Conflict, Social Competence, and Gender: Maternal and Peer Contexts

The current study was designed to address two major purposes. The first goal was to investigate the joint influence of children's sociometric status and sex on their conflict behavior, and the second goal was to explore the similarities and differences in children's conflict behavior across two contexts, specifically conflicts arising during interactions with mothers and with peers. Forty-two first-graders were videotaped playing with their mothers and then with an unfamiliar peer partner. Conflict behavior occurring in the mother-child context was quite different from that occurring between children, reflecting the contrast between the vertical and horizontal nature of these relationships. Most striking were the large number of sociometric status and sex differences in conflict behavior found across both contexts. Further, it appears that effective conflict behavior may differ for boys and girls. Implications for future research are discussed.     

The other exit: The definitive statement on management theory and practice in our time

As part of an investigation into the progress of the appraisal of primary school headteachers in three LEAs in the Midlands, the three LEA appraisal coordinators concerned were interviewed in advance of a sample of the headteachers. From the three semi-structured interviews it was possible to detect interesting differences, as well as similarities, in the procedures adopted in the LEAs. In one case the advisers were unable to meet the statutory obligation for there to be an LEA officer involved in each appraisal and reporting back to the LEA appeared to be very patchy. This stemmed from resource constraints which were also seen as a looming problem by the other coordinators. In all three cases the coordinators had tried to ensure that the implementation of headteacher appraisal was as non-threatening as possible. This had led in some cases to a level of reciprocity of appraisal together with a degree of choice which might be seen as a more comfortable set of arrangements than many managers outside education or, for that matter, class teachers might encounter. The outcomes were, however, seen as very positive staff development for the heads concerned. (This is being confirmed by the overwhelming majority of the heads themselves in the interviews with them which have taken place subsequently.) Although appraisal reports on heads are available by law to the chairpersons of governing bodies, there was evidence that such feedback as there was tended to be perfunctory in many cases. There is evidence that this is not through carelessness. Appraisal of headteachers may not be following the lines of accountability originally favoured by the government. This may account for some evidence of government disenchantment with the appraisal process in education as it currently operates.     

“May god have mercy on your soul!” Exploring and teaching a course on the death penalty

Teaching a course with emotive content presents faculty with a number of challenges. This article reflects on the lessons learned when teaching a semester-long course on the death penalty at a liberal arts university in the U.S. South. The course explored cultural, religious, historical, national, and international perspectives on the nature of punishment and the right to execute, the methods used in the death penalty, the efficacy of the death penalty, and future directions. The organization, presentation and teaching aids employed throughout this course sought to ensure an objective stance and focused on improving critical thinking among students.     

A Guide to Analyzing Message–Response Sequences and Group Interaction Patterns in Computer‐mediated Communication

This paper proposes a set of methods and a framework for evaluating, modeling, and predicting group interactions in computer‐mediated communication. The method of sequential analysis is described along with specific software tools and techniques to facilitate the analysis of message–response sequences. In addition, the Dialogic Theory and its assumptions are presented to establish a theoretical framework and guide to using sequential analysis in computer‐mediated communication research. Step‐by‐step instructions are presented to illustrate how sequential analysis can be used to measure the way latent variables (e.g., message function, response latency, communication style) and exogenous variables (e.g., gender, discourse rules, context) affect how likely a message is to elicit a response, the types of responses elicited by the message, and whether or not the elicited sequence of responses (e.g., claim → challenge → explain) mirror the processes that support group decision‐making, problem‐solving, and learning.     

Filipino parents’ school choice and loyalty: a factor analysis

This quantitative study aims to ascertain the significant relationship existing between parents’ profile, and their school choice and school loyalty. Data were gathered using the researcher’s two-part made instrument. Respondents were first asked to fill in a robotfoto for purpose of profiling their baseline characteristics and were later asked to rate listed indicators, using a modified 8-point Likert scale. Using statistical tools such as the ANOVA, factor analysis, correlation, mean, and standard deviation, data were treated indepth. It is interesting to note that although parents are loyal to their alma mater, this does not have a much impact on their choice of school for their children. On the whole, parents’ choice of school is based on its indispensable qualities. Among the three interval-scale profiles of the parent respondents such as age, income, tuition fee payment and number of children, none of these relate to school choice, but age, income, and tuition fee payment negatively relate to school loyalty. From their nominal-scale profiles, significant differences were noted in their school choice when grouped according to civil status, place of work, and terms of payment. With respect to school loyalty, significant differences occurred in their responses when classified according to gender, terms of payment and their active participation in the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA).     

Eye movements of monkeys during performance of ambiguous cue problems

Learning & Behavior - Eye movements of four stumptailed monkeys were measured during performance of simple and ambiguous form discriminations. Duration of fixations increased during learning of...