bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Athletic Participation and Status of Alberta High School Girls
Authors: Buhrmann Hans G. , Bratton Robert D.
Published: March 2007

This study examines the relationship between athletic participation and status measures of girls in six rural and small town Alberta high schools. The data was gathered in May/June 1970 from school files and personally administered question naires and athletic rating sheets. An athlete was defined as a girl who had participated in at least one interscholastic sport in the 1969/1970 school year.

The results reveal that girl athletes are considerably more popular with their male and female peers and are more frequently members of the leading crowd as perceived by their peers and teachers than non-athletes. Quality and amount of athletic performance are highly and positively related to status measures. The socio-cultural and educational characteristics of athletes are very similar to those received by students who had status with their peers. As far as the investigated Alberta high schools are concerned, athletic participation serves as an important medium of status achievement for the adolescent high school girl.
The Social Origin and Ambivalent Character of the Ideology of Amateur Sport
Authors: Krawczyk Barbara
Published: March 2007

This work deals with the social problems of the sources and historical condition ings of the ideology of amateur sport. In the first part an analysis was made of the discussion on the problems of amateur and professional sport in the International Olympic Committee. Set apart were the successive stages of attempts to give a more precise definition of the term amateur sport and the basic trends in the evolution of regulations. Part two presents the transformation of ancient sport under the influence of processes of democratization. throwing into relief its heterogeneous, also profes sional, nature. In part three an analysis was made of the sources and social conse quences of the ideology of amateur sport, pointing to its complex ambivalent nature.
Amateur Sports Clubs. Their Salient Features and Major Advantages
Authors: Boothby John , Tungatt Malcolm F.
Published: March 2007

The promotion of sport, the extension of the sporting experience into an ever wider section of the population, is an important aim which can be pursued in many different ways. Some of the most important agents in providing an initial experience of sport are amateur sports clubs, about which little is known. Such clubs have several advantages in sports promotion, being close to their actual and potential membership both physically and socially. For such reasons, clubs are often popular with sportsmen and women as an organisational focus of their activities. One of the clubs' strongest advantages is their ability to provide sports activity within a framework of demo cratic self-organisation. So popular are clubs that in an era of expensive public sports facilities, they continue to provide much needed facilities, organisation, and social support.
The Institutionalization of Sport Forms
Authors: Pearson Kent
Published: March 2007

The institutionalization of sport forms is normally seen as involving such pro ceses as (increasing) bureaucratization and formalization; leading to the characteriza tion of sport in terms such as "technical efficiency" and generally ''instrumental orientations" on the part of those involved. However there is nothing logically ine vitable in institutionalization processes leading sport progressively in these direc tions. Cases can be found — even in compleN industrial societies — in which value patten,s emphasizing non-competitivveness and rejecting high degrees of formaliza tion and organization are institutionalized.

This article discusses the institutionalization of sport in terms of two contrasting types of sport subculture; play-sport subcultures and athletic-sport subcultures. Certain conditions are identified which are conducive to the development of each of these "types" of sport.
Sport and Social Development
Authors: Wohl Andrzej
Published: March 2007

The author presents an analysis of the concept social development, in con nection with the development of a certain phenomenon, namely sport. Here he distinguishes quantitative changes that are taking place in a dual sense: as chan ges in the structural sphere and changes in the functional sphere, occurring more or less parallely. According to the author these changes are accompanied by pro cesses of structural and functional disintegration as well as integration on a new, higher level. He points to the phenomenon of apparent changes and also irregula rities that always accompany development.

The next developmental stage are changes of the qualitative type, leading through structural and functional changes to changes of the features of sport of the model type. All this jointly exerts its influence on changes in mutual relation between sport and the social system. Thus one finds an increasingly greater role played by awareness in the shaping of these relations. In conclusion the author formulates certain laws, permitting to forecast the development of sport as a so cial phenomenon.
An Exploratory Analysis of the Scholarly Productivity of North American Based Sport Sociologists
Authors: Loy John W.
Published: March 2007

This study identified 100 North American based authors who have contributed 658 publications to the sociology of sport literature during the past decade. An analysis of the productivity patterns of these authors produced a perfect Bradford Distribution comprising ten core authors having fifteen or more publications each and accounting for over forty percent of all published work surveyed.

In conclusion, findings of this study:

1. Provide insight into the emergence and development of sport sociology in North America, and raise several implications regarding its future growth, especially with respect to the problem of adequate critical mass.

2. Suggest that the literature related to the sociology of sport in North America provides an adequate data set for testing Brookes' formulation of Bradford's Law relating to journal distribution and author productivity.

3. Suggest the need, rationale and method for conducting comparative studies of the productivity patterns of authors and periodicals in the speciality of sport sociology in other areas of the world and,

4. Demonstrates the importance of identifying key authors and publications in the sociology of sport for purposes of comprehensive bibliographical searches.
Social Mobility of Finnish Elite-Athletes of Different Achievement Level
Authors: Laakso Lauri
Published: March 2007

The starting point of the present study, which has been made as a little part of the cross-national Project on Leisure Role Socialization (Kenyon and McPherson 1970), has been the observation made about Finnish top athletes according to which the social background of athletes belonging to the internatio nal elite was lower than that of athletes at the national top level (Laakso 1977). The result was interpreted so that athletes from the lower social groups seek to use sport as a means of upward mobility. The purpose of this report has been to find out whether athletic success is related to social mobility when top athletes of different performance level are compared with each other. Social mobility has been assessed only by comparing the athlete's occupation with that of his father. Thus the results do not tell much about changes in social position in larger sense nor do they describe in his own occupation.
Cultural Interpretation in Sport: The Outside World and Pictures Inside Heads
Authors: Pearson Kent
Published: March 2007

This paper aims to give an evaluation of cultural interpretations of sport. There are four parts to the paper, each concerned with a somewhat different aspect of that central task. Part One — overviews some problems in cultural conceptualization and discusses a number of metatheoretical issues involved in cultural analysis. Part Two — gives a brief overview of some of the sociology or sport literature making use of cultural frameworks. Part Three — draws on both previous parts in suggesting the subculture concept is useful in overcoming some of the deficiencies of cultural analysis and this leads to a discussion in the final part of the processes of negotiation which occur in sport settings and which generate, reconstitute or change oultural structures.
The Social Structure and Development of Tennis in the Federal Republic of Germany
Authors: Timm Waldemar
Published: March 2007

The article shows, basing itself on tennis, the influence of the changing social attitudes regarding the rank and development of sports disciplines. The question is examined whether tennis in the Federal Republic of Germany has changed from the sport for an élite of the past into a present sport for all.

On the basis of extensive statistical data, being the result of a large-scale empirical survey of the situation in German gymnastics and sports associations an analysis is made of the present social structure of tennis associations. The results indicate that tennis, despite quite obvious structural changes, is still being practiced above all by certain strata of the population. As far as the age and sex structures are concerned it is quite clear that tennis is especially favoured by people between 21 and 45 years, who are often lost for other sports associations and in this manner continue actively to go in for sport, but above all tennis gives women access to sports activity.

A further analysis of tennis practiced within associations deals with "active" and "passive" sports attitudes, interest in information and spectator sport, sociabili ty, participation in the work of the association as elements of the attitude of the members.

The last part concentrates on the structural distribution of tennis associations in the Federal Republic of Germany and the developmental trends for the coming years. One can clearly notice that as far as tennis is concerned it does not follow the general trend towards very large associations.

The costs involved when practicing tennis, first of all investment and organi zational expenditures, connected with a policy conducted by official authorities to promote sport and which in a traditional manner give preference to certain sports disciplines, lead to a situation, where also in the future tennis will continue to belong rather to expensives types of sport. Nevertheless it turns out that the trend towards development of tennis continues, even if obstacles continue to exist and therefore tennis is bound in the near future to become a genuine sport for the people in the Federal Republic of Germany.
Demystifying Sport Superstition
Authors: Neil Graham I.
Published: March 2007

The available information from sociology, anthropology, psychology and phys ical education as well as popular sport literature was studied in an attempt to throw light on the topic of superstition in sport. The paper attempts to summa rize the work done on the topic and, from the available facts, go on to suggest logical extensions of these ideas. It points out unanswered questions and raises doubts formerly unchallenged "facts".

All indications are that superstition, in a variety of forms, is very common in sport although not always as obvious as some of the incidents described in sports columns might suggest. There are problems in investigating the subject and very little scientific research has been conducted. It appears that superstitions are natural psychological mechanisms helping the athlete to cope with the stress of the competitive situation and to perform at his best under pressure.

There are theoretical answers as to where and how sports superstitions origi nate and under what conditions they persist. The level and extent of involvement of the athlete in his sport emerges a key determinant of the prevalence and seriousness with which superstition is endorsed. There are variations in super stition from one sport to another, and even with the roles assumed within a sport. There is some evidence of sex differences as well.

Some good work has been done, but to date the research and theorizing on the topic has raised as many questions as it has answered.
Japanese Top-Athletes' Attitudes toward Their Sports Careers
Authors: Komuku Hiroshi
Published: March 2007

The author presents an analysis of the attitudes of the Japanese top-athletes (pros and amateurs) toward their sports careers.

Japanese athletes were likely to rate high on the beat orientation (to beat your opponents) in their childhood, but when they had become pros or top amateur athletes, they stressed the best orientation as their primary orientation. There were tendencies that their primary orientation was changed from the beat to the best in their maturity.

Japanese athletes were more competitive than Canadian athletes in their attitudinal orientation. The professional athletes were likely to rate higher on the beat than amateurs at both life stages.

More than eighty per cent of the athletes were satisfied with their sports careers. Comparing the satisfaction quotient of both amateurs and pros toward their careers, pros were likely to rank high in classification. Since they can make big money and have a high reputation in the society, they seem to be satisfied with their sports careers as occupation.

However, the percentage of the pros who have worries about their future life exceeded that of amateurs. More than sixty-five per cent of the total sample were worried about a break in their careers due to injuries, and about their second careers after retirement.

Though approximately sixty per cent of the respondents enjoyed their sports careers, the percentage of pros was lower than that of amateurs. In professional sports, athletes are likely to be restricted in freedom or autonomy in their sport activities and sports careers. And this might be one reason of lower enjoyment of the professional athletes.
A Prediction Model For Participation in Sport
Authors: Fasting Kari
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study is to locate which variables are the best predictors of participation in sport. Based on the assumption that many factors interact and decide whether a person is going to be physically active or not, a prediction model is presented. The model include the following predictors: Sex, age, marital status, children, education, occupation, working-hours, physical activity in connect ion with work, the environment's involvement in sport, grade of urbanization, trade area and number of recreational and sport facilities in the neighbourhood. The analysis is based on data from a nationwide survey among the Norwe gian population. Altogether 3,098 individuals, from 15 to 87 years of age, took part in the study.

The statistical analysis used were Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) and Automatic Interaction Dectection (AID). The prediction model explains 20% of the variance. The strongest predictors were the environment's involvement in sport, geographical area and occupation. The first predictor alone explained al most half of the variance. At the end of the article implication for further re search is discussed. The author suggest that new predictors should replace some of those with low predictive values. Psychological as well as other sociological variables are suggested.
Positional Centrality and Racial Segregation in Professional Baseball
Authors: Guppy N.
Published: March 2007

The racial segregation of individuals into specific occupational positions is considered within the realm of professional baseball. With individual playing careers as the unit of observation, marked stability in racial segregation through the sixties and into the seventies is noted. The explanatory merits of three diffe rent theoretical perspectives which may account for this stability — human capi tal, discrimination and socialization — are tested.
The Athletic Activities of Citizens of the GDR: Some Sociological Aspects of their Structure and Social Conditions
Authors: Bierstedt Heidi
Published: March 2007

Within the framework of the complex social development, general economic, social, political and ideological conditions in the concrete-historical social order affect society as a whole. The individual's concrete social and natural environment is affected by natural environmental conditions, the availability of sport facilities and groups, the standard of medical care in sport, various institutions and organizations, trainers and sports instructors, and the attitude toward sport in the work and school collectives as well as in the family. On the personality level, sex, age, marital status, education, special training and profession, as well as wishes, interests, attitudes, needs and motives and state of health and ability to perform are influential.
Labour, Leisure and Physical Culture. A Bulgarian Perspective
Authors: Staikov Zahari
Published: March 2007

Physical culture and sport have a considerable influence on the development of society and social relationships. In order to appreciate this, a sociological approach is essential. Sport organisations affect the separate areas of work and sport in numerous ways. The results of two Bulgarian studies of the time budgets from the years 1970/71 and 1976/77 show that the amount of time spent on sports and taken from working hours has increased. Only if this increase benefits the quality of work and productivity is it useful for the population. This is discussed with respect to the new categories of additional labour time and additional leisure time.
The Place of Health, Physical Culture and Sport Activity in the Life and Value Orientation of Soviet School Students
Authors: Stoljarov Vladislav I. , Gendin A.M. , Sergeev M.I. , Falaleev A.N.
Published: March 2007

In 1982/83, in consideration of the increasing significance of physical culture and sport, the attitudes of more than 2000 school students toward health and sport in an east Siberian territory were investigated. It was shown that boys, when they finished school, placed higher value on health and sport than girls, and also than younger students. Value orientation towards sport and the extent of the individual's sport activity have a mutual influence. Whoever is enthusiastic about sport also values other aspects of life more highly. The significance of participation in sport in the choice of profession is stressed. However, the involvement in sport as well as the demands of particular professions must be more carefully analysed and the results published.
The Mythology of Football Hooliganism: A Closer Look at the British Experience
Authors: Melnick Merrill J.
Published: March 2007

