Behaviourism proposes successful learning to be dependent on the performance of conditioned behaviours that are distinctly observable and objectively measurable. Over the past 100 years, various behaviourist concepts have been superseded by sociocultural and cognitive learning theories, but the entwined areas of assessment in mathematics education…

The paper presents an overview of an ethological approach to the study of abnormal human behavior and a review of research using ethological approaches (with an emphasis on autism research). Ethology is defined as the study of behavior as it occurs in its natural habitat. The four types of questions ethologists ask about behavior, such as what is…

Suicide rates vary greatly by sex and race, but the methods employed by these groups have not been studied closely and across time. Annual official national statistics for specific methods of suicide by sex and specific racial group were examined from 1923 to 1978. During this time period, shifts occurred in the proportions of suicides by method,…

The relationship between schizophrenia and social change is examined through a review of recent medical research in genetics, biology, and epidemiology. Those mental traits that today in our society characterize the schizoprenic, in a previous era or in another society may have provided a mechanism for cultural change during the periods of stress…

A study was conducted to compare the validity of two theories of interpersonal communication: (1) uncertainty reduction theory, based on the assumption that communication consists of attempts to reach a cognitive state of balance, and (2) coordinated management of meaning theory (CMM), based on the assumption that persons attempt to create a…

This study provides evidence of trends in Korean immigrants' communication patterns. Data were collected in a survey of 400 randomly selected Korean households in the Chicago area and were analyzed for interethnic communication (between immigrants and members of the host society), intraethnic communication (between immigrants and other members of…

Offering a synthesis of research and thought on the notion of newsreading as a form of play, this paper focuses on newsreading as a symbolic action of incorporating cultural attitudes by reading a newspaper. Sections of the paper discuss the following topics: (1) play, culture, and communication--defining play in its cultural and communicative…

The systematic study of Eskimo, Indian, and Aleut musical sound and behavior in Alaska, though conceded to be an important part of white efforts to foster understanding between different cultural groups and to maintain the native cultural heritage, has received little attention from Alaskan educators. Most existing ethnomusical studies lack one or…

This study investigated changes in the speech patterns of Japanese college students in an intensive English language course when using a microphone, focusing in part on possible links to "karaoke" activities common in Japan, in which participants sing along with music using a microphone. The researcher first observed several karaoke…

A personality and economic profile is presented of primary users of federal recreation areas. The characteristics of this outdoor recreation constituency are described and the influence of their behavior patterns and attitudes on federal land distribution policy is considered. Citing the unequal distribution of natural resources for recreational…

Museums are undergoing changes as institutions which may cause them to adopt a more community and social mission oriented course of programs in addition to their traditional roles of scholarship and preservation of important artifacts. This change, coupled with the fact that museum visitation is a highly social activity, raises some interesting…

The objective of this research paper is to present evidence showing that sex differences in aggression are universal, but that within limits the differences are also highly susceptible to experiential modification. Aggression is defined as any behavior that intends to hurt a person or a thing, physically or verbally. Investