The mid life transition and career couseling in Britain

Conclusion Despite these assertions, there has been considerable support for the relevance of Jung's work to women as well as men (Wehr, 1988; Downing, 1991). The framework that Levinson (1978) used to analyse his group of mid life men was useful in explaining more fully the woman client in the case study. Mid life brings many challenges and career counsellors need to be equipped to respond to their client's needs. As well as the appropriate skills, they require an appropritate theoretical framework. As Seligman (1994) put it, “counsellors who treat adults contemplating a mid life career change as they would treat the adolescent who is trying to formulate career plans will probably be unsuccessful and may well alienate the client” (p. 393).     

Reliability and Validity of Real-Time Response Measurement: a Comparison of Two Studies of a Televised Debate in Germany

This paper investigates the reliability and validity of real-timeresponse measurements (RTR). It is based on a comparison oftwo quasi-experimental studies independently conducted on thesecond televised debate of the two major candidates for chancellorin the 2002 German federal election campaign. Participants inBamberg and Mainz—two mid-sized German cities—followedthe debate on a large-scale screen. The viewers’ immediatereactions to the candidates were measured in real-time. In termsof technicalities and substance, both quasi-experiments differedin several important respects. For example, the system usedin Mainz was based on a control unit with a 7-point scale andyielded one merged metric dimension for both candidates. TheBamberg system measured positive and negative impressions ofthe candidates independently, yielding categorical data. Despitethese operational differences, the results show that both methodsrender reliable results that also meet the criteria of face,construct, and criterion validity. Hence, RTR measurements providevaluable, unique insights into subjective immediate reactionsto candidates in televised debates and help to explain post-debateperceptions and attitudes. Received for publication March 23, 2005. Revision received December 14, 2005.     

As we may think: Information literacy as a discipline for the information age

The aim of this paper is to propose information literacy as a soft applied discipline, of key importance in the information society. This is contrasted with the characterization of information literacy as a personal attribute in the U.S. and Australian Information Literacy standards. Vannevar Bush's vision of the technologically connected and enabled scientist is used to introduce a discussion of citizen's information needs and responsibilities in an age of “cheap complex devices.” The authors emphasize the key role of information literacy in this information society. Information literacy is identified as a soft applied discipline, with reference to disciplinary indicators that have been identified in the literature. Building on this concept of an information literacy discipline, the authors propose a mission for information literacy education focused around three elements: information literacy for citizenship, information literacy for economic growth, and information literacy for employability. The paper concludes by identifying that in terms of preparing citizens for managing and taking action in society, information literacy has much to contribute, and that it is vital to nurture this emergent discipline.     

Quality Assessment, Student Need, and Pastoral Care at the University of Strathclyde

For young people moving from school to higher education, the continued provision of high quality pastoral care should be an important consideration. However, though all institutions provide some sort of service, its quality can vary significantly. Even where provision has been good, it has normally been seen as a 'bolt‐on' extra, rather than something central to the student's experience. At the University of Strathclyde, a key element in the creation of a more effective and integrated approach has been the development of the personal tutor role into that of the more clearly defined and structured one of Academic Counsellor.