kind of people) in explaining the detailed as opposed to the general attributes of awareness spaces.
Linguistic Representation of a Macroenvironment Under Three Communication Conditions
Authors: Edelman Eric M. , Rierdan Jill , Wapner Seymour
Published: March 2007

Two experiments were undertaken to evaluate the significance of the "audience" factor in students' representations of their university environment. Reliable differences were found in students' written descriptions for "self," "intimate-other," and "distant other." These differences, in terms of scoring categories related to the concept of "inner" versus "external" speech, point to the necessity of considering the role of "audience" in studies of the representation of the I macroenvironment. Explored are some implications of these different forms of I environmental representation for an understanding of the individual's experience I of the environment.
Prompting Electrical Energy Conservation in Commercial Users
Authors: Delprato Dennis J.
Published: March 2007

This study evaluated the effectiveness of prompting and an ancillary self-monitoring procedure for increasing energy conservation behavior. Specifically, posters were installed in men's restrooms on a college campus with the aim of prompting users to turn off lights upon leaving the room. Three observations per day were I made in ten rooms over a 44-day period. A multiple-baseline design showed successive reductions in percentage of times the lights were on when rooms were unoccupied of 63%, 46%, and 50% after 12, 23, and 33 days of baseline, respectively, in three groups of rooms. Characteristics of the intervention that should have contributed to its efficacy include clear specification of the desired behavior, close temporal and spatial contiguity between the prompt and target behavior, and provision of feedback via the self-monitoring component.
Two Assessments of Community Environmental Quality
Authors: Bridgeland William M. , Sofranko Andrew J.
Published: March 2007

The assessments of community conditions by public officials and issue proponents have been traditionally viewed as widely divergent. The present study focuses on the assessments of mayors and environmental activists on several dimensions of the community environmental quality issue in cities of 10,000 to 50,000 population in the State of Illinois. The findings appear to contradict the traditional assumptions. Mayors and activists as measured by the kinds of questions we asked do not hold widely divergent views on community environmental conditions.
Nomadism as a Man-Environment System
Authors: Rapoport Amos
Published: March 2007

Concepts derived from general man-environment system (MES) models are applied to the specific problem of nomadic sedentarization. The analysis focuses on the manner in which residential mobility may function as a central element in nomadic cultures. Restrictions on mobility are linked to changes in such diverse variables as personal identity, cultural viability, experienced stress, and interaction control mechanisms.
Helping Behavior in Hot, Comfortable, and Cold Temperatures
Authors: Schneider Frank W. , Lesko Wayne A. , Garrett William A.
Published: March 2007

A field study was conducted in which the helping behavior of 440 adults was measured under hot, comfortable, or cold temperatures. A subject was given an opportunity to help an experimenter by (1) answering a questionnaire, (2) picking up dropped groceries, (3) looking for a lost contact lens, or (4) picking up a dropped book while the experimenter walked on crutches. No support was found for the hypothesis that hot and cold temperature inhibit the display of helping behavior.
Cognitive Set and the Perception of Place
Authors: Ward Lawrence M. , Russell James A.
Published: March 2007

Twenty subjects provided similarity data for twenty photographs of molar physical environments from each of four cognitive sets by following instructions concerning which aspects of the environment to attend to: Unspecified, Activity, Function, or Emotion. An INDSCAL analysis of the data showed that the same five-dimensional structure emerged independently of cognitive set. The effect of cognitive set was to alter the relative salience of the dimensions. The five-dimensional structure was interpreted as consisting of a host of highly interrelated dimensions, thus precluding a simple, unambiguous interpretation of the dimensions.
The Open-Plan Office
Authors: Hedge Alan
Published: March 2007

A total of 649 employees at all job levels working in open-plan offices on each of the five floors of an office building completed an extensive questionnaire on their work and the office environment. The results showed that a variety of ambient environmental problems were present in these offices. Also, a clear relationship between job characteristics and attitudes toward the office was demonstrated. Employees who enjoyed performing managerial and technical tasks reacted more unfavorably to office conditions than did clerical staff, who generally viewed their work as undemanding. Loss of privacy and increased disturbances were consistently at the source of these negative reactions, and the interrelationship of these problems also emerged from factor analysis of the data. Although the office did create a favorable social climate, this did not offset employees' negative reactions to work conditions but rather appeared to exacerbate the problems. Consequently, no evidence was found to support the claim for improved productivity in open-plan. Finally, various areas for future research are briefly discussed.
Comparing College Students' Environmental Perceptions and Attitudes
Authors: Wysor Martha S.
Published: March 2007

