As higher education struggles to prove its ongoing relevance within the broader society in the face of increasing costs and little visible accountability, community engagement has emerged as one strategy to demonstrate that relevance. Such engagement is difficult and often messy, however, and structural differences among universities and the…

This study explored the family dynamics of persistent African American college men. These students were typical Black males, not those pre-categorized as high-achieving or unprepared for college. The stories of participants revealed their strength, ambition, and intentions to successfully gain a baccalaureate degree. In general Black males are…

Uses social exchange theory to examine the process by which employees are dismissed from organizations. Examines interview data from an exploratory study that suggests managers are influenced by information from group members as they calculate a cost-benefit ratio for the employer-employee relationship. Indicates a progression of communication…

Face-to-face discussion has been shown to increase cooperation behavior in social dilemmas. Two general explanations of this effect were tested: group identity and perception of consensus. Female undergraduate students (N=160) participated in four-person groups in one of four experimental conditions. Findings indicate the most plausible…

Bringing together 35 of the most notable contributions of authors such as Kenneth Burke, Erving Goffman, and Eric Berne, this book provides an introduction to the dramaturgical perspective of social actions. Selections stem from the conception that many "real-life" actions and events can most adequately be understood in terms of drama. Included…

Presents an analysis of faculty dynamics in nursing curriculum situations based on the social theories of conflict, community power, and interest-group to form a political model representing stages in policy development. These stages are applied to curriculum change examples to show how social conflict and power plays cause problems. (MF)

The usefulness of equity theory for understanding the social/motivational dynamics of the classroom was studied. Attention was directed to how faculty (and students) calculate equity and what the consequences may be. A first set of questionnaires was completed by 238 graduate students and 41 faculty members in 56 classes at a large southern state…