This collection of essays examines the changes that have occurred in Russia since the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. A historical perspective is used to show that many of the changes were underway during perestroika and that post-Soviet developments are an extension of those changes. The book is divided into four sections. Section 1, "The…

The model for school-linked services is based on the ideal of providing a coherent and seamless web among school professionals and other service agencies. However, schools are often organized around specialized functions that are not wholly aligned and coordinated in function and purpose. This paper examines the nature of schools as "aggregative"…

The change processes involving schools that are currently experiencing turbulent social reconstruction in eastern Europe are examined in this paper, which calls for the development of a new paradigm for social change. The first section describes recent educational reform activities and their flaws in three eastern European countries--Russia,…

Discusses media-centered communication research models and applies them to a field setting in Venezuela in an attempt to assess the extent to which social processes depend on mass communication. See CS 703 632 for subscription information. (MH)

This report outlines alternative directions for urban social planning in Canada, taking into account the growth of the welfare state, alternative economic developments, and urban demographic trends. Based on a theory of increasing social convergence/diversity between the United States and Canada, a proactive model of planning is recommended. Urban…

This teacher training monograph deals with value orientations of cultures in general and with specific reference to United States Culture. The first two sections discuss the conceptual issues of value orientation and give axiological definitions of the six clusters used to describe cultural orientation: self, the family, society, human nature,…

Blacks, Native Americans, Mexicans, Asians, Hispanics, and other minority groups have managed to survive many consequences of racial/ethnic bias and discrimination in the United States. However, certain theoretical models that social scientists apply to studies of social problems reflect majority group biases that tend to perpetuate discrimination…

This paper suggests that community psychology may be going through an identity crisis because of its lack of empirical demonstrations of community intervention effectiveness, and an ecologically valid intervention research base. Although the majority of research in community psychology has used an individualistic paradigm that conceptualizes…

The educational system is the most important of the institutions that bridge the family and the work place. Because of the role of bridge institutions in providing skills and screening that influence an individual's developmental path, it is important to understand how urban systems allocate scarce opportunities. The purpose of this essay is to…

Data on the process and impact of introducing play therapy in children's hospitals in England and Wales are presented in this book. The effects of the introduction of play therapy on children's behaviors in children's wards and on the relationships between parents, doctors, nurses, ancillary staff, and playleaders are described. The responsiveness…

A systematic understanding of the press requires an understanding of the social and political structures within which the press operates. This book discusses four theories that have determined the kind of press the Western world has had: authoritarian, libertarian, socially responsible, and Soviet communist. Each chapter discusses press…

The problem of public school education in today's environment is presented, and a case is made for restructuring public school organizations and/or management processes along the pattern of an open systems approach. The closed system of operating allows externalities to impact on it, and there is a continuing emphasis on reacting. With the benefit…

This paper comments on and assesses the power of the research of six studies presented at the American Educational Research Association symposium, "Linking Behavioral Research and Administrative Science." Three of the studies (Jordan, Koehler and Ismail, Bredo) are classified in terms of organizations as formal structures, and as instruments of…

This study examined the interrelationships between principals of individually guided education/multi-unit elementary schools, the organizational structure of these schools, and the effectiveness of the schools' instruction and research units. The study attempted (1) to determine the relationship between principal behavior and the instruction and…

In the speech the main point is made that the human ecosystem of the world is subject to scientific inquiry and as a consequence a new way is needed to view the planet earth. Three sets of facts have now been established concerning the earth and its inhabitants: 1) the earth and its life forms constitute a system; 2) the many sub-systems of life…