Small significant networks as birds of a feather

Current research indicates that instructors find support for their teaching via membership in small social networks. The present study was conducted to further our understanding of these networks by looking specifically at the perceptions network members hold of each other in terms of similarity of beliefs and the value of their interactions. Results indicate that participants were more likely to perceive high rather than low similarity of beliefs with others in their network, and value was positively associated with perceived similarity. Implications for teaching practice and the work of educational developers are discussed.     

Reciprocal influences between stressful life events and adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems

Investigated in this study were hypothesized reciprocal influences between stressful life events and adolescent maladjustment using data from a 6-year, prospective longitudinal study. Stressful life experiences, internalizing symptoms, and externalizing behaviors were assessed for a sample of adolescents (215 males, 236 females) living in the rural Midwest. From 7th to 12th grades, autoregressive analyses showed that stressful life events and these two forms of maladjustment were reciprocally interrelated over time. For example, stressful life events at one point significantly predicted delinquent behaviors 1 year later, which, in turn, significantly predicted stressful life events 1 year later, and vice versa. The findings provide evidence for the accumulating disadvantage for adolescents that results from the mutual reinforcement of problematic situations and adjustment problems over time.     

The Expression and Perception of Feelings Between Students and Supervisors in a Practicum Setting

It was hypothesized that over a period of time the interaction between social work students and their field work supervisors would become similar and positive, based upon shared feelings and perceptions. The data presented tend to support this hypothesis. Stability in the student-supervisor relationship was reached after a period of intensive interaction, and positive dyadic feelings increased as interaction increased. At initial contact there were negative correlations between students and supervisors scores on the perception and expression scales, but after two quarters of continued interaction, these correlations became positive and significant. Finally, it was demonstrated that the students' expressions and perceptions of the relationship became similar to those of their supervisors as time passed.     

New Books: The Reunification of the University

Academic writing is something we all want our students to do well. The ability of our students to use writing in meaningful ways seems to lag far behind what we know they can do. The author introduces a technique to assist in teaching college academic writing. Writing for personal goals is contrasted with student academic writing. The integration of personal writing is used to demonstrate the developmental nature of writing and thinking in the progress of student learning in college so that these learners can understand more clearly and use more effectively their own thinking and writing capabilities.     

A Program of Action

Abstract

Through qualitative analyses of narratives of what students and faculty wanted in their relationships, the authors identified three themes. The Teaching/Learning Environment theme illustrated needs for nurturing, open, nonthreatening, and respectful attitudes in student-faculty relationships. Exchange of Information students reported a desire to learn and interact with each other, but not with the instructor. With regard to Mentor/Peer Association theme, students wanted to develop networks of friends to help with course work, whereas teachers wanted to find principles of effective teaching to help students learn. Applications of this data for improving student-faculty interactions and instructional processes are discussed.     

Research Aids

William A. Belson and Beryl-Anne Thompson's Bibliography on Methods of Social and Business Research (New York: Hastead Press (division of John Wiley), 1973 -- price not given)

Frederick Holler's The Information Sources of Political Science (Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABCClio, 1971 -- coat not given, paper)

John Brown Mason's Research Resources: Annotated Guide to the Social Sciences (Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio, 196C and 1971 -- price not given, two volumes, paper)

W.T.K. Nugent's Creative History (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1973 -- price not given, paper)     

General Media: Related Works

Media Ecology Review (New York: NYU School of Education, 1972—$7.00 for 16 issues which make up the year's volume)

Frederick D. Wilhelmsen and Jane Bret's The War in Man: Media and Machines (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1970—$4.50)

Carl Belz' The Story of Rock (New York: Oxford University Press, 1972—$7.50)

Roger Karshner's The Music Machine (Los Angeles: Nash, 1971—$7.95)

Ann Christine Heintz' Persuasion (Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1970—$3.20, paper)     

Journalism

David Halberstam The Powers That Be (New York: Knopf, 1979—$15.00)

Salme Harju Steinberg Reformer in the Marketplace: Edward W. Bok and The Ladies' Home Journal (Baton Rouge, La.: Lousiana State University Press, 1979—$12.95)

John C. Merrill and Ralph L. Lowenstein Media, messages, and Men (New York: Longman, 1979—$7.95, paper)

Frederick Shook and Dan Lattimore The Broadcast News Process (Morton Publishing Co., 2700 East Bates Ave., Denver, Colorado 802l0—price not given, paper)

Donald Kirsch Financial and Economic Journalism: Analysis, Interpretation and Reporting (New York: New York University Press, 1979—$15.00 for the hardback text; $7.95 for the paperback documentary supplement)

Charles Brooks, ed. Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year: 1979 Edition (Gretna, La.: Pelican Publishing Co., 1979—$11.95/5.95)     

Film Directors

Peter Lehman and William Luhr, Blake Edwards (Athens: Ohio University Press, 1981 -- $8.95 paper/$18.95 cloth).

David Lean: A Guide to References and Resources by Louis P. Castelli ($18.50)

Stanley Kubrick: A Guide to References and Resources by Wallace Coyle ($24.00).

Jon Tuska (editor), Close Up: The Contemporary Director (Metuchen: The Scarecrow Press, 1981 -- $22.50).

Frederick Lamster, Souls Made Great Through Love and Adversity: The Film Work of Frank Borzage (Metuchen: The Scarecrow Press, 1981 -- $12.50).

Renata Berg-Pan, Leni Reifenstahl (1980, $13.95, 222 pages).

Georg Gaston, Karel Reisz (1980, $13.95, 166 pages).

Bettina Knapp, Sacha Guitry (1981, $14.95, 245 pages).

John Kreidl, Jean-Luc Godard (198. 0, $12.95, 273 pages).

Barbara Learning, Gri ore Kozintsev (1980, 14.95, 212 pages).

Charles J. Maland, Frank Capra (1980, $10.95, 218 pages).

Gene D. Phillips, John Schlesinger (19817714.95, 199 pages).

Stephen Snyder, Pier Paolo Pasolini (1980, $13.95, 199 pages).

William R. Taylor, Sydney Pollack (1981-, $14.95, 170 pages).

Louis Giannetti, Masters of the American Cinema (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1981 -- $11.95 paper).     

Do we have any theories of group communication?

The essay presents criteria for a “good theory” and then reviews advances in small group communication research during the 1980s. The fact that comparatively few scholars are dedicated to such research is then related to the criteria for good theory in discussions of, first, metaphors and imagination; second, puzzles and problems; and third, real‐world significance and outcomes. A call is made for the kind of research that will result in better small group theory.