Using Petronio's communication privacy management theory, this study tested the degree to which content relevance and students' comfort with instructor disclosures moderated the association between instructor disclosures (i.e., frequency and appropriateness) and credibility (i.e., competence, trustworthiness, and goodwill) in the college…

Children's reasoning about the credibility of positive and negative evaluations of academic performance was examined. Across 2 studies, 7- and 10-year-olds from the United States and China (N = 334) judged the credibility of academic evaluations that were directed toward an unfamiliar peer. In Study 1, participants from China responded that…

The authors have completed a pilot study of the state of diverse faculty in higher education in the United States. Inquiries included the areas of belonging (if and how they developed a sense of belonging), professional respect (how colleagues regarded their achievements), and the role of cultural broker (how they functioned as cultural brokers in…

Accounting majors enrolled in business courses at two different universities were asked to complete a survey questionnaire pertaining to cheating in online business courses. Specifically, students majoring in Accounting were asked about their awareness of cheating in online business courses as well as their opinions regarding the credibility of…

The Internet is an important resource for health information, among younger and older people alike. Unfortunately, there are limitations associated with online health information. Research is needed on the quality of information found online and on whether users are being critical consumers of the information they find. Also, there is a need for…

A simple Internet search of "academic dishonesty" reveals a continuing conversation among individuals within the academic community who are asking what academic dishonesty is, who is cheating, why students are cheating, and how we stop them from cheating. This article addresses these questions and provides a model for creating a culture of trust…

The trustworthiness of a qualitative study can be increased by maintaining high credibility and objectivity. Of utmost importance to these factors is the reflexivity of the researcher. Standard journaling techniques are frequently used to maintain an audit trail and document tentative interpretations of a study. One of the major limitations to…

This study examines interactions from trials in the Syariah court in Malaysia. It focuses on the types of questioning, the choice of language and the linguistic resources employed in this particular context. In the discourse of law, questioning has been a prominent concern particularly in cross-examination and can be considered one of the key…

The study of bullshit, what the author calls "taurascatics", has been making a splash of late. It was Harry Frankfurt who tossed the stone: his essay "On Bullshit" came out in "Raritan" in 1986, hit the "New York Times" best-seller list as a book in 1995, and has been adopted, adapted, and criticized across the academy since. The ripples spread…

Given recent questions regarding the construct validity of Cahn and Shulman's Feelings of Understanding/Misunderstanding scale, two studies were conducted to develop a low-inference, behavioral measure of students' perceived understanding in the college classroom. In Study One (N = 265), a pilot inventory was developed to measure students'…

This study investigated the relationship between students' motives to communicate (i.e., relational, functional, participatory, excuse making, and sycophantic) with their instructors and perceived instructor credibility, attractiveness, and homophily. 150 undergraduate students (85 men, 64 women, one did not indicate sex) enrolled at a large…

With quality assurance related to the Bologna goals, universities are required to fulfil internationally accepted standardized criteria of quality. This tends to reinforce control in assessment. However, control-oriented evaluations seem to lack meaning for academic staff. The article explored the possibilities and space for improvement-oriented…

This study is a qualitative inquiry into the institutionalization of equitable policies for non-tenure-track faculty. Through the theoretical framework of institutionalization, we examine factors and strategies forwarding various policies and practices and the challenges that arise. The results highlight themes throughout the stages of…

The purpose of this study was to explore South Korean parents' understanding of and desires for music education for their children. Following a constructivist paradigm and qualitative research methodology, data collection involved in-depth interviews, observations, written questionnaires, family music materials, and the researcher's journals. The…

In an effort to recruit digitally native high school students, admission professionals at colleges and universities are incorporating blogs on their websites in an effort to render authenticity in their marketing materials. Of 4-year accredited colleges and universities, 66% have a blog; 85% percent of institutions with blogs reported that their…