Latino children’s ability to interpret in health settings: A parent–child dyadic perspective on child health literacy

To determine children’s ability to interpret in medical settings, 100 dyads of low-income, Spanish-speaking parents and their bilingual children who interpret for the parents were surveyed. Seventy-four children demonstrated adequate health literacy in English. Three theoretical perspectives (social cognitive theory, role-reversal theory, and the team-effort model) guided hypotheses about how parent and child characteristics influenced child health literacy. Structural equation model results supported the team-effort model. Children were more health literate when they were older, had better English abilities, had higher self-efficacy, and had parents with lower self-efficacy and better English language abilities. Children and parents may work as a team in medical interpreting settings, with children simultaneously compensating for and learning from parents.     

Perceptions of social‐sexual communication at work: The effects of message,situation, and observer characteristics on judgments of sexual harassment

Social‐sexual communication at work may contribute to either the initiation of an organizational romance or sexual harassment. We examined forces that influence perceptions of sexual messages as harassing rather than flirtatious. We presented 94 working adults with questionnaires soliciting workplace attitudes and experiences. Then, participants reviewed newsletters describing male and female coworkers in a fictitious organization. Finally, participants evaluated the degree of sexual harassment evident in six hypothetical interactions wherein one of the employees introduced in the newsletter makes a suggestive remark to his or her coworker. Newsletters and questionnaires manipulated the explicitness of messages, the initiator's status as supervisor versus subordinate, the attractiveness of the message initiator and target, and the initiator's sex. Message explicitness accounted for 88% of the variance in perceptions of harassment. A five‐way interaction among message and situational cues suggested that perceptions of sexual harassment are also influenced by contextual information. Females rated highly explicit messages as more harassing than did males, and individuals who were more accepting of socializing or dating between coworkers rated scenarios as less harassing. Exposure to socializing at work had a curvilinear association with perceptions of harassment such that low to moderate exposure corresponded with perceptions of greater harassment and moderate to high exposure was associated with lower ratings of sexual harassment. The discussion highlights applications for sexual harassment training programs within organizations.     

Citizen–government collaboration on social media: The case of Twitter in the 2011 riots in England

How social media can enable opportunities for collaboration between citizens and governments is an evolving issue in theory and practice. This paper examines the dynamic aspects of collaboration in the context of the 2011 riots in England. In August 2011, parts of London and other cities in England suffered from extensive disorder and even loss of human lives. Based on a dataset of 1746 posts by 81 local government Twitter accounts during or shortly after the riots, we explore how local authorities attempted to reduce the effects of the riots and support community recovery. Using Twitter's conversational and rapid update features, they produced a variety of informational and actionable messages with clear calls for offline or online action. In some cases, collective against the riots evolved in a mutual way: not only citizens were mobilized by local authorities, but also local authorities actively promoted actions initiated by citizens.     

The door opens to a thousand blossoms: A preliminary study of communication and rural development in China (1979–88)

The economic reform underway in China from 1979 has brought remarkable change to the country, particularly in rural areas. What role do communications play in the process? What kind of communications via different media occurred in the consequential rural change? Does it have something to offer about communication and development? What can be improved and what should be continued with regard to communications in rural China? The purpose of this paper is to try and find answers by looking at the communication activities in rural China, with data from newspapers, personal observations and other literature. The analysis is based on existing theories followed by conclusions and implications for policy and planning. It is pointed out that concerns about basic human needs are the fundamental guideline for communication for development. Communications would greatly enhance development when basic information needs are met, which leads to fulfilment of basic human needs.     

Which candidates do the public discuss online in an election campaign?: The use of social media by 2012 presidential candidates and its impact on candidate salience

The effects of new communication technologies on election campaigns, and the effectiveness of media-centered campaign strategies more broadly, remain ongoing subjects for debate in political science. This study provides some of the first empirical evidence about the potential impact of social media on the 2012 U.S. presidential elections, by testing the association between “candidate salience” and the candidates' level of engagement in online social media sphere. We define “candidate salience” as the extent to which candidates are discussed online by the public in an election campaign, and have selected the number of mentions presidential candidates receive on the social media site, Twitter, as means of quantifying their salience. This strategy allows us to examine whether social media, which is widely recognized as disruptive in the broader economic and social domains, has the potential to change the traditional dynamics of U.S. election campaigns. We find that while social media does substantially expand the possible modes and methods of election campaigning, high levels of social media activity on the part of presidential candidates have, as of yet, resulted in minimal effects on the amount of public attention they receive online.     

The effects of gain versus loss framing and issue involvement on publics’ responses to nuclear energy messages in South Korea

This study investigates how the public’s perceptions of nuclear power, one of the modern technologies at the center of public debate on risk issues, are influenced by gain versus loss framing in the volatile context of nuclear energy applications in South Korea. Drawing upon prospect theory as its conceptual framework, this experiment using 566 adult participants found that loss-framed messages (i.e. emphasizing the negative outcomes of not using nuclear power) were more effective in increasing participants’ message credibility perceptions as compared to gain-framed messages (i.e. emphasizing the positive outcomes of using nuclear power). Additionally, the results found issue involvement to be a significant moderator of the framing effect, by demonstrating that the advantage of loss framing was stronger for participants who were highly involved in nuclear energy issue, as compared to those who were less involved in the issue. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

“The eye in the sky doesn’t lie”: Video replay and self-evaluations as part of the basic communication course

This study explores extent and frequency of conventional practices in the basic communication course: speeches, video replay, and self-evaluations from 45 basic course directors and instructors. Results indicated three to four speeches per curriculum, with two prominent speech types: informative (97.8%) and persuasive (91.1%). Approximately 76% of curriculums used video replay. Self-evaluation questions (N?=?254) used 52.8% open, 40.6% closed, 21.9% circular, and 21.9% strategic questions. Most frequently used questions focused on: delivery (12.1%), content (10.6%), or delivery and content (11.1%). Findings suggest pedagogical practices vary across the discipline, and the discussion offers practical applications for improving practices.     

