Russian Science Citation Index: Areas for Development Identified by Active Users

The current state of the Russian Science Citation Index is analyzed. Several areas for its further development identified by long-standing active users, such as data searching, refinement, and storage; current user alerts; data input with the Science Index license; patent information; and the application programming interface (API) are investigated.     

Factors influencing undergraduate use of e-books: A mixed methods study

Academic libraries invest millions of dollars to make electronic resources such as e-books available to students for free. However, free access might not necessarily result in students' sustained interest in and use of e-books. This interdisciplinary, mixed methods research investigates the factors influencing the intention of 279 undergraduate students to use e-books at a land-grant university in the southern US. Structural equation modeling of the survey responses suggests that organizational environment for information technology, external locus of control, subjective norm, perceived enjoyment (i.e., joyfulness), and information technology features play a significant role in influencing the intention of students to use e-books. Based on a combination of quantitative results and qualitative findings, this study identifies eight activities that libraries need to undertake in order to increase the use of e-books by undergraduate students.     

Narrative Persuasion in a New Media Environment: The Impact of Binge-Watching and Second-Screening

The study explored the role of second-screen use and binge-watching in moderating entertainment education (EE) effects. A pretest/posttest experiment of 273 viewers of East Los High measured the effects of exposure to three subplots, concerning alcohol abuse, abortion, and immigration. The effect of identification with characters on change in attitudes was significantly moderated by second-screen use and binge-watching. In particular, second-screening tended to enhance the positive impact of identification; whereas, among respondents who binge-watched the show, the effects of identification were weaker.     

Reasons for Student Engagement in Extra-Class Communication

This study extends instructional communication research on extra-class communication (ECC) by presenting an integrative analysis comparing the explanatory utility of student- and instructor-oriented reasons for student engagement in frequent ECC. Results from 495 college students suggested that student-oriented reasons, specifically the relational and functional student motives, were the only significant, positive predictors of students’ perceptions of frequent ECC engagement. Other student motives (excuse making, participation, sycophancy) and perceptions of instructor approachability did not significantly predict perceived frequency of ECC engagement.     

It’s More Than Self-Presentation: MUM Effects Can Reflect Private Discomfort and Concern for the Recipient

Is the reluctance to share bad news (i.e., the MUM effect) motivated more by a public display or private concern, and does it benefit mainly the messenger or the recipient? An experiment (N = 309) that crossed good/bad news with three communication channels (face-to-face, text messaging, e-mail) revealed that messenger reluctance was greatest under conditions of bad news and did not vary based on the channel through which the recipient contacted the messenger. In contrast with earlier work, this MUM effect was more consistent with a private fear of distressing the recipient. Theoretical implications and limitations are discussed.     

Investigating married adults’ communal coping with genetic health risk and perceived discrimination

Increased genetic testing in personalized medicine presents unique challenges for couples, including managing disease risk and potential discrimination as a couple. This study investigated couples’ conflicts and support gaps as they coped with perceived genetic discrimination. We also explored the degree to which communal coping was beneficial in reducing support gaps and ultimately stress. Dyadic analysis of married adults (N?=?266, 133 couples), in which one person had the genetic risk for serious illness, showed that perceived discrimination predicted more frequent conflicts about alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency-related treatment, privacy boundaries, and finances, which, in turn, predicted wider gaps in emotion and esteem support, and greater stress for both spouses. Communal coping predicted lower support gaps for both partners and marginally lower stress.     

中日印韩四国2011—2015年国际顶级期刊论文产出状况及国际地位对比分析

为了研究科研成果高水平论文产出状况,了解中日印韩四国近五年在国际顶级期刊(Cell、Nature、Science,CNS)论文产出以及国际地位变化,利用Web of Science统计2011—2015年中日印韩在CNS论文产出情况和国际地位变化.研究发现:我国与日本并驾齐驱,并大有赶超日本的趋势,二者约占四国论文总数的80％;印度和韩国仅占20％.国际排名则中日较为靠前,期间中国增长最为迅速,印度和韩国保持相对稳定,日本增长最低.我国2011—2015年CNS论文产出增长势头明显,相关系数呈正相关,并在2015年全面超越日本并进一步拉开差距,在四国当中首屈一指,但以后可能进入一种新常态模式,为此提出两点建议期望能保持高质量论文中高速增长.