Public Versus Private Colleges: Political Participation of College Graduates

Using data from the Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study (B&B:93/03) of College Graduates, we use structural equation modeling to model the relationships between college major, values held in college, collegiate community service participation, and the post-college political participation of college graduates by public versus private institutions. We use Holland’s Theory of person-environment fit as lens to understand differences in political participation across majors and institutional contexts. Over a 10-year period immediately after receiving the baccalaureate, we find that choice of major and individual values are differentially associated with post-college political participation for private institution graduates when compared to the counterparts at public institutions. We relate our findings to extant literature that highlights the differences in institutional characteristics between public and private colleges and socialization patterns of undergraduates that may inform differences in post-college political participation. Implications for future research are also offered.     

10 Ways to Keep Techies Happy

This article explores the factors in developing a successful cooperative relationship between professional librarians and an organization's information technologists. He discusses the clash of cultures between the two groups and makes ten concrete suggestions for how to ease that relationship and make it work.     

Music Reference Sources: Analog in a Digital World

ABSTRACT

Do we need print reference collections at all? In the case of music reference materials, the answer is definitely “yes.” At the University of Memphis, reference titles in the music library are used at about three times the rate of reference materials in the main library. This paper leverages local reference and reserve book usage to investigate how print reference sources support music research of various kinds, how music faculty integrate reference sources into their courses, and how librarians can make finding and using these resources easier for users accustomed to accessing materials online without an intermediary.     

The persuasive effect of the AIDS NAMES quilt on behavioral intentions

The present study attempted to test the persuasive impact of the AIDS NAMES Quilt on behavioral intentions. Specifically, the Quilt, and knowing or not knowing a homosexual or Person Living with AIDS (PLWA), was predicted to be influential in determining one's intentions to behave supportively towards PLWA.

Results indicated that far individuals who know a homosexual or PLWA, viewing the quilt had no effect. For individuals who did not know a homosexual or PLWA, the quilt had a significant effect on their behavioral intentions e.g., they were more willing to engage in supportive behaviors. Additionally, females were more willing to engage in supportive behaviors than males. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Attachment styles and the evaluation of comforting responses: A receiver perspective

The current study explored emotional distress and comforting messages from a receiver's perspective. This approach differs from most comforting research, which focuses on the sender's ability to provide comfort. After reading a scenario that depicted a major distressing event or a daily distressing event, subjects selected the Burleson and Samter (1985) comforting strategy that would most alleviate their emotional distress. In an attempt to explain a subject's perceptions of comforting, attachment styles, likelihood of seeking support, and level of emotional discomfort were also assessed. Results indicated that subjects desired a mid‐level comforting response regardless of whether they were distressed over a daily event or major event. This result is counter to the sender oriented comforting research, which suggests that providing higher‐level comforting responses is optimal. Subjects in the death scenario were more upset by the event and more likely to seek social support. Secure attachment subjects desired a significantly higher‐level comforting message than anxious/ambivalent and avoidant individuals. Additionally, females desired a higher level comforting response, were more likely to be upset by the distress, and were more likely to seek support than males.     

The Columbia Shuttle Breakup: News Diffusion Comparison of a Local and Distant Location

This study examines the news diffusion process during the 2003 Columbia shuttle tragedy. Participants in two locations were surveyed during the week following the tragedy to directly compare the diffusion process for a distant and local location. An initial difference was the prevalence of telephone use for the local group in first hearing about the breakup versus face-to-face and television for the distant group. Internet usage appeared more prevalent than in previous studies and was particularly evident for the distant group during the initial stages of the news event. Television was the primary choice for follow-up information for both groups. While mass media usage seemed comparable throughout, the use of interpersonal sources declined more for the distant group during the diffusion process.     

The Impact of Fantasy Sports on Television Viewership

This article analyzes the impact of playing fantasy sports on the television viewership of the National Football League and of Major League Baseball. Using survey data from the ESPN Sports Poll, this study found evidence suggesting that fantasy sports participation leads to an increase in the number of games watched on television and, therefore, acts as a complement to televised sporting events. The greater demand for televised sports should arguably increase the value of advertising spots and, therefore, lead to a greater potential for cross-marketing across the 2 media of television and the Internet.     

Motion Pictures

Leonard Maltin's Movie Comedy Teams (Signet W4453, $1.50)

Edward Wagenknecht's The Movies in the Age of Innocence (Originally issues in 1962 by University of Oklahoma Press, re-issued by Ballantine at $2.95)

Jay Leyda's Films Begat Film (originally issued in 1964, re-issued by Hill & Wang at $1.95 paper and $4.95 hardback)

Rachel Madcluy, Stirling Sillipaant and Neil D. Isaacs' Fiction into Film: A Walk in the Spring Rain (University of Tennessee Press, $10.50)

Charles Sweeting, A Film Course Manual (McCutchan Publishing Corp., 2526 Grove St., Berkeley, Calif. 94704, $2.25)