The purpose of this study was to develop an observation system which would describe some of the important phenomena in groups that have the task of making a decision about a controversial issue involving value conflicts. The basic design to develop the observation system involved the analysis of transcriptions of group discussions of controversial…

This paper outlines a research program that focuses on organizational communication as a means for both normative and descriptive models of organization. The author proposes a methodology for the measurement of organizational structure that appears relevant for both laboratory and field study research. In addition, the basis for concepts of…

Research in the field of intergroup relations has developed considerably over the last two decades, influenced by events and by the historical zeitgeist. We suggest applying an interactional way of dealing with intergroup encounters, which emphasizes the situational macro-context (political, historical and social) in which the contact takes place.…

"A Study of Schooling" is an in-depth descriptive study of 38 purposively sampled schools in the United States. Many aspects of the educational process were examined, from student attitudes to principal leadership styles. Essential to this comprehensive view of education is a view of within classroom processes, including teacher student…

Human relations problem situations for Army senior non-commissioned officers (NCOs) were identified and analyzed using group problem solving methods. Then, using an analysis summary prepared for each case study problem situation as the basis, candidate performance exercises were developed. (These exercises specify terminal performance objectives…

The New Orleans Parent Child Development Center Intervention Model hypothesizes a series of effects: the Child Development and Family Life Educators impart curricula designed to change mother's attitudes and behavior toward her child in ways which should encourage the development of competence in the child. The two single most important types of…

The general purpose of this project was to produce some reliable and valid knowledge of how differences in the non-linguistic aspects of North American and Latin American socio-cultural patterns (concepts, values, beliefs, norms, expectations, and ethnocentrism) act as barriers to cross-cultural communication. The end product was to be…

Proposes the triangulation of two qualitative research methods, hermeneutics and grounded theory, to illuminate clinical realities that elude alternative approaches. Discusses how hermeneutics reveals perceptual information about the uniqueness of shared meanings and common practices, and how grounded theory provides a conceptual framework useful…

This study examines infant temperament (inhibited and uninhibited styles) as a predictor of behavior in the kindergarten classroom. Thirty-one kindergarten children were observed in their classrooms for approximately 1.5 hours on each of four occasions between September and January. Fourteen children (8 girls, 6 boys) had been classified as high…

An overview is presented of classroom observation instruments which have been created and refined since 1962. The components of teacher-pupil transactions measured by different observation methods are listed, and the complexities and difficulties encountered when using the instruments are discussed. A description is given of the Coping Analysis…

Studies of how children spend their time in school, how teachers' perceptions and student characteristics affect interactions and the use of time in classrooms, and how the concept of time relates to student achievement were reviewed in preparation for an investigation of the extent to which different groups of children have different learning…

THE PURPOSES OF THIS PAPER ARE TO EXAMINE THE RESEARCH METHODS GENERALLY UTILIZED IN DIFFUSION RESEARCH AND TO SUGGEST RESEARCH METHODS WHICH MIGHT HELP PROVIDE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE DIFFUSION PROCESS. TO PROMOTE THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE COMPLETE DIFFUSION PROCESS OF EDUCATIONAL CHANGE, RESEARCH SHOULD CONSIDER THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS,…

This study examined the applicability of Watts' Human Interaction Scale to day care settings, and was also concerned at a more general level with the question of whether it is possible for day care settings to approximate good homes. Six 2-year-olds in each of two day care centers were each videotaped for a total of 45 minutes in a variety of…

This paper argues that (1) as measures of emotional empathy in children are refined, there is increasingly strong support for the hypothesis that emotional empathy can serve both as an inhibitor of antisocial behavior and as a motivator of prosocial behavior, but that (2) since the relation between children's empathy and their behavior is…

The structure and quality of classroom interaction and the ways in which children learn how to interact appropriately was the initial focus of the research and field work described in this paper. The site was a kindergarten/first grade class in a suburban Boston Title I elementary school with many students from second and third generation…