The relationship between life history, gender, and the discourse of modernization was examined from the perspective of a researcher with extensive experience performing evaluations about modernization within human services in Denmark. Three stories about site-based management in two human service institutionsa youth center and a boarding school…

A study was conducted to examine the applicability of social comparison and social exchange theories to the family unit. One part of that study concentrated on the effect of the belief that one's parents favored or did not facor oneself over the sibling. College students (N=216) from two-child families were asked to indicate their perception of…

A study of how principals in effective schools set norms for teacher behavior, student achievement, and educational goals used data from six elementary schools in Tennessee that achieved scores on standardized reading tests substantially higher than scores predicted on the basis of the students' socioeconomic levels. Four primary norm-setting…

The construct Interpersonal Orientation (IO) refers to the degree to which a person is responsive to the interpersonal aspects of his relationships with other people. A self-report measure of IO was devised whose construct validity was supported by correlational data. Two experiments were conducted to assess the potential usefulness of IO in…

Extends earlier work on aging as a process of exchange by focusing on the issue of exchange rates and how they are negotiated. Access to power resources declines with age, placing the old person in the position of negotiating from weakness. (Author)

A model of internal principle for integrating past research findings on adult altruism postulates that although individuals' shared beliefs result in significant group effects, there remains a significant portion of variation due to a subject's "factor" or unique internal rule. To examine the influence of both the level (degree or amount) and the…

Psychologists have recently given considerable attention to the study of relationship and friendship development, but the contributing social processes have not been examined in relation to each other over time. To examine the effects of disclosure, similarity, equity, and social exchange on satisfaction with a relationship and liking for one's…

Women have historically been under-represented in the medical profession in part because the norms of feminine behavior have deviated from behavior expected of physicians. To determine the career and family expectations of current medical students, 320 medical students were surveyed. Results confirmed the hypothesis that even sex-role-modern women…

Traditional psychological theories which focus on the pathological tendencies of the individual account for little of the reported widespread spouse abuse. Social exchange and general systems theories focus on problems in the relationship rather than problems in the person. Given that a family perspective may be helpful in long-term treatment of…

The usefulness of concepts gleaned from identification theory was explored in an analysis of questionnaires from students in urban high schools in 1966. An "identificatory sequence" consisting of identificatory process and identificatory motive, and culminating in value similarity between child and parent, was proposed. This sequence was linked,…

Explored applications of the social exchange perspective of relationship satisfaction to educational and therapeutic interventions with those involved in close personal relationships, focusing on the role relationship expectations play in evaluations people make of their relationships. Explored educational implications of data contrasting…

Surveys definitions of sexual harassment and reviews previous research on sexual harassment in organizations, including academic institutions. Reports on a social exchange experiment in which the communication behavior of a superior and subordinate is used to examine the formation of judgments about sexual harassment. (PD)

Eighty-six college-aged, heterosexual couples completed questionnaires and subsequently were interviewed separately in order to test the hypothesis derived from social exchange theory that higher levels of conflict or violence will be reported in dating relationships in which one partner has fewer external resources. External resources were…

A study is described that shows how three different social theories might explain the growth of vocational interests among undergraduate students during the 1970s. Changes in undergraduate degree choices between the years 1970-71 and 1977-78 are described for all students and for men and women considered separately. (Author/MLW)

Past attention has focused on the role of the elderly as recipients rather than receivers of help. To examine the proportion and characteristics of older community residents involved in care-giving, data used were from the 1979 "Statewide Survey of Older Virginians," aged 60 and older (N=2,146). Of the 10 types of helping activities studied, 5…