This study used the grid procedure to the extent to which different groups of college students would demonstrate their environmental concern. Environmental studies students and business students were contrasted, first, in terms of their comparisons of triadic groupings of Bellingham, Washington places; second, in terms of their scores on an environmental attitudes questionnaire; and third, in terms of their self-reports about proenvironmental actions. The extent to which data from each level would correspond to the other kinds of data was of interest. The results indicated that environmental studies students (and self-proclaimed political liberals) not only scored significantly higher on the questionnaire, but also demonstrated their environmental concern through the use of personal constructs related to environmental issues and involvement in a number of proenvironmental activities. Business students demonstrated a lesser degree of concern on each of the levels measured. The grid procedure was found to be a useful research instrument in understanding environmental perceptions and attitudes.
The Reliability of Ratings of the Familiarity of Environmental Stimuli
Authors: Chalmers David J. , Knight Robert G.
Published: March 2007

The present study was conducted to determine the extent to which judges could reliably estimate the familiarity of photographic representations of urban locations. Three factors considered likely to be important in predicting the familiarity of particular locations are identified from the literature: distinctiveness, visibility and regularity of use, and functional or cultural significance. Five expert judges rated 170 locations on four scales of familiarity, and the data were assessed using a generalizability analysis. The principles involved in the interpretation of generalizability coefficients are introduced and the ratings made by the judges were found to be highly reliable. The importance of the three factors as predictors of familiarity is confirmed and contribution of this finding to the operational definition of environmental familiarity is discussed.
The Elderly in Context
Authors: Lawton M. Powell
Published: March 2007

Older people must be understood in terms of changes that occur both in themselves and in the world around them. The transactions between older people and their environments are discussed in terms of the support-autonomy dialectic and specific behaviors involving environmental reactivity and proactivity. Three examples of research are discussed to illustrate how autonomy is maintained on one level while necessary support is accepted on another level (environmental multiplexity): shared housing, intrainstitutional relocation, and the household environment of impaired people.
Personal Values and Commitment to Energy Conservation
Authors: Neuman Keith
Published: March 2007

Human values represent an important but neglected level of analysis in the study of energy conservation behavior. This article examines the role values play in people's commitment to energy conservation, using data from an in-depth survey of 376 households in Southern California. The impact of values on commitment is considered in terms of a theoretical framework that includes attributes of the person and his or her context. The results indicated that a number of values (particularly those pertaining to environmental quality and personal growth) were weakly but positively related to both conservation behavior and beliefs about the efficacy and necessity of conservation. Values influenced behavioral commitment independently of person and contextual factors, but did not predict such behavior above and beyond these other factors. It is concluded that personal values do not exert a major impact on personal commitment to conserve and therefore do not constitute a significant obstacle to such efforts. Public policy efforts directed at promoting conservation should therefore focus on providing services and resources that enhance the public's opportunities for channeling their willingness to conserve into concrete action.
Litter Reduction
Authors: Levitt Lynn , Leventhal Gloria
Published: March 2007

The effectiveness of the New York State Bottle Bill was examined. A multiple-time series design was used in which seven observations of the number of returnable and nonreturnable bottles and cans were taken on a highway exit and railroad tracks in New York and New Jersey every 2 weeks prior to and after the implementation of the New York State Bottle Bill (September 12, 1983). Another two observations were made 10 and 12 months later. Results indicated a significant decrease in returnable litter on the highway exit in New York as compared with New Jersey. A decrease in returnable litter was also found for the railroad tracks in New York when only deposit bottles and cans were counted. Results for nonreturnable litter indicated no significant differences. It was concluded that the New York State Bottle Bill, requiring a 5-cent deposit on most bottles and cans, was an effective strategy for decreasing the amount of returnable litter but had no effect on nonreturnable bottles and cans.
The Spatio-Cognitive Abilities of the Visually Impaired Population
Authors: Passini Romedi , Proulx Guylene , Rainville Constant
Published: March 2007