It is argued in this essay that the nature and severity of the football hooliganism problem in Great Britain has been largely overstated by the popular press and unjustly elevated to the status of a major social problem by the State. Eight myths of football hooliganism are identified, described and challenged on the basis of the available theoretical and empirical data. This critical examination of the official definitions and taken-for-granted assumptions which attend the football hooliganism phenomenon is seen as an important first step in the larger examination of the manifest and latent functions of the football hooligan in British society.
Gender Differences in Brazilian Children's Socialization into Sport
Authors: Greendorfer Susan L. , Blinde Elaine M. , Pellegrini Ana Maria
Published: March 2007

In an attempt to apply a social role-social systems approach to study the sport socialization process of children. a fixed-alternative questionnaire was administered to Brazilian children in Sāo Paulo. When testing the general model, results from multiple regression analyses on 94 males and 77 females revealed that values of parents, family, peers, opportunity set and teachers strongly influenced the process of becoming involved in sport. Stepwise regressions revealed that the model was a better predictor of female sport involvement, with opportunity set and female siblings providing the strongest influence. In the case of males, parents' values, fathers and brothers proved to be the strongest contributing factors. Although not dissimilar to findings on North American children, results from this study suggest that there may be some unique features of sport socialization with respect to Brazilian children. These findings are discussed in light of those from previous research studies in Canada and the United States.
Sports Sociology in Japan
Authors: Morikawa Sadao , Rogers John
Published: March 2007

Full scale study of sport sociology in Japan developed rapidly from the time that the Special Research Division was formed within the Japanese Society of Physical Education. On important characteristic of the study of sport sociology in Japan is that sports research was undertaken from the viewpoint of physical education. Another is that, whether the researchers themselves are aware of it or not, social science research in Japan has in the past shown influences of historical materialism. This trend, however, is now changing.
Doping as a Threat Against Sport and Society: The Case of Sweden
Authors: Johansson Martin
Published: March 2007

Doping is not only a medical-legal issue. The increase in doping results from increasing international competition, the market economy and the increasing national significance of sport. The ethical problems of the researchers are pointed out. The gradually stricter measures taken by the Swedish Sport Federation against doping are described. The debate on doping in the daily papers after the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 1984 was characterized by moral indignation and an increasingly cynical attitude to top sport. These reactions are interpreted in the light of an historical analysis of the development of sport and its ideological manifestation in Swedish society.
Sport as a Means for Reducing the Cost of Illness — Some Theoretical, Statistical and Empirical Remarks
Authors: Wagner Gert G.
Published: March 2007

In the Federal Republic of Germany, many supporters of the sports movement (Sportbewegung) suggest that sport might be an effective and efficient instrument to reduce the costs of illness and death. In this paper empirical evidence is given on the basis of economic theory to support the argument that sport would not be a superior instrument for cost reduction. The main reason is that instrumental sport may not lead to better health in every case. Secondly, the opportunity costs of sport practicing are distributed unequally. Thirdly, it is probable that better health and an increased life expectancy would not reduce expenditure of goods and services for health care. To learn more about the epidemiological links between instrumental sport and health, an improved kind of longitudinal data would be necessary.
The Development of Baseball Organizations in Japan
Authors: Kusaka Yuko
Published: March 2007

Since 1873, Japanese amateur baseball organizations had developed through five stages which included such processes as the formalization and the role differentiation and specialization of baseball groups, the precise codification of the rules of the game and the regulations and provisions of tournaments and associations, the advancement of patterned skills, the improvement of baseball equipment which accompanied the technological development in Japanese society, and the formal acceptance of baseball ideology which mainly emphasized the mental and spiritual cultivation of players, that is, all the processes of institutionalization of Japanese baseball as a social institution.
Physical Education Classes in Hungary
Authors: Makszin Imre , Laki László
Published: March 2007

In 1969 the Hungarian Ministry of Culture gave permission for the organization of physical education classes in primary schools. In 1973 this special education was also introduced in the grammar schools. The main purposes of the classes were: a) the proper selection of youth for competitive sport; b) the preparation of talented youth selected for sport activity in an appropriate organizational framework; c) the promotion of the students' continued studies in the types of school suitable to their plan for the future. Our purpose is to answer the following questions: 1. Which social strata take advantage of the "service" of P.E. classes and to what extent? 2. Where do pupils go after finishing primary school in P.E. classes? 3. What factors determine the selection of pupils for the P.E. classes? 4. In what way does scholastic achievement and suitability depend on social origin? In our research we used sociological approaches and methods.
Past and Present State of Sport Sociology in Hungary
Authors: Földesi G. Tamásné
Published: March 2007

