The research literature is rich on innovations in R&D-specific organizations and provides useful information on support systems and other organizational features associated with such specialized organizations. An implied assumption of many studies is that R&D exists as an independent entity, without controls or influences from the other…

Failures in the implementation of management information systems (MIS) can be attributed in part to a lack of managerial "involvement" and "appreciation." The concepts of involvement and appreciation are defined and their measurement in a real-world research setting is presented. (Author)

This demonstration of the use of a computer simulation research method based on the System Dynamics modeling technique for studying distance education reviews research methods in distance education, including the broad categories of conceptual and case studies, and presents a rationale for the application of systems research in this area. The…

An analytical model for a cost-effectiveness approach to the journal disposition problem is presented. An example based on data from a real university special library situation is presented. (Author/PF)

Ecological modeling is a holistic systems level approach to situational analysis which can be used in planning activities for lifelong learning in an urban setting. It is the purpose of this essay to present a discussion of ecological modeling in its pure or conceptual sense and concomitantly to translate this analysis into an effective and…

Analyzes Skills Management Systems (SMS) as a means for establishing an accountability framework in reading instruction and concludes that at the present time there are too many unverified assumptions in such systems. (RB)

This document first outlines considerations relative to a systems approach to evaluation, and then argues for such an approach to the evaluation of information retrieval systems (ISR). The criterion of such evaluations should be the utility of the information retrieved to the user, and the ISR ought to be regarded as one of three interrelated…

During the two-year Relevance Assessment Project, 15 studies were designed and carried out with over 500 subjects used as relevance judges. The subjects were librarians, information specialists, library science students and faculty, and graduate and upper division students in psychology. Materials for judging were selected for subjects according…

This study was designed to extend the generality of the Substrata-Factor Theory by two methods of investigation: (1) theoretically, to est"blish the validity of the hypothesis that an isomorphic relationship exists between the Substrata-Factor Theory and the General Open Systems Theory, and (2) experimentally, to disc"ver through a…

The development of logically sophisticated analytical models in a growing number of fields has placed new emphasis on efficiency in school management. Recent systems models guiding the longrun analysis of school management in terms of efficiency--through cost-benefit studies, systems analysis, and program planning and budgeting systems--are in…

The U. S. Air Force job inventory for the automatic digital switching specialist career ladder is divided into 12 categories, each of which is broken down into a duty-task list. Space is provided for Air Force personnel filling out the inventory to check whether each task is at present part of their duties. The 12 categories are: organizing and…

Unit cost is an anticipated offspring of the pressing notions of accountability, efficiency, and comparability, coupled with the decreasing availability of both public and private resources for higher education, and the increasing cost of deliverance of higher education in general. The two most widely used measures of unit cost in higher education…

An invitation to participate in this panel discussion was sent to official representatives of organizations which had an expressed interest in information networks. Since some of the represented international bodies had started preliminary planning for network communication, the discussion was centered around systems design concepts. However, as…