Reexamined findings of Thompson, Hatchett, and Phillips (1981) which found that females gave more extreme affect ratings and less extreme control ratings to interpersonal verbs than did males. Used multidimensional scaling techniques with 43 female and 39 male college students. Analyses of data failed to replicate findings of sex differences on…

This study investigated whether or not low-bandwidth streaming video could be useful for affective purposes. A group of 30 students in a cinema course at a public, liberal arts university viewed a 10-minute dramatic video scene by either videotape or low-bandwidth streaming video. They also took a survey to determine their affective responses and…

Examines patterns of perpetrator and negotiator message affect behavior in three crisis negotiation incidents. Uses the Michigan State Police four-stage strategic model of negotiation as a template. Finds that in all three incidents, perpetrators experienced an increase in message affect during the initial phase of negotiation, followed by a…

Assesses two versions of a content-based metric for coding and calculating composite verbal intensity values for naturalistic discourse. Demonstrates initial support for both face validity and concurrent validity of the metric, as measured via raters' perceptions of language intensity. (SR)

Constructs and tests two measures of audience response to performance of literary text. Finds that the first measure (analyzing audience response to open-ended questions) was useful in discriminating responses across performances, but needs further work in clarifying relative importance and interrelationships; and the second measure (a…

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which Crockett's Role Category Questionnaire (RCQ) is confounded by verbal ability. Participants included 285 undergraduates from a large southern university. The results show the RCQ to be independent of the verbal abilities measures. (Author/BW)

The authors surveyed university faculty to investigate whether the Schlossberg 4S Transition Model was a useful way to look at retirement adjustment. Participants were asked questions regarding aspects of situation, self, support, and strategies before and after retirement. Results are described in relation to overall retirement satisfaction.…

Reports on the development and preliminary psychometric assessment of a brief scale designed to tap college students' affective reactions to their academic lives. (Author)

Reports on two studies that explicate the process and structure of affective orientation (AO). Provides strong evidence that AO is not redundant with existing measures of self-awareness and emotional responding, and that the pattern of processing emotional information remains stable across time. (SR)

A study explored the affective impact of interpersonal influence messages. Thirty-nine students enrolled in an undergraduate communication course listened to a tape-recording of 15 directives and rated each directive on explicitness or dominance. Results indicated that the set of stimuli tapped nearly the full range of both continua, and that the…

To assist the clinician or researcher in scale selection, four symposium papers discussed instruments available to measure test anxiety (TA), with special attention given to the newly-developed Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI). Following an integrative summary delivered by the chairperson (DeVito), the first paper (Conetta and Tryon) reviewed the two…

This study examined the psychometric pro-properties of the Test Anxiety Scale (TAS). Exploring the factor structure of the TAS was a major focus. Two hundred introductory psychology students completed the TAS. Both orthogonal (varimax) and oblique (direct quartimon) rotations were used to rotate obtained two- and three-factor solutions. The final…

Through use of a 20 minute questionnaire and a five-point Likert scale, it was found that graduate students in education tend to be less conservative than freshmen in their views toward politics, religious beliefs, and sex roles. However, differences among those in different majors were far greater than between graduates and undergraduates.…

Statistical outcomes conclude that both the Test Anxiety Inventory and the Anagram Solution Task exhibit substantial discriminant validity but relatively little concurrent validity. Each of the measures shows considerable promise as a means for identifying students with differential levels of test anxiety. (Author/PN)

States that the widespread use of fear appeals in health communication campaigns reflects the existence of a folk theory that suggests messages are accepted due to induced fright. Discusses two studies to determine the effect of public service announcements on the topic of AIDS/HIV. Finds a variety of affects were induced, most of which predicted…