Boys, ages 6, 8, and 10, were classified with regard to conceptual tempo and were presented with cartoon stimuli varying in cognitive complexity and level of affectivity. The results indicate that reflective subjects generally displayed the highest comprehension scores while impulsive subjects displayed the greatest spontaneous mirth. (JMB)

This review of the literature on five learner control variables in computer-based instruction concludes that: (1) pacing left to learner control has been found ineffective because learners tend to procrastinate or to exit lessons prematurely; (2) sequence, or content flow, has been an ineffective variable left under learner control since…

The thinking processes of students of Logo were examined to identify programming problems and possible instructional remedies. Subjects were 11 students between the ages of 8 and 12 who had completed 5 weeks of Logo instruction. These students were given a series of five short programming problems highlighting such areas of difficulty as judging…

The absolutive voice is a fact of life for Guatemalan children who speak the Mayan language K'iche' and one that enters their verbal lexicon fairly early. Data suggest that by the time the children are 3-year-olds they have encountered several instances of verbs that alternate between active and absolutive forms, which may supply the evidence…

This paper describes and illustrates a method for equating examinations with multiple facets (i.e., items, examinees, judges, tasks, and rating scales). The data are from the practical section of two histotechnology certification examinations. The first practical examination involved 210 examinees, 14 judges, 15 slides, 3 tasks, and 2 rating…

Based on the author's Ph. D. dissertation submitted to the Department of Psychology at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

A word problem is more difficult to solve when the minimum number of different operations to reach the correct solution is large, when it is of a different type than a problem preceding it, when the indexed complexity of its most complex sentence is great, when there are a large number of words in the problem, and when a conversion of units (as…

Examples of cross-cultural stability or instability of mental test items are illustrated. A statistical procedure involving the cross-plotting of item difficulties for two different groups and generating a line of mutual regression through the resulting scatter of points is described. D-values, representing the perpendicular distance, in delta…

Elementary school students and adults were presented with a paired comparison task of visual complexity in which contour and presence or absence of structure in the patterns were manipulated. Results indicated that complexity judgments of all subjects were affected by the presence of structure at lower levels of contour. (GO)

Presents a study of communication development in 5-year-old children. Subjects described multidimensional triangles for the listener. Tasks involved simple or complex attribute variation. Results indicated success only on simple tasks. (CM)

A modification of Hoyt's analysis of variance model for test analysis was proposed by Lu. A difficulty that may be encountered in using Lu's modification is examined, and a solution is proposed. (JKS)

This panel study examined the determinants of supervisory, employee, and group decision-making in departments or units within a complex organization. Available from: Comparative Administration Research Institute, Kent State University Press, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242. (Author)

Synthesizes much of the literature on technology and size relative to the two dependent variables that appear to be most alike: structural differentiation and complexity. The better test of a direct causal effect is to examine relationships between rates of change in these variables, not associations between levels. (Author/IRT)