This article reports on an experiment undertaken to test the spatiocognitive competence of the visually impaired population in regard to wayfinding. The test consisted of eight basic wayfinding tasks, each representing a particular spatio-cognitive operation. The tasks were executed in a labyrinthian layout allowing for control of the difficulty level of the tasks and limiting extraneous perceptual factors, which tended to interfere with the measure of spatio-cognitive abilities. The experimental groups were composed of congenitally totally blind, adventitiously totally blind, and subjects with a weak visual residue; the control was established by a sighted and a sighted blindfolded group. The sample's 18 subjects per group were matched in terms of age, education, and sex. The performance results of the visually impaired groups in all eight tasks led to rejection of any spatio-cognitive deficiency theory. The performance of the congenitally totally blind group, in particular, shows that spatio-cognitive competence can be acquired without vision and without previous visual experience. The congenitally totally blind tend to perform better than the adventitiously totally blind and the sighted blindfolded groups, but not as well as the sighted and the group with a visual residue. The visually impaired groups, in general, tend to take more time to complete the tasks than the sighted control group. The results also show that age and education affect performance, but sex does not.
Environmental Perception and Schistosomiasis
Authors: Loureiro Sebastiao , Schnitman Anita , Barreto Mauricio
Published: March 2007

The human-water relationship is highly important in humanity's survival and full of symbolic values. For schistosomiasis infection to occur, it is necessary for humans to contact water bodies harboring snails from several different species. However, studies of human-water contact behavior have not focused on the cognitive aspects of schistosomiasis transmission. This study tested the hypothesis that differ- ences in perception of aspects of the environment (e.g., bodies of water) that are known to be important in schistosomiasis transmission will be associated with different levels of prevalence of this disease in a population of children. A sample of 523 children (5-16 years old) living in seven rural communities in Northeast Brazil was studied. Each child was exposed to two color slides and the response was considered "positive" when the child mentioned water among the features he or she described. The findings demon- strated a significant association between those responding positively to the perception of the environmental characteristics in question and the presence of Schistosoma mansoni infection. Among those infected, 56.2% responded positively to the test; among those not infected, only 34.5% gave positive response.
Weightlessness and Interaction Distance
Authors: Summit Joshua E. , Westfall Susan C. , Sommer Robert , Harrison Albert A.
Published: March 2007

Participants were asked to place two doll figures at comfortable conversation distances in a simulated space station and in an ordinary living room. The space station condition involved unusual orientations of the figures found under zero gravity conditions. The largest conversational distances occurred in the most unusual orientations of the two figures. Implications of these findings and of individual differences in patterns of response to unusual conversational orientations are discussed.
A Two-Stage Model of the Search Process for Single-Family Houses
Authors: Cahill Dennis J.
Published: March 2007

Based on a survey of the Denver, Colorado, real estate market, a two-stage model of information search is developed consisting of a global overview of the market followed by a microlevel scrutiny of offerings in various submarkets.
General Versus Specific Environmental Concern
Authors: Wall Glenda
Published: March 2007

Using data from a random sample survey of residents In Edmonton, Alberta, and applying LISREL techniques, previously Identified socioeconomic, demographic, and environmental attitudinal predictors are examined and compared across two measures of environmental concem: concem about the environment in general and concem about a specific issue and associated trade-offs. As expected, political party identification and level of education were important determinants in both cases, the significant effect of political party identification is attributed to the relative ideological diversity evident in the Canadian political structure. Contrary to expectations, however, measuring reaction to a specific, local environmental issue and posing economic trade-offs as a consequence did not result In substantially improved explanatory ability, or more pronounced class differences. Instead, the findings support suggestions that environmental concem, regardless of how it is presently measured, is not only wide-spread but also extended across demographic and economic barriers.
Predicting Antipollution Behavior
Authors: Hamid P. Nicholas , Cheng Sheung-Tak
Published: March 2007

The moderating effect of past behavior and locus of control in the relationship between attitudes and multiple behavioral intentions were investigated among Chinese students to test the theory of reasoned action. Measures of locus of control, past proenvironmental behavior, attitude, social norm, and personal control toward the act of signing an antipollution petition were compared to the actual act of signing a relevant petition to government in a 5-week follow-up. Past behavior and attitude, but not locus of control, predicted behavioral intentions. A specific attitude-multiple intention model fitted petition signing behavior extremely well, with more than 90% accuracy. The relevance of past behavior and more general measures of intended commitment to proenvironmental behavior are discussed.
Experiencing American and Australian High-and Popular-Style Houses
Authors: Purcell Terry
Published: March 2007

