Observed the ways in which norm formation and social conformity are engaged in the joke setting. Despite the "cautious" operational definition of the convergence concept, the basic finding of convergence nevertheless seems fairly absolute and pertinent to the individual's day-to-day social relations. (Author/BL)

Intuitive thinking greatly enhances life and is a valuable supplement to the objective, analytical mode of thinking. Focus throughout the educational process is on the use of analytical thought processes. Often children with exceptional creative abilities have been penalized for their abilities and labelled troublemakers. (PHR)

A grounded meta-analytic technique for comparing organizational interventions derived from rational-based strategies (e.g., management-by-objectives, planned change) with organizational culture-based strategies (organizational culture, climate) is described. The method is seen as useful for integrating qualitative and quantitative research.…

States that there was convergence in counselors' and clients' reports of important session events. Found that convergence of important session therapeutic events increased linearly over time, and that increasing convergence was related to counseling outcomes, as measured by a decrease in interpersonal problems. Concludes that a match in important…

Considers some ways that past research equips educators to tackle research challenges they are now facing. Suggests two challenges for consideration, convergence and commonality. Notes that convergence and commonality challenge educators to let go of the search for disciplinary identity, to stop seeking uniformity in methods, and to use diversity…

The pendulum has been swinging back and forth between traditional and progressive educational approaches for more than 100 years, but we still haven't figured out how to reduce the learning gap. In this first article in a two-part series, Mr. Pogrow suggests fundamental policy changes and argues for finding ways to combine the best of the…

An explanation and elaboration of existing theory on interaction, this article describes a point of convergence between Parsons' Voluntaristic Theory of Action and Blumer's conceptualization of Symbolic Interactionism and develops specific problems of divergence in these normative and interpretive models of interaction. (JC)

Behaviors that characterize play with convergent and divergent materials and the effects of play on convergent and divergent problem solving were examined in this study. Seventy-two 3- and 4-year-old children were assigned to one of three conditions: (1) play with convergent materials; (2) play with divergent materials; and (3) non-play control.…

Identified some experiences that lead to preschool children's transition from less to more systematic problem-solving strategies. Receiving encouragement to adopt more analytic attitudes and encountering problems with perceptually salient differences on a relevant dimension were the two types of experiences examined. (Author/DB)

Unless sensitized to avoid them, Ss (regardless of grade) tended to draw overly sweeping inferences, perhaps because of a need for closure. Older Ss, however, were more successful at suspending judgment when no definite conclusion was justified. (Author/DLS)

Joshua Gunn calls for the creation of a new post-humanist, -Marxist, -Freudian approach to rhetorical criticism that would combine literary, critical, and psychoanalytic methods in a new "popular imaginary" paradigm. While urging acceptance of his new paradigm, Gunn advances three major criticisms of symbolic convergence theory (SCT): (1) SCT is…

Arguments between response to intervention (RTI) with curriculum-based measurement (CBM) and traditional, individual psychoeducational assessments encourage a false dichotomy between alternatives that are not mutually exclusive, but complementary. This article discusses strengths and weaknesses of both approaches, touches on current legislative…

Interrelationships between two motivational variables, test-anxiety and curiosity, and two cognitive variables, convergent and divergent thinking were tested using the measures of convergent and divergent thinking of J. P. Guilford and two self-report true-false scales of test-anxiety and curiosity. (Editor)

The material contained in this annotated resource list is intended to provide information upon which decisions about teaching thinking can be made, not to recommend or point to a particular path. The sources are organized around four groups of questions frequently asked by those responsible for making such decisions: (1) What are the components of…

The purpose of this research was to determine what effects, if any, widening or narrowing the response repertoire has on measures of IQ and problem solving of preschool children. It was predicted that response widening, or creative/divergent thinking, would have a positive effect on IQ and problem solving. Forty-one preschool children 3 to 6 years…