Urban student affairs data exchange

Urban institutions of higher education have need of a peer group for comparison purposes. This article describes a student affairs database developed specifically for urban institutions of higher education. Such a database enables urban institutions to refer to comparison groups having similar characteristics. Specific examples of how the data can be utilized by chief student affairs officers and others are provided.     

Conceptual development in infancy: the understanding of containment

In each of 2 experiments, 2 measures were used to assess infants' understanding of the concept of "containment." After being habituated to videotaped episodes of sand being poured into and out of a cylinder, infants saw a "possible" event and then an "impossible" event. Infants who understand containment were expected to look longer at the "impossible" event. In the second test, infants were involved in a game of dropping blocks into a cup. In Experiment 1, 14-month-olds were contrasted with 20-month-olds to establish that the latter but not the former demonstrate an understanding of containment on both tasks. This age effect was obtained. In Experiment 2, we examined whether this understanding could be acquired by 14-month-olds. 50 infants were randomly assigned to 5 training conditions. 1 condition was effective in leading to the development of an understanding of containment: Infants who played with both cans and tubes in their home for 1 month performed in both tests similarly to untrained 20-month-olds.     

Perception,communication and educational research: A transactional view

Summary We have not presented a transactional theory, since, so far as we know, there is no one such theory to present. Instead, we have outlined some transactional viewpoints which we consider potentially useful in audiovisual communication, learning resources development, and research in these areas. We have suggested some implications and advantages of transactional assumptions.     

Research on “fortuitous” communication: A review

Summary In these two articles we have proposed a schematic theoretical model for the study of communication, one which subsumes both face-to-face and mass communication but is intended as an orientation to a general theory of mass communication. In addition we have used the model as a framework for a review of a part of the literature of mass communication and have attempted a brief assessment of the present state of our knowledge of the field. This paper presents one application of the authors’ conceptual model of the communication process published in the last issue of AVCR. Here they are attempting to order the existing research findings on “fortuitous” communication in relationship to their model. Malcolm S. MacLean, Jr., and Bruce H. Westley are assistant professors of Journalism, The University of Wisconsin.