This document examines the function of social conventions among strangers. Conventions are regularities in behavior, sustained by an interest in coordination and an expectation of cooperation. Such regularities may arise temporarily or fall just as temporarily; they may exist in a particular time or place and may take time to evolve. From the…

This union list identifies 455 microform collections held by 8 public and academic libraries in New Orleans. It is noted that newspapers, periodicals, Government Printing Office (GPO) depository microfiche, and individual monograph titles were excluded from the list unless they are a part of a publisher's series, archival project, or manuscript…

Discusses truancy in terms of its definition, frequency of occurrence, causation, and management. Concludes that with further evaluative studies it will be possible to predict how legal, casework, medical, and psychological procedures can be effectively used to manage unjustified absence from school. (RH)

The world continues to change rapidly and globalization is fostering common social, economic, and political agreements among countries. Agreements by governments have created opportunities to enhance educational and research endeavors that, by design, will remove barriers that previously have limited the flow of students, educators, researchers,…

Mixed methods research has increased in popularity over the past 20 years. Literature reveals that exploratory qualitative analysis followed by confirmatory survey research is common and concurrent studies outnumber longitudinal design. Longitudinal studies using quantitative and qualitative methods in sequence for exploratory purposes are rare,…

A consensus has emerged in recent years that the fragmented systems serving children and families need to be restructured and integrated in ways that make them accessible, family-focused, and able to accommodate cultural differences. Collaborative partnerships involving schools, families, and other community stakeholders are learning that they are…

Describes an instructional method where undergraduate child development students and a class of grade school students prepare and exchange written questions and answers. The questions focused on their educational experiences. Discusses advantages of this method over other interactive techniques. This exercise can be adapted for other courses. (MJP)

Briefly describes several joint enterprises between Soviet technical institutes and European firms involved in computer software development and other aspects of technical engineering. Explains the role played by Soviet governmental agencies in sponsoring these joint projects. Describes problems with the projects. Identifies benefits, including…

A group of 240 men and women of various ages were given the opportunity to express altruistic behavior in an interpersonal situation by granting a favor of permitting the experimenters, one white woman and two white men in their mid-twenties to enter a store check-out line ahead of them during the Christmas rush. The researchers hypothesized that…

Describes techniques for using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SSPS) to create tables for cooperative collection development across a number of libraries. Specific commands are given to generate holdings profiles focusing on collection coverage, overlaps, gaps, or other areas of interest, from a master bibliographic list. (CLB)

Assessed contributions of familiarity, prior experience, and age to frequency and degree of social participation of preschoolers. Normative analysis of group differences indicated that sex, age, prior peer-group experience, and familiarity did not interact and that all of them independently affected 3- and 4-year-old preschoolers' social play.…

Studied eight matched men's and women's intercollegiate teams for one year to determine the incidence of athletic injury and disability. Found no gender differences except in gymnastics, in which certain events may account for the greater rate of injuries and longer recovery time among female subjects. (DM)

One of the most fundamental tasks relating to the undertaking of fieldwork for a qualitative research study lies in "gaining access". This involves both securing entry into a particular organisation and ensuring that individuals associated with it, such as employees or users, will serve as informants. In terms of the first problem, a range of…

This exploratory study employed qualitative methodology to analyze interview data that emerged from face-to-face interviews with eight parents of four children with autism spectrum disorder. The study focused on the roles these parents played as they monitored their children's educational programs and interacted with school professionals. The…

Describes a cooperative effort between academics and content area specialists to create a more student-oriented curriculum. Uses classroom observations, artifacts, field notes, dialog sessions, and surveys to document reactions to this change. Initial reception from the students proved very positive. Teacher intransigence was overcome later. (MJP)