Uses and gratifications research involves a critical appraisal of conceptual and theoretical issues in mass communication and is concerned with what audience members do with the media. Activation theory understands people as active manipulators of their environment. (Activation refers to that level of psychological and physiological excitement an…

Academic delay of gratification (ADOG) refers to students' postponement of immediately available opportunities to satisfy impulses in favor of pursuing academic goals that are temporally remote but ostensibly more valuable. This important form of self-regulation was studied among college students to determine how it serves to sustain effort over…

This article explores the impact of internal barriers, priorities, and personal decisions on the realization of the potential of gifted females. Dilemmas relating to family, fear of success, the development of resilience, multi-potentiality, absence of planning, confusion about effort and ability, perfectionism, unreal expectations, and loneliness…

Describes group-counseling intervention used among homeless young people and their mothers designed to reduce conflicts by enhancing the participants' interpersonal problem-solving skills. Considers numerous factors (school, family, and residential) that affect psychological health and sense of well-being. Reports on comments generated by the…

Relationships between individuals and society have often been presented from the perspective of the social institution. Social psychology has addressed the variables that affect the individual in relationships with larger groups. Social individualism is a conceptual framework that explores the relationship of the individual and society from the…

Presents research that suggests how school administrators can have a significant impact on teacher motivation, especially by rewarding teacher performance. (Author/JM)

The theory of transactional analysis (TA) originated by Eric Berne in the 1950's is typified by structural analysis and is comprised of the ego states of Parent, Adult, and Child. Linkages are the life scripts of the individual. One ego state is usually in control at any given time. Pathology results when ego boundaries become rigid or break down…

In the past, many social scientists were content to study teaching from a distance, borrowing concepts mainly from psychology and sociology to explain what teaching was like. Increasingly, students of teaching have come to value the insider's viewpoint and to rely on teachers as informants. This paper brings together research about the meaning of…

The optional functioning of the family unit is dependent on the health and happiness of each family member. When the wife is professionally trained and yet feels "trapped" by the presence of children in the home with no available transportation, baby-sitting, or part-time employment options, the family unit can suffer or the wife suffers. The…

Recent theories of professional work satisfaction are reviewed and applied to the college or university professor. Additionally, the professional satisfactions available to the academic person are compared with those of professionals in other occupations. The following theories of job satisfaction are examined: job facets theory, expectancy…

Stress and burnout are normal occurences that are common and predictable in all professions, including teaching. Strategies should be devised and implemented to reduce at least the intensity of the phenomena so that job satisfaction can increase while commitment to work remains high. (JD)

Need-based theories of work motivation are considered with particular reference to university faculty; it is hypothesized that three different types of people are attracted to the academic setting: (1) those who want to teach, (2) those who want to do research, and (3) those who want to do both. According to need theories, certain fundamental…

Characteristics and problems unique to the rural aged have drawn considerable attention in recent years. Location and environment influence the extent of needs, the availability of services, and a person's willingness to use such services. Religious and ethnic clusters also differ in service needs for their elderly and their willingness to accept…

Several theories of the alcoholic personality have been devised to determine the relationship between the clusters of personality characteristics of alcoholics and their abuse of alcohol. The oldest and probably best known theory is the dependency theory, formulated in the tradition of classical psychoanalysis, which associates the alcoholic's…

The elderly make up 11% of the total population of the United States, and senior citizens, particularly those aged 75 and over, are the fastest growing group in the country. Although one-fourth of the federal budget is allotted to their support, many older persons have difficulty in gaining access to the programs designed for their benefit. The…