The standard of the intellectual antecedents of Hungarian sport sociology and their importance seem to correspond to those of other nations. However, for political reasons the period in which sport sociology developed into an autonomous discipline in the Western world did not favour the rising of sociology in the socialist states of Eastern Europe. This paper attempts to show when and in what way sport sociology evolved in Hungary, as well as what social and theoretical factors influenced, promoted or impeded its development. Furthermore, the present situation of sport sociology in Hungary is outlined: its main fields of research, its major publications as well as its institutions, organizations, and international connections.
Socialist Countries' Sporting Success before Perestroika - and after?
Authors: Gärtner Manfred
Published: March 2007

Western success at the Olympics, in soccer, and in tennis is closely correlated with aggregate income in the country under consideration. Socialist performance does not fit into this explanation because the public-good aspect of international sporting success bears more forcefully on centrally planned allocative decisions than on results produced by the market. This explains why Socialist countries overachieve at the Olympics, but perform poorly in professional sports with high marketability such as tennis. Those Socialist countries, however, which successfully support their athletes competing in Western pro sports pay the price of a rather mediocre national performance at the Olympiads.
Disengagement of Advanced and Elite Greek Male Athletes from Organized Competitive Sport
Authors: Koukouris Konstantinos
Published: March 2007

In contrast to previous quantitative research on the disengagement from sport which suffers from methodological weakness, in the present research it is argued that disengagement from sport can best be examined from a social action perspective, especially from a phenomenological perspective. Moreover, unlike previous research which presented a static and functional view of the world, former athletes in the present study made suggestions for a better or alternative structure of sport. Data was collected through questionnaires, single interviews, and small group interviews. 137 questionnaires were collected from advanced and elite ex-athletes in athletics, rowing and volleyball (return rate 87,3 %) in Salonica, Greece. 34 of these ex-athletes were interviewed 6 to 8 months after the delivery of questionnaires. Apart from factors leading to disengagement from sport, an attempt is made to examine any possible adjustment problems, the resocialization of drop- outs into other sports and physical activities and other aspects of the disengagement process. For the analysis of interviews the method of cognitive mapping, as described by Eden et al (1983) and Jones (1985), was used. A combination of factors both inside and outside the sporting environment influences the disengagement process.
Physical Contact in Women's Basketball: A Phenomenological Construction and Contextualization
Authors: Rail Genevieve
Published: March 2007

This study focused on the phenomenon of physical contact, as experienced by female basketball players (N=14) on a Canadian varsity team. In this article are presented the results of the construction and contextualization phases of the social phenomenological method (Denzin 1984) used in the study. In the construction phase, elements of the physical contact phenomenon are interpreted and used for its construction. Emotions and the self are considered as foundations and upon them are laid three basic structures which provide a skeleton of the phenomenon: the phenomenological field, the body, and the symbolic interaction. In the contextualization phase, the constructed phenomenon is put back in the lives of the women basketball players. It is shown how a player particularly feels her emotions in basketball situations and how emotionality transforms her in a way that few other lines of action can. In conclusion, it is argued that physical contacts, as expressions of a wide variety of emotions, provide occasions for the unfolding of a player's real self and meaning and represent experiences through which a player may learn not only who she is, but who she can be.
Commercialism as a Dominant Factor in the American Sports Scene: Sources, Developments, Perspectives
Authors: Lobmeyer Hans , Weidinger Ludwig
Published: March 2007

Among the most important factors which made a commercialization of sports in the U.S. possible are the unique legal standing of the professional sports leagues and the heavy involvement of the media. In order to enable the professional leagues to survive the U.S. government freed them from certain legal restrictions. The leagues are allowed to function as monopolies without breaking the antitrust laws. The strong connection between TV and sport came about primarily through the growing trend towards passive sports intake. The TV stations can afford to pay the increasingly more expensive broadcasting rights due to the high sums they can command for commercial spots.

Naturally, the popular professional sports of football, basketball, and boxing are clearly profit orientated and show a remarkable financial breadth. However, other athletic domains are steadily becoming more commercialized; many Division I universities rely heavily on television broadcasts to finance their sports departments, the "amateur" Olympic Games are now a huge money making venture, and the sports boom in the U.S. has opened up a massive market for sports clubs, equipment and clothes.

The development of the commercialism can be traced back to the societal structure in the U.S. A liberal attitude and enormous urbanization in the 19th century helped create a society which was conducive to a profit-orientated sports system. A final comparison of the commercialism in the U.S. and Germany shows that the biggest differences lie in the structure and practices of the media.
A Path Analytic Examination of Sport Termination
Authors: Martin Douglas E. , Dodder Richard A.
Published: March 2007

This research examined factors from the literature thought to affect level of athletic participation. Methodologically, the research utilized path analytic techniques in the secondary analysis of data collected previously (Martin & Dodder 1991). Findings indicated maintenance of athletic participation, for both males and females, was primarily a function of encouragement from others and perceived ability. However, aversive socialization experiences, when controlled by other model variables, was not a strong predictor of termination for either sex. It was an especially weak predictor of female termination. In addition family athletic involvement appeared to have a greater influence on females' athletic participation.
Sports and Environment Sports for Everyone — Room for Everyone?
Authors: Cachay Klaus
Published: March 2007

This article proceeds from the conviction that the crux of the sport-environment conflict concerns limitations of growth. Without insisting on the obviously positive functions of sports, the extent of unintentional damage that sports have caused through their differentiation as a partial social system is examined, as well as the possibilities for control of such self-induced complexity.
Organisational Structures and Contexts in British National Governing Bodies of Sport
Authors: Theodoraki Eleni I. , Henry Ian P.
Published: March 2007

This paper reports the findings of the first stages of a research project which investigates the organisational structures of the National Governing Bodies of Sport (NGBs) in Britain and the strategic management styles which these organisations employ.
Betto-San and the White Rat: Evaluating Japanese Major League Baseball Managers Vis-à-Vis Their American Counterparts1
Authors: Horowitz Ira
Published: March 2007

Using the Pythagorean Theorem of Baseball (James 1986, 701), this paper evaluates Japanese baseball managers in comparison with their American counterparts. The evaluation is done in light of the differences in Japanese and American managerial styles and their corporate and work ethics. Insofar as the latter are reflected in differences in the managers' on-the-field success, it is concluded that the Japanese style of baseball results in more homogeneous managerial performance than does the American style that tolerates individuality even where it is necessarily encouraged.
Narration in Technical Communication
Authors: Barton Ben F. , Barton Marthalee S.
Published: March 2007

Non-literary texts are being interpreted and studied as narratives to great ad vantage in many, diverse fields. In contrast, narration is widely devalued among teachers and researchers of technical communication. This devalua tion is unwarranted in light of the complexity, pervasiveness, and potential power of narration in technical communication. Research into narration as a focal topic may facilitate a fuller, more conscious exploitation of the narrative mode.
Comment on "Phase Transitions in Instigated Collective Decision Making"
Authors: Bonabeau Eric
Published: March 2007

The aim of this comment is to highlight the clear correspondence between some existing experimental data on cooperative foraging in ants, where it is known that mass recruitment is less flexible than combinations of group and mass recruitment, and the idea of "instigated" decision making (Numaoka, 1995). A simple model accounting for the experimental observations is introduced, and its phase diagram is presented briefly.
Transfer of Elementary Skills via Human-Robot Interaction
Authors: Kaiser Michael
Published: March 2007

Transferring elementary skills to robots by means of demonstrations is a very intuitive approach to robot programming. Within this article, an analysis of the process of skill transfer and skill acquisition is provided that explicitly considers the nature of elementary skills and the role of the human user, who acts as a teacher. A process model for skill acquisition is developed, and methods and algorithms supporting the several phases of this process are presented. The whole approach is exemplified by means of manipulation- and navigation-related skills. Finally, the strengths and limitations of the demonstration-based approach in general are discussed.
Précis of Robot Shaping: An Experiment in Behavior Engineering
Authors: Dorigo Marco , Colombetti Marco
Published: March 2007

Robot Shaping: An Experiment in Behavior Engineering, by Marco Dorigo and Marco Colombetti. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press/Bradford Books, forthcoming October 1997. Approximately 200 pages, including 87 figures and 15 tables, approximately $40. ISBN 0-262-04164-2.
Kin Ties and Social Interaction in an Austrian Peasant Village with Divided Land Inheritance
Authors: Khera Sigrid
Published: March 2007

Divided land inheritance is the basis for social interaction among rela tines in the peasant villages of the easternmost part of Austria. Special mar riage arrangements, primarily within the kin group, act as a counterbalance to land fragmentation. In frequency, intensity, and its effect on village society as a whole, this kind of interaction among relatives has no counter part among the Austrian peasants in other communities who practice un divided land inheritance.
A Cross-Cultural Study of Responses to Childlessness
Authors: Rosenblatt Paul C. , Peterson Patsy , Portner Joyce , Cleveland Martha , Mykkanen Arthur , Foster Rose , Holm Gail , Joel Barbara , Reisch Helen , Kreuscher Carolyn , Phillips Robert
Published: March 2007

Childlessness was studied in a sample of 78 societies from the universe defined by Murdock and White (1969). In all the societies in which presence or absence of solutions to childlessness could be assessed, there were solutions to childlessness. Magico-religious-ethnomedical solutions seem most popular and most likely to be tried first. Women get blamed for childlessness significantly more often than men, which may be a result of the ubiquity of low status for women.
The Orkney Islands: A Bibliographic Survey of Printed Materials on Ethnography, Folk Life, Folklore, and Local History
Authors: Theodoratus Robert J.
Published: March 2007

A cricital and analytic bibliography of printed materials on the ethnog raphy, folk life, folklore, and local sociocultural history of the Orkney Is lands, off the north coast of Scotland. In this survey a primary emphasis has been placed upon the relevant local Orcadian publications, which are rarely seen in libraries beyond Scotland. Most of these are of a surprisingly high quality, ethnographically speaking.
Cross-Cultural Studies of Women and the Male Bias Problem
Authors: Whyte Martin King
Published: March 2007

This paper considers whether a prevailing male bias in ethnographic work makes cross-cultural research on the position of women invalid. The method used is an examination of the correlations of a gender of ethnog rapher (and gender of coder) measures with a large number of women's status variables drawn from a larger study. The results show that the num ber of significant correlations is not more than would be expected by chance. It is argued that as long as the codes of women's status are kept quite specific, the problem of male bias in such cross-cultural research should be negligible.
Ecological Sensitivity and Resistance of Cultures in Asia
Authors: Westermeyer Joseph
Published: March 2007

Ecological influences on culture have been demonstrated by several in vestigators. Many such studies have been done in Asia where two ecological niches extend over vast areas. One of these is the highland or mountainous territory 500 meters above sea level; the other consists of plains and pla teaus under 500 meters. The HRAF files were used to compare cultures in the highlands with those in the lowlands. The files indicate that certain items may be ecology sensitive (that is, more apt to change with ecologic shift). These include agricultural methods, sociopolitical organization and preferred marriage forms. Other items may be ecology resistant (that is, less apt to change with ecologic shift). These include descent and house types.
Ethnographic Fieldwork: : Optimal Versus Non-Optimal Conditions
Authors: Witkowski Stanley R.
Published: March 2007

It is hypothesized that non-optimal ethnographic fieldwork conditions result in a relatively constant rate of random reporting error compared to more optimal conditions. If this is so, when fieldwork variables such as length of field stay are controlled in tests of cross-cultural hypotheses, the lesser amount of random reporting error for the optimal cases should tend to raise cross-cultural correlations, and the greater amount of error for the non-optimal cases should tend to lower them. This hypothesis is tested and confirmed.
A Look at the Future of Comparative Studies
Authors: Ember Melvin
Published: March 2007

This paper was the Presidential Address at the 11th annual meeting of the Society for Cross-Cultural Research in Minneapolis, MN, February 19, 1982. Three things are discussed: (1) some new activities being planned by the Human Relations Area Files to encourage new kinds of comparative research; (2) the author's hope that future comparative research will be more attentive to causal mechanisms; and (3) some elements of a style of research that have proved useful to the author and Carol R. Ember and may be useful to others.
A Typology of Models of Social Organization
Authors: Udy Stanley H.
Published: March 2007

A review of current, apparently conflicting, general models of social organization in the sociological literature reveals that such models differ along two basic dimensions: 1) primary causal emphasis (cultural or morphological); and 2) major structural focus (on societies, organizations, aggregates, or groups). Eight fundamental kinds of models thus emerge that appear on the whole more com plementary than conflicting and also offer possibilities of combination both in ex tant and novel ways. Our results suggest considerably more general conceptual unity than is often currently attributed to either sociology or cultural anthropology, and thus have particular implications for the pursuit of holocultural comparative research.
Moral Reasoning in Bahamian and United States Adults and Children: a Cross-Cultural Examination of Kohlberg's Stages
Authors: White Charles B.
Published: March 2007

Cross-cultural studies of moral reasoning and moral development offer the opportunity to examine universals in development as well as to inform regarding the impact of culture on human reasoning about the nature of right and wrong. The present paper examines several studies conducted by the author on moral development in adults and children in the Bahamian out-islands utilizing the theoretical perspective of Kohlberg. Issues in moral development from the perspective of life span developmental psychology are considered as to how they inform about models of adult development.
Women's Occupational Opportunities: a Cross-Cultural Test
Authors: Naroll Maud , Naroll Frada , Naroll Raoul
Published: March 2007

In this article, we use a worldwide sample of forty mostly preindustrial societies to test whether in simpler societies women have as many occupational opportunities as men do, and whether women's share of occupations rises as societies grow more complex The answers are no and no. Men have significantly more occupational opportunities than women do, and the proportion of occupations open to women does not grow as we move from simpler to more complex societies.
The Cultural Contribution To Jealousy: Cross-Cultural Aggression in Sexual Jealousy Situations
Authors: Hupka Ralph B. , Ryan James M.
Published: March 2007