An experiment is reported that assessed aspects of a constructivist model of environmental experience, using examples of high- and popular-style, single, detached houses. Of interest was the relationship between measures of typicality and familiarity and affective experience, as well as how this relationship was affected by examples from different cultural/geographic locations. Also investigated were similarities and differences between architecture students at the beginning of their education, architecture students part way through their first year, and students from the general university population. Systematic relationships were found between the judgments of typicality and familiarity and affective judgments. Similarities and differences were related to the cultural/geographic origin of examples. No difference was found between architecture students at different stages of their university work, but both groups were dearly different from their nonarchitecture colleagues. These results are discussed in the context of the constructivist model of environmental experience.
Orientation-Free Representations from Navigation through a Computer-Simulated Environment
Authors: Tlauka Michael , Wilson Paul N.
Published: March 2007

Navigating through an environment and viewing a map of that environment can result in different types of cognitive representation. Maps are typically encoded in the same onentation that they are viewed, while navigation results in an orientation-free representation. The present study concerns the orientation specificity of spatial knowledge following navigation in a computer-simulated space. Subjects either explored a simulated 3-D environment by navigating through it, or were presented with a map-like single orientation plan view of the same environment. When asked to indicate the direction of test objects that were not directly visible from within the simulation, response latencies suggested that the navigafton group had an orientation-free representation while the map group had an orientation-specific representation. We conclude that navigation in computer-simulated space and real space lead to similar kinds of spatial knowledge.
Housing Modification Needs of the Disabled Elderly
Authors: Gilderbloom John I. , Markham John P.
Published: March 2007

Little research has been conducted on the housing modification needs of the elderly. The fault lies partly with the lack of reliable data. Studies on housing modification needs of the elderly are often spotty, anecdotal, and unsystematic. Many rely on decennial census data, which provide a limited and unsatisfactory portrait of special housing needs of elders in general. This paper seeks to fill this void by reporting a comprehensive study of elderly housing modification needs. The logistic regression analysis found that gender, health, and living alone were the 3 best predictors of need for special housing modifications. Men, people who live alone, and persons with poor health have greater needs for housing modifications.
Framing Beijing
Authors: Akhavan-Majid Roya , Ramaprasad Jyotika
Published: March 2007

This study examined framing in the American press coverage of the Fourth UN Conference and the NGO Forum in Beijing as a means of (1) assessing the coverage of this event and the extent to which its critical areas of concern were communicated, and (2) exploring the influence of dominant ideology on framing in the news. Employing qualitative and quantitative methods, the study found evidence of an anti-communist as well as an anti-feminist frame. Under the influence of dominant ideology, the newspaper coverage of the conference focused considerably on an extended criticism of China as a communist nation. The study found that the goals of the global feminist movement and their critical areas of concern held far less immediacy and salience for the American press than the need to assert dominant American values.
The Middle Classes, Ideological Intention and Resurrection of a Progressive Newspaper
Authors: Han Dong-Sub
Published: March 2007

Economic success as a large national daily newspaper and a progressive editorial policy are normally incompatible in the highly commercialized media sector of contemporary capitalist societies. Despite this, a South Korean newspaper, Hankyoreh Shinmun, pursued these two goals simultaneously, relying on public support and employment of the same financial resources as those of the commercial papers (i.e. advertising revenue and subscription fees). This project was based on an unusual social situation in which a significant number of the middle classes hold progressive views. The prime purpose of this thesis is to examine the reconciliation of these two goals. The findings indicate that it is possible for the progressive media to launch and continue within a highly industrialized media sector according to certain political characteristics of the middle classes in particular societies. The united economic capability of the progressive middle classes makes it possible to raise the high launch costs; their readership makes it possible to secure the core resources from the advertising revenue; their continuous contributions help fund operating costs after its foundation. The conclusion we arrived at is that the strength of economic barriers against the progressive media vary according to certain sociopolitical features of particular societies and the different political attitudes of the social classes. The economic determination is decisive but not absolute. The article also considers the decision-making process of dispersed ownership. The results show that the combination of the large number of shareholders required to launch a large independent paper, and the egoism of the founding leaders which occurred in a power vacuum situation, resulted in the domination of the paper by a small number of executives. This situation led to a split between the company and the public owners, and weakened the financial and political strength of the paper. This fact demands a redefinition of the issue of independence from ownership and control. It should be extensively defined as the monopolistic operation of the media sector by any small number of executive forces (media capital, state or executive sector). The purpose of independence also must be redefined as `deconcentrated and publicly regulated privately owned media' rather than just freedom of the media or freedom of the journalists from media capital and the state.
Media Diplomacy and `Peace Talk'
Authors: Shinar Dov
Published: March 2007

Assuming that the media were caught `unprepared', linguistically at least, by the peace processes in recent years; and that the current media discourse is not sufficient to understand, report and interpret such processes, a discourse analysis was conducted of media coverage of the peace processes in the Middle East and Northern Ireland. The results disclose strategies of peace coverage, their structures and characteristics. The analysis of these strategies and its conclusions emphasize the need to update the media research and development agenda, so as to include the creation of a peace-related media discourse.
Feminist Philosophy and Cultural Representation in the Asian Context
Authors: Fung Anthony
Published: March 2007

The article theorizes on and offers an alternative explanation for the manifestation of feminist philosophy in the Asian context. Its focus is on the cultural representations of women and the values of feminity in the popular media. Feminist philosophy has its origin in the West. In Asia feminism is rooted in human rights and gender equality, its development has taken different forms, with outcomes very different from those of the West. The author argues that Asian women's movements face many dilemmas and contradictions, and that the processes are less smooth and more indirect. The separation of the economic sphere from deep-seated indigenous systems in Asia may have retarded the development of feminism and gender equality, and in particular, its equal representation in media that rely heavily on market responses. Whereas Asian markets have developed and expanded, social and cultural values have remained more or less unchanged in the course of social development. Such traditional values are also translated into the dominant market forces that account for the continued stereotypical and unequal representation of females in the media. Given the paramount importance of media economics in developing capitalist-like communities, feminist struggles have come to rely on the initiatives of a few elite producers within the media corporations.
Satellite Television and the New Indian Woman
Authors: Malhotra Sheena , Rogers Everett M.
Published: March 2007

The article analyzes the rapid development of private satellite television in India during the 1990s and the resulting changes in the portrayals of Indian women. The primary focus in images of Indian women changed from portrayals of women as domestic housewives and mothers, to women as sexual beings who often work outside the home and who have become Westernized. Drawing on the concept of cultural hegemony, a content analysis is carried out of the top 10 rated programs being broadcast on private television networks in India in July 1997. It is found that women are gaining greater visibility in television programming. However, the characters are constructed primarily through patriarchal and nationalist interests, often reverting any progress made in gender-role portrayals to a more traditional status quo. There is also evidence of the process of cultural hegemony being manifested through mass media channels.
Television News Exposure and Foreign Affairs Knowledge
Authors: Hollander Barry A.
Published: March 2007

Data from six nations are used to explore the failure of television news to predict political knowledge. The first hypothesis posits that how a person approaches a medium explains learning from that source. The second hypothesis posits that television news attracts an audience of lower cognitive ability, thus suppressing a relationship between news and knowledge. International news is considered a `low salience' topic most likely to lead to learning from television. Analysis shows that in general neither hypothesis is particularly good at explaining a lack of relationship between television news and political knowledge, although the hypotheses are supported in some nations.
Cultural Shareability, Archetypes and Television Soaps
Authors: Singhal Arvind , Udornpim Kant
Published: March 2007

The Japanese television soap opera Oshin, which has been broadcast in 47 countries to date, has emotionally stirred worldwide audiences as no previous television series. One reason for Oshin's audience popularity in several culturally diverse countries is the universal appeal of its archetypical central character, Oshin. This article analyzes the Oshin phenomenon in Thailand. We seek answers to eight questions dealing with Oshin's history in Thailand, its viewing context, viewers' perceptions of its central character, its storyline, its production attributes, its educational lessons and its cultural shareability in Thailand. The implications and problems associated with the use of culturally shared entertainment media products such as Oshin are discussed.
A Cross-Societal Study on the Role of the Mass Media in Political Socialization in China and Taiwan
Authors: Wei Ran , Leung Louis
Published: March 2007

Grounded in two culturally similar yet politically different societies, this comparative study found that Chinese in mainland China and Taiwan held similarly negative efficacious views towards politics despite the different sociopolitical changes over the past decade. Such a similarity may be the consequence of a shared cultural heritage, particularly the influence of traditional values of obedience and submission to authority. On the other hand, mainland Chinese were more negative and Taiwanese more positive towards authorities. The amount of attention both groups paid to the media also correlated strongly with attitudes towards authorities and political efficacy, while media exposure appeared to have significant effect only in Taiwan. Moreover, attention to political news showed sustained relationships with attitude towards authorities and political efficacy when it was considered simultaneously with demographic variables.
Economic Reform, Acquisitive Instinct, and Individual Will
Authors: Agarwal Manmohan
Published: March 2007

It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but their self love, and never talk to them of our necessities but of their advantages.

Adam Smith

The bourgeoisie has drowned the most heavenly ecstasies of religious fervour, of chivalrous enthusiasm, of philistine sentimentalism, in the icy waters of egotistical calculation. It has resolved personal worth into exchange value. In one word, for exploitation, ruled by religious and political illusions, it has substituted naked, shameless, direct, brutal exploitation.

Marx

The economist has a certain sneaking suspicion that economic man has perfect mental health, having no delusions of grandeur, no Freudian complexes, no heroic attitudinizing, and at least, an Olympian neutrality towards his exchange mates. Superman is only a costume, and Batman a mask; and after all their heroic exploits they will have to go back to economic mama and count their costs, ask their rewards, pay their bills, and face the inexorable consequences of real scarcities, which their heroic antics have actually increased.

Boulding
Managers as Evaluators
Authors: Schneider Barbara
Published: March 2007

This article examines how managers construct their version of the organization as a stable and objective reality and in doing so accomplish their work as managers. Two senior managers in an educational institution evaluated a group of their educational programs by interviewing all the teachers in the programs. The managers invoked traditional, positivist ideas of interviewing both for themselves and for the interviewees. However, analysis reveals the interviews not simply as opportunities for knowledge to be transmitted from one person to another but rather as interactional accomplishments in which the interviewer is deeply implicated in the production of answers. The managers, nevertheless, regard the answers as the result of an objective research process and use them as the basis for a report that promotes their view of the organization as the reality of organizational life, legitimated by evidence provided by the teachers themselves.
Organizational Learning in a Hospital
Authors: Lipshitz Raanan , Popper Micha
Published: March 2007

The authors present a case study of organizational learning in an internal medicine ward and a cardiac surgery ward of a university-affiliated hospital. The study is based on a structural and cultural approach to organizational learning. The structural facet of this approach consists of organizational learning mechanisms (OLMs), which are institutionalized structural and procedural arrangements that allow organizations to systematically collect, analyze, store, disseminate, and use information relevant to the performance of the organization. The cultural facet consists of shared values without which OLMs are likely to be enacted as rituals rather than as mechanisms to detect and correct error. Based on semistructured interviews and unstructured observations, the authors identify the OLMs that operate in the two hospital units and the cultures in which they are embedded.
Effect of Couple-Stresses on Force Transfer Between Embedded Microfibers
Authors: Sadowsky M.A. , Hsu Y.C. , Hussain M.A.
Published: March 2007

The present investigation is a continuation of the Weitsman problem, reference 1. The investigation is concerned with the nature of the stress field which develops in the presence of couple- stresses in composite material formed of microfibers embedded in a filler substance.

The case is considered when one row consists of an infinitely long microfiber, while the second row is composed of two semi- infinite microfibers.

An exact solution, based on a two-dimensional theory of elastic ity with inclusion of couple-stresses is obtained for the stress field which is activated by giving the two semi-infinite microfibers a tangential displacement of separation.

The couple-stress theory gives a better representation of the actual physical phenomenon than the classical theory of elasticity. This is especially true and essentially important for bodies having a dimension comparable to the crystal lattice parameter of the material. This is believed to be the case with an elastic microfilm in bond with microfibers.

The investigation led to results which are at wide variance with the Weitsman solution near x = 0 and the asymptotic solution shows the same trend as reported previously in reference num bered 2 i.e., bonding layers are dominated by boundary layer behavior throughout their entire thickness.
Thermal Stresses at Spherical Inclusions in Uniform Heat Flow
Authors: Tauchert T.R.
Published: March 2007

The thermal stresses in the vicinity of a spherical particle em bedded in an elastic matrix are investigated. An exact solution to the equations of thermoelasticity is presented for the case of a stationary heat flow. The results indicate that stress concentrations occur in a composite when the thermal properties of each of the constituents are different. These stress concentrations may be overlooked if one replaces the composite with an idealized thermal model.