This paper proposes that a study be done in the area of diffusion of innovations using a recently developed communication methodological tool, metric multidimensional scaling (MDS). An argument is made for using MDS to measure cultural concepts which are shared by members of a society. A definition of homophily-heterophily is presented as the…

Two techniques compose a new methodology for studying certain classes of qualitative information: the F-sort task for data collection and latent partition analysis for data summarization. A detailed presentation is given of its application to a study of teacher's views of facilitating student learning in the classroom. (Author/LMO)

Multidimensional scaling and unfloding procedures were employed to identify the dimensions underlying perceptions of political figures and to predict subjects' voting preferences. (Author)

The selection of supervision models from the point of view of practitioners has become overwhelming, especially within the contextual forces of a school or school system. The purpose of this study was to use multidimensional scaling (MDS) to describe four theoretical models of teacher supervision (clinical, artistic, technical, and reflective)…

The purpose of the study was to use confirmatory factor analysis techniques to assess the adequacy of previous validity studies related to the structural and theoretical dimensions underlying a measure of self-concept, the Piers Harris Children's Self Concept Scale. Responses from 890 students in grades 3-6 were used as input to the LISREL program…

In a series of three independent studies that focused on the classic sources of curriculum (the learner, society, and subject matter), data were gathered that might bear on the choices facing the curriculum developer. Learner data tentatively revealed what characteristics of pictures affected the deployment of third-grade children's visual…

This paper reports a factor analytic investigation of the interpersonal attraction construct. Two hundred-fifteen subjects completed 30 Likert-type, 7-step scales concerning an acquaintance. Factor analysis indicated three dimensions of the interpersonal attraction construct which were labeled "task,""social," and "physical." Obtained internal…

This study assessed whether slides of lighting arrangements could adequately simulate results from real space. Data indicated that in many important respects the results for the slides matched those for the real space for ratings on semantic differential scales, but that less consistent results were obtained for multidimensional scaling.…

Describes multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis and the type of problems they can help solve. Cites major literature sources concerning their use. Reviews applications of these methods in rehabilitation research. Discusses possible advantages of nonmetric data-reduction techniques over metric approaches, such as factor analysis. (Author)

Sex-typed and androgynous subjects rated the similarity of handwritings on masculinity-femininity and also rated the writings on an absolute scale of masculinity-femininity. The data supported the hypothesis that subjects who monitor their own behavior on a given dimension are more sensitive to cues in others relating to that dimension. (Editor/RK)

The current study integrates descriptive (though primarily social-psychological) statements about youth suicide into a coherent, empirically supported taxonomy. Drawing from relevant literature, a set of 107 items characterizing these contributions about youth suicide was created. Seventy-two participants sorted these statements according to their…

The purpose of this study was to determine the various ways in which audience members recall and quantify messages coming through the different media. The data presented here were collected during the course of a panel study into the social context of mass media use. The measurement and analytic techniques are exploratory. The respondents were…

Researchers evaluated the construct validity of attitude measures containing feeling, belief, and intention-to-act components. Evidence strongly suggests that treating these three factors as unidimensional concepts is inadequate for measuring health attitudes--a multidimensional approach is needed. (PP)

Circulated library books classified according to academic subject areas and student majors were used to determine relative subject similarities in 40 academic departments. Use of multidimensional scaling to compute similarities in undergraduate and graduate circulation and implications for library collection development and storage are described.…

The relationship between intelligence and personality has been of scientific interest for over 100 years. However, most contemporary estimates of these relationships are limited because they do not separate the variance due to general and narrow cognitive abilities. This study demonstrates that this methodological oversight can distort estimates…