This study explores the cultural contribution to emotional responses. Specifically, it examines the contribution of social structures to the severi ty of aggression in sexual jealousy situations. It is hypothesized that the aggression in jealousy situations is correlated with the cultural importance attached to being married, the limitations placed on nonmarital and extra marital sexual gratification, the emphasis on private ownership of proper ty, and the requirement of personal descendants. The social structures and behavioral patterns that are associated with these variables were rated in 92 preindustrial societies and correlated with the aggressiveness of the responses of men and women in jealousy situations. Stepwise multiple regression analyses on the male data revealed that the social structures and behavioral patterns that are associated with pair-bonding, sexual grat ification, and property accounted for 29 percent of the variance of the responses in jealousy situations. The contribution of the behavioral pat terns that are associated with personal descendants was negligible. None of the variance of the female responses was accounted for by the cultural variables. The latter finding was attributed to the limited options that are available to women for coping with unfaithful men.
Bibliography of Substantive Worldwide Cross-Cultural Studies
Authors: Levinson David
Published: March 2007

This bibliography is a compilation and update of the holocultural bibli ographies that appeared in Levinson (1977) and Levinson and O'Leary (1982). These two bibliographies contained 407 citations, this one contains over 700 with most of the additional ones to studies published between 1982 and 1990. As in the earlier bibliographies, a substantive worldwide cross-cultural (holocultural) study is defined as a study whose purpose is to test or develop a hypothesis through the statistical analysis of data pertaining to a sample of ten or more small-scale societies from three or more geo graphical regions of the world.
The Junior Levirate and Junior Sororate: a Cross-Cultural Study
Authors: Pans A.E.M.J.
Published: March 2007

This paper describes a cross-cultural test of a set of hypotheses in which it is stated that the junior levirate and junior sororate are related to a particular pattern of rank ing of parallel cousins. Underlying the hypotheses is the view that, in the presence of such a pattern, senior levirate and sororate marriages will be prohibited, because they would create confusion in the ranking of siblings. The results of the test support the hypotheses.
Universals in Youths' Perceptions of Parental Acceptance and Rejection: Evidence From Factor Analyses Within Eight Sociocultural Groups Worldwide
Authors: Rohner Ronald P. , Cournoyer David E.
Published: March 2007

Research reported here used identical factor analytic procedures on individual items in the child version of the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire (PARQ) within each of eight sociocultural groups distributed widely around the world. Evidence and results from this research lend strong support to the presumption of con struct validity of the PARQ as a valid cross-cultural measure of the warmth dimension of parenting. As such, the instrument may be used as an additional source of evidence for Raoul Naroll's "tests of theories" step in socionomics.
Communes as Moralnets
Authors: Minturn Leigh
Published: March 2007

Communes are a type of close-knit community with strong social norms that characterize moralnets (moral networks). A sample of contemporary communes operating during the 1970s was selected to test the predictive power of the commitment scales over time and assess their usefulness for describing 20th-century communes. The mechanisms tested are the presence of strong leaders, cultural homogeneity of members, joint investment, isolation, shared ideology, distinctive customs, and disciplinary action for deviancy. Despite differences, the results of these analyses indicate that the commitment scales are robust; their patterns persist across samples, methods, and centuries.
Cross-Cultural Correlates of the Consonant-Vowel (CV) Syllable
Authors: Munroe Robert L. , Munroe Ruth H. , Winters Stephen
Published: March 2007

Universality of the simple consonant-vowel (CV) syllable probably reflects its status as a prototype syllable facilitative of oral communication. Although CV is ubiquitous, it makes up only a minority of the syllabic corpus of some languages, whereas it is dominant in others. In an attempt to account for the differential frequency of CV across languages, a cross-cultural study was conducted (N = 53) to test the general hypothesis that CV would occur most often under conditions in which oral communicability was a desideratum. One prediction was based on the assumptions that (a) people in warm to moderate climates, as inhabitants of "outdoor" cultures, would on average engage in more distal communication than people in cold climates; and (b) such distal communication would create a need for optimal transmittal of messages, that is, high CV usage. The prediction was supported. A second prediction was based on the assumptions that (a) writing systems, which do not depend on
Phylogenetically Related Cultural Traditions
Authors: Goodenough Ward H.
Published: March 2007

Anthropologists have long recognized that cultural traditions in different societies can be related phylogenetically in that they derive historically from a common ancestral tradition in the same way that languages can be related phylogenetically. Problems of method for convincingly establishing such relations for cultural traditions have remained unresolved. Remote Oceania, where we have reason to assume that nearly all existing cultural traditions are phyloge netically related, offers possibilities for comparative study to illus trate the methodological issues to be resolved. The methodological strategy is described and illustrative examples are offered.