Describes Nelson and Mitroff's concept of "Bothsides" thinking and a replication of their experiment to determine whether it is possible to promote this type of thinking in decision-making by using an adequate stimulus and, if so, to find out what an adequate stimulus is. A reference list is included. (JL)

Uses a laboratory experiment involving role-playing groups to show that an assigned majority rule is likely to lead to higher-quality solutions than unanimity and no-decision rule. Results indicated under majority rule workers resistance to the foreman's power often resulted in a successful search for a better solution. (JAC)

The rush to regulation has made college and university presidents and other campus officials less accountable for every phase of campus activity. As state boards and federal agencies transfer decision making from institutions to higher levels, they disperse the authority and accountability that they have sought to foster. (MLW)

Encourages adult educators to use a creative approach to solving problems and making decisions, defining creative thinking as a complex process of discovery. States that adult educators should find ways to change how they look at problems and offers some suggestions. (MF)

A review of the emergence of the neutral function in the context of collective bargaining to determine whether it might have application to higher education impasses of the l980s is outlined. A history of mediation and arbitration in labor disputes in the United States is provided. (MLW)

Examined effects of a course for families in democratic conflict resolution and moral reasoning of adolescent participants. Parents significantly increased equalitarian attitudes toward family decision making. Families significantly improved effectiveness in collective decision making, with parent-adolescent groups showing greater improvement than…

When managed effectively, conflict can lead to goal satisfaction, more creative solutions, and enhanced commitment to relationships. Approaches to conflict management are discussed and categorized. Similarities and contributions of widely used models are presented. Models that convert conflicts into problems to which problem-solving techniques can…

Describes two methods to incorporate problem-solving into social studies classes. Project REACH, a five-step method, teaches students the process of problem solving while using a variety of materials and classroom situations. Project USMES incorporates problem solving into a set of specially developed curriculum materials. (Author/AV)

Force field analysis combines the advantages of the basic organization, objectivity, and science of systems theory and systems methods, with a simplicity and clarity that allows its mastery by policy-makers and administrators who are not specialists in engineering, data processing, or programming. (Author/IRT)

Offers suggestions for understanding and interpreting ethical behavior in administrative decision making. (LMI)

Traditional conceptions of problem solving in education are critiqued, and a new framework is proposed to conceptualize open- ended problem solving in ill-structured domains. How innovative curriculum design is informed by this conceptualization is described, and research findings from studies in grades 4 through 12 are presented. (SLD)

Examines a taxonomy of career decision-making difficulties. A questionnaire was administered to 563 young adults at the beginning of their career decision-making process. The relations among the 10 scales, which represent 10 theoretical categories of difficulties, and those among the items within 2 selected categories, were similar in the 2…

Proposes that in the context of developing countries such as Mexico, one role of environmental education is to facilitate the utilization of ecological information in the solution of problems. Conducts a case study to outline the role of environmental education as the linkage between science and different sectors of society involved in the…

Business schools have made efforts to inject critical thinking into programs by adopting critical management pedagogy or teaching managerial decision making. A more comprehensive approach would include critical thinking and decision making but also address other managerial thinking tasks and challenges. (Contains 79 references.) (SK)

Changing one's mind and keeping the mind open will be essential decision-making skills in the future. Positive uncertainty helps clients deal with ambiguity, accept inconsistency, and use the intuitive side of choosing. (TE)