Evaluating Qualitative Inquiry in Technical and Scientific Communication: Toward a Practical and Dialogic Validity

In this article, we argue that one important criterion for evaluating qualitative studies of technical and scientific communication is whether we find our accounts meaningful and capable of redirecting our scholarly and professional practices. As a means of improving our understanding of the situations and practices we study, we address how to engage in our research in ways that not only are self-reflexive and dialogic, but that also solicit and use our participants' perspectives and authority—even when they may differ from our own.     

Citation bias in otolaryngology systematic reviews

Objective:Reproducibility of systemic reviews (SRs) can be hindered by the presence of citation bias. Citation bias may occur when authors of SRs conduct hand-searches of included study reference lists to identify additional studies. Such a practice may lead to exaggerated SR summary effects. The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of hand-searching reference lists in otolaryngology SRs.Methods:The authors searched for systematic reviews published in eight clinical otolaryngology journals using the Cochrane Library and PubMed, with the date parameter of January 1, 2008, to December 31, 2017. Two independent authors worked separately to extract data from each SR for the following elements: whether reference lists were hand-searched, other kinds of supplemental searching, PRISMA adherence, and funding source. Following extraction, the investigators met to review discrepancies and achieve consensus.Results:A total of 539 systemic reviews, 502 from clinical journals and 37 from the Cochrane library, were identified. Of those SRs, 72.4% (390/539) hand-searched reference lists, including 97.3% (36/37) of Cochrane reviews. For 228 (58.5%) of the SRs that hand-searched reference lists, no other supplemental search (e.g., search of trial registries) was conducted.Conclusions:These findings indicate that hand-searching reference lists is a common practice in otolaryngology SRs. Moreover, a majority of studies at risk of citation bias did not attempt to mitigate the bias by conducting additional supplemental searches. The implication is that summary effects in otolaryngology systematic reviews may be biased toward statistically significant findings.     

Scholarly Communication

MAKERS OF THE MEDIA MIND: JOURNALISM EDUCATORS AND THEIR IDEAS edited by William David Sloan (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1990—$49.95/27.50, ISBN 0-8058-0698-9 hard, 0-8058-0699-7 paper, 357 pp.)

LIBRARIES AND SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATION IN THE UNITED STATES: THE HISTORICAL DIMENSION edited by Phyllis Dain and John Y. Cole (Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1990—$37.95, ISBN 0-313-26807-X, 164 pp.)

SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATION AND BIBLIOMETRICS edited by Christine L. Borgman (Newbury Park, CA: Sage, 1990—$38.00, ISBN 0-8039-3879-9, 363 pp.)     

Further iterations on using the Problem-analysis Framework

A core component of applied educational and child psychology practice is the skilfulness with which practitioners are able to rigorously structure and conceptualise complex real world human problems. This is done in such a way that when they (with others) jointly work on them, there is an increased likelihood of positive outcomes being achieved for clients. The Problem-analysis Framework as discussed in this paper offers one way of working with such complexity which is grounded in a sound knowledge based in applied psychology. This paper provides further clarity on using the framework within applied practice. The authors were all trained in and use the Problem-analysis Framework and now work in many different types of applied settings within Australia, Iceland, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom. This paper illuminates important aspects of the problem-analysis approach itself for those currently learning it, as well as providing an aide-mémoire to those using it and those who want to develop their skills in this area.     

Democracy exported,history expunged: John Dewey’s trip to Turkey and the challenge of building ‘civilised’ nations for democratic life

In 1924, John Dewey travelled to Turkey to make recommendations on the Turkish educational system. According to many existing accounts, Dewey brought a sorely needed progressive educational perspective to a nation emerging from centuries of despair. On the whole, these accounts dismiss the Ottoman legacy and overlook how Dewey’s historical thinking coloured his view of Turkish democracy. This article draws on these considerations to offer a critical re-reading of Dewey’s trip, arguing that the visit, rather than supporting the expansion of a bottom-up democratic perspective in the Turkish educational system, actually helped advance top-down Turkish nation-building. In so doing, it explores the connections between history and democracy in Dewey’s thinking, reclaims the significance of the Ottoman legacy, examines the role of education in radically remaking the Turkish public, and points to the need for studying places and times where schooling is used to expunge history in the name of exporting democracy.     

People and Environment

Abstract

Recently, authentic assessments have been used extensively in the classroom setting; however, their use in informal settings, such as outdoor education centers, has been very limited. We review several classroom techniques and present examples that illustrate the use of authentic assessment at an ecology education center. We conclude with a discussion of general issues such as the correlation of learning objectives and program content, development and scoring, and other considerations associated with implementation of authentic assessment.     

Temperament and socio‐communicative orientation

This study investigated the relationship of scores on temperament dimensions for both three‐ (Eysenck, 1985) and five‐factor (McCrae & John, 1992) models with scores on two dimensions of socio‐commu‐nicative orientation (Richmond & McCroskey, 1990). The Eysenck Personality Inventory and the Five‐Factor Model measure have previously been validated as measuring genetically‐based dimensions of temperament. Substantial variance in scores of both assertiveness and responsiveness were predictable by each of the temperamental models. These results suggest that socio‐communicative orientation (self‐perceptions) is likely genetically based. There is a need for additional research employing twin designs, and ultimately direct genetic testing, to confirm these results.     

Improving Factor Score Estimation Through the Use of Observed Background Characteristics

A challenge facing nearly all studies in the psychological sciences is how to best combine multiple items into a valid and reliable score to be used in subsequent modeling. The most ubiquitous method is to compute a mean of items, but more contemporary approaches use various forms of latent score estimation. Regardless of approach, outside of large-scale testing applications, scoring models rarely include background characteristics to improve score quality. This article used a Monte Carlo simulation design to study score quality for different psychometric models that did and did not include covariates across levels of sample size, number of items, and degree of measurement invariance. The inclusion of covariates improved score quality for nearly all design factors, and in no case did the covariates degrade score quality relative to not considering the influences at all. Results suggest that the inclusion of observed covariates can improve factor score estimation.