Methodologies for life course analyses must explain complex biological, psychosocial, and social factors which result in various patterns of life trajectories. Four problems are characteristic of current research: a seemingly endless list of potentially significant variables; a dearth of life course theory beyond childhood to assist in targeting…

Laboratory simulations combine the strengths of lab experiments and field studies while avoiding many of their liabilities. They permit the emotional involvement, the time needed for development of norms and interlocked systems of interaction, and the broad range of variables typical of field settings, yet allow for experimental controls and…

Discusses the symposium between the scientific community and the animal welfare community in which the consensus was absolute: new laboratory methods can complement but not replace intact animals. (LS)

Educational research is designed to generate valid and reliable information needed by decision-makers. The issue of research utilization is of utmost importance, especially as it relates to the federal government; however, much of the research has not found its way into the policymaking process. This issue precipitated a survey of 141 Mid-South…

Problems related to the study of second language learners are described, and the factors affecting language development are discussed. Factors influential in second language learning include psychological, sociological, and affective aspects. Similarly, the measurement of language has been influenced by linguistic, psychological, and social…

This paper summarizes the research on the factors influencing marital satisfaction, selected research on locus of control, research on the measurement of locus of control, and the recent research on locus of control and marital satisfaction. It analyzes this research from the standpoint of criticisms of the research on locus of control and makes…

Recently, a number of quantitative studies have explored systematic relationships between sociocultural organization and patterns of language use, based on the assumption that speech behavior reflects the basic categories of the community's social structure. Such systematic links were arrived at by correlating average group scores for…

Error profiles for the Fall Enrollment Survey of the Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) were developed as part of an assessment of the quality of survey data. Three statistics were of particular interest: the count of full-time equivalent students, the breakdown by race/ethnicity, and the count of unclassified students. Attention…

Researchers conducted surveys of public attitudes in two Tennessee school systems in 1984-85 and 1985-86. Although interested in the survey results, one purpose of the researchers was to determine some inexpensive and relatively simple survey procedures. The researchers sought--through several pilot studies--to identify an efficient, parsimonious…

With increasing reliance being placed on the results of their surveys, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) recognized a need for these survey results to be valid and reliable. As part of the work of the Statistical Analysis Group in Education (SAGE), an effort was undertaken to investigate validity and reliability in survey…

Contemporary scholars researching the courts' impact on schools would profit from examining the well-funded studies conducted in the 1960s and early 1970s. This article discusses the substance of early judicial impact research and explores its relevance for today. Most 1960s impact studies dealt with United States Supreme Court decisions in three…

Impromptu speech can be defined in different ways: in terms of situational context, linguistic characteristics, and real-time processing. These approaches are not contradictory. There are certain situations that call for rapid processing of spoken discourse, and the needs of that processing are reflected in the structure of the text. The degree of…

A year-long case study of the effects of an educational and vocational rehabilitation program in a youth training center was discussed in terms of fourteen issues which might threaten the validity of an evaluation or research project. This correctional institution housed women aged 14 to 21 who were long-term wards of the state, held on remand, or…

Sampling distributions for ten tests for comparing population variances in a two group design were generated for several combinations of equal and unequal sample sizes, population means, and group variances when distributional forms differed. The ten procedures included: (1) O'Brien's (OB); (2) O'Brien's with adjusted degrees of freedom; (3)…

A review of the literature is presented on developmental mathematics courses in two- and four-year colleges and universities. The paper is organized within the categories of status studies, placement, program evaluation, class management, student characteristics, and thought processes. Highlights of the report include: (1) an average of 2.0…