Report of study of how social distance between Whites and Blacks is affected by degree of identification with one's own group and perceived external threat from other group. The results place in question the idea that ingroup integration necessarily leads to outgroup differentiation. However, it was found that the degree of perceived external…

In recent years, mutual help groups have been formed to address problems in substance abuse, chronic physical illness, mental illness, marital disruption, and child abuse. Despite the proliferation of these groups, little research has been conducted to assess their efficacy or what happens in them. The nature of mutual help groups (N=32) was…

Presents study results examining social pressure within sexually homogenous groups. Explains that cohesiveness, based on common beliefs, was established in half of the sample while prevented in the remainder. Reports that groups were required to reach consensus after conflict was introduced. Concludes that low cohesion groups showed the greatest…

Consensus has been identified as a dimension of family solidarity with important implications for the family network. To investigate the factors contributing to consensus between older adults and their sibling of most contact, 275 adults (173 females, 102 males), with a mean age of 74 years, were interviewed using a questionnaire covering work and…

Although stress related to work has received increased attention in recent years, the role of personality characteristics in mediating job stress has not been systematically investigated. Nonetheless, the perception of work stress and the significance of various sources of support may vary considerably based on individual characteristics.…

Research has suggested that people not sharing a common fate lack a sense of group identity, thus decreasing the tendency for helping behavior. To study the effects of stress and commonality of fate on helping behavior, 60 female college students participated in a replication of an earlier study which used male subjects. Participants were assigned…

Although self-esteem (SE) has been studied across the life span and across social groups, few studies have focused on the changes in self-esteem within a social group. To investigate the cohort and gender differences in SE in three-generational families (child, parent, grandparent generations), 6 members of 47 families (282 individuals) completed…

This study sought to determine if parents of gifted and talented learning-disabled children differed from parents of other gifted/talented children in their expectations of educational programming and parent-school relations. Subjects included 265 parents who were members of The Gifted and Talented Association of Montgomery County (Maryland) or…

Data focused on illegal alcohol and marijuana use were collected in 1981 from 4,859 high school students living in two rural counties in southern Georgia. The sample consisted of over 85% of all students in grades 8 through 12 within the two counties. The data were used to test a facilitative-constraint model developed from selected components of…

Presents results of a study contrasting different forms of group cohesiveness in a student military organization. Reports that task cohesiveness was more strongly associated with lower role uncertainty, higher individual performance, and lower absenteeism than was interpersonal cohesiveness. Concludes that data provide evidence for a…

Directed toward the question of how parents and 15-year-old adolescents cope with the demands of social change occurring during unification in Germany, the comparative investigation of 40 families each in East and West Germany examines macro-social conditions of family relationships and rightist attitudes among German adolescents and adults. The…

Over the past decade parent education programs, following either a democratic or behavior modification model, have gained in recognition and support. To investigate the effectiveness of Jean Illsley Clarke's parent education program, Self Esteem: A Family Affair, on self-esteem, conflict resolution, and family togetherness and flexibility, 27…

The impact of individual characteristics on the attitudes and performance of students in a college psychology course using the guided design approach was examined. With this teaching method students work in groups to solve problems, gaining experience in the cognitive processes of concept reorganization, symbolic translation, data interpretation,…

Subscales of the Sheltered Care Environmental Scale dealing with conflict, cohesion, and independence were administered to 47 adults with moderate mental retardation on 4 occasions using either a verbal format or picture-cued format. Results indicated that the use of pictures enhanced the test-retest reliability of the instrument. (Author/JDD)

Nationalism and worldmindedness are social cognitions that have both culture-unique and culture-universal aspects. To compare cross-cultural manifestations of these 2 sentiments, 270 Japanese and 210 American university students in Tokyo and Los Angeles answered questions on national resources, self-sufficiency and interdependence, communication,…