The effects of message source and fear appeal on young adults’ response to Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) messages in Singapore

This study examines the psychological processes that determine how fear appeal and sponsor type impact young adults’ responses to public campaigns against Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) in Singapore. The results showed that fear appeal in the STD messages increased the level of anger arousal, while the STD messages sponsored by a commercial company versus a government agency increased the level of negative cognitions among participants. The interaction between fear appeal and sponsor type was found in both affective and cognitive responses of psychological reactance against the STD messages.     

The War of the Airwaves in Portugal: Foreign Propaganda on Short and Medium Waves, 1933–1945

This article focuses on the start of the “war of the airwaves” in Portugal. It provides data on the first foreign shortwave broadcasts in Portuguese, describing the background to those initial broadcasts and also analyzing their impact on Portuguese public opinion, as well as the degree of importance afforded such broadcasts by the Allies and the Axis Powers during World War II. Moreover, the article also details some of the strategies used by the warring nations to influence the editorial line of Portuguese radio stations.     

The Development of News as a Viable Format in Philippine Radio (1960s–Present): A Study of DZRH and DZBB

This article traces the development of news as programming content in Philippine radio from the 1960s to the present. Two radio stations, DZRH and DZBB, were chosen for the study. Aside from their popularity among Metro Manila listeners, they are also similar in content (news and information-oriented programs) and have long histories. The case studies show the socio-political, regulatory, economic, and technological influences on the metamorphosis of DZRH and DZBB into news-oriented radio stations. Attention was given to the changes in news program format, news production, and the ratings and advertising of the two stations.     

From Fifty Editions of The Old Man and the Sea to Fifty Shades of Grey: A Glimpse of Translation Rights Market in China (2002–2012)

This article provides an overview of the market for translation in China in the last decade based on the data collected from official publishing industrial statements, recent book publishing surveys and news reports. While providing basic information of book publishing in the country, the author also probe the current trends and developments in the field of rights trade, book distribution and digital publishing.     

The changing role of school/media resource libraries in secondary schools in Singapore and the need to implement mandatory standards, 1946–2010: Issues,challenges and opportunities

The aim of this paper is to study the development and evolution of secondary school libraries into Media Resource Libraries (MRLs) in Singapore after the Second World War and the rationale to have mandatory school library standards. It is an historical survey analysing published data about the linkages of libraries and librarianship, school library standards, education and school reforms in Singapore. It analyses historical and current documents on the roles played by stakeholders like the Library Association of Singapore (LAS) and the Ministry of Education (MOE) in the introduction and development of school library standards. The need for school libraries standards was first discussed when the Malayan Library Group (MLG) organised the first course on librarianship for school teachers in 1955, but, with no follow through. The need for school libraries standards was also mentioned by the LAS in 1962 in a memorandum to the Commission of Enquiry into Education to train teacher librarians and adopt school library standards. However, this was left out in the final report of the Commission published in 1964. The need for school library standards was discussed in a school library seminar for 150 teacher librarians in 1970. The first Recommended Minimum Standards for Secondary School Libraries was published two years later by the Standing Committee on Libraries set up by the MOE, but it was not mandatory for schools to adopt the standards. In 1997 the MOE launched its “Thinking School Learning Nation” vision to teach thinking skills. Students were expected to do multidisciplinary project work and be independent users of information. The MOE began to convert school libraries into Media Resource Libraries (MRLs) with print and non-print materials. However, a survey conducted in 2001 on the roles and competencies of 112 Library Coordinators (LCs) or teacher librarians revealed that they lack the skills and knowledge to manage MRLs effectively. This is because subsequent school library standards published in 1983 and 2002 did not require trained and full-time teacher librarians to manage the MRLs. Furthermore, it is essential for the standards to be periodically updated with regards to professional staff, collection development, facilities, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure and school library programs. Otherwise, MRLs risk being “hollow shells still considered on the periphery of core educational requirements, and are run by teachers not professionally prepared to do the work” (Hart, 2001, p. 25). The national standards published in the United States from 1918 to 2008 are well researched and provide substantive guidelines to develop school libraries. Therefore, it is essential for the MOE to formulate MRL standards by doing comparative studies of school library standards in other countries. These standards have to be mandatory and fully adopted by the schools. It provides opportunities for stakeholders like the LAS, National Library Board (NLB), the National Institute of Education (NIE), and the Singapore Teachers’ Union, to collaborate in the formulation of these standards and take collective ownership to implement them.     

Advisor–Advisee Communication Two: The Influence of Verbal Aggression and Humor Assessment on Advisee Perceptions of Advisor Credibility and Affective Learning This paper was presented at the 2004 National Communication Association Convention in Chicago,Illinois.

The goal of the current study was to further the research line initiated by the authors that examined the influence of a variety of communication variables in the Graduate Advisor–Advisee interpersonal relationship. The current study examined the relationship between advisee perceptions of advisor verbal aggression and humor assessment and the impact these variables have on advisee affect and advisee perceptions of advisor credibility (competence, caring/goodwill, and trustworthiness). Findings revealed that advisor humor assessment was positively related to both advisee affect and advisee perceptions of advisor credibility. The study further found that advisor verbal aggression was negatively related to both advisee affect and advisee perceptions of advisorp credibility.