This special issue's editors invited discussion of three broad questions. Slightly rephrased, they are: How well do self-report data represent theoretical constructs? How should analyses of data be conditioned by properties of self report data? In what ways do interpretations of self-report data shape interpretations of a study's findings? To…

As pressure builds to assess students, teachers, and schools, educational practitioners and policy makers are increasingly looking toward student perception surveys as a promising means to collect high-quality, useful data. For instance, the widely cited Measures of Effective Teaching study lists student perception surveys as one of the three key…

The adoption of a more "open" national training market in vocational education and training (VET) in Australia has led to considerable changes in VET organizations and considerable challenges for VET managers. Recent research has established the critical role that 'strategy' plays in leading and managing these organizations and the…

Examines Blumenschein's "Description of Various Libraries in Europe" as an early example of library research methodology; discusses his methods of data collection; describes his use of a questionnaire; and suggests the necessity of further studies of the development of research in library and information science. (Contains 10…

The authors argue that self-report measures and transcriptions of conversations are ineffective means of gathering data about self-disclosure. Influenced by Kenneth Burke and Hugh Duncan, they illustrate--with a discussion of Shakespeare's character of Richard III--the advantages of using soliloquies as examples of self-disclosure. (PD)

Discusses the design of effective questionnaires based on the concept of a hierarchical classification of Levels of Information: global (Level I), general concept (Level II), and specific (Level III). By tying question types to the information desired, the entire questionnaire can be improved. (JJD)

This article examines issues in the measurement of quality of life (QOL) within the field of learning disabilities. Discussion considers objective and subjective measures, value-based and value-free approaches, and traditional versus participatory approaches. The issue of using self-reports or proxies to gather and measure QOL data is addressed. A…

Suggests that recent social changes and trends make it imperative to include demographics of all kinds in research on child development. Proposes guidelines to help child development researchers procure demographic information from their study population. Provides specific questions that may help researchers devise demographic indicators, and…

Comments on the ideas presented by Entwisle and Astone in this issue. Suggests that to produce sound measurements of children's socioeconomic background requires a substantial investment in coding, data collection, and management. Nevertheless, a standard set of racial-ethnic and socioeconomic variables, no matter how well measured, cannot serve…

Arguing that professional library literature often ignores the problem of evaluating the effectiveness of a library tour or the aids (e.g., audiotape, slides, video, computer programs, handbooks) which may supplement the tour, this article provides a proposed evaluation model for measuring a tour's success. The evaluation of library tours is…

A model is presented for studying how schools provide instruction to students. A major function of the National Center for Education Statistics is to collect data for understanding and improving how schools provide instruction. The model describes school factors (characteristics, staffing, organization, policy, and student evaluation); classroom…

This report presents consultants' recommendations for the statewide collection and entry in the OCLC database of bibliographic data on New York state newspapers as part of a national United States newspaper cataloging project. The consulting team was asked to focus principally on two activities: first, the newspaper collection of the New York…

Reliable institutional research is seen as serving as a valuable means of generating accurate, objective data useful in reaching sound management decisions in institutions of higher education. Institutional research is defined as the systematic, comprehensive self-study used by a college or university to improve the institution. Sound…

Every five years the Speech Communication Association supports a nationwide survey of the basic course in speech at institutions of higher education in the United States. The surveys seek to reflect the current conditions of the course in terms of instructional practices, staffing, administration, and course content. While these surveys are of…

This document consists of four symposium papers each providing a critical examination of a particular data collection technique in vocational education research. Texts of the following presentations are provided: "Mail Survey Research," by Betty Heath-Camp; "The Telephone Interview as a Data Collection Technique," by James P. Key; "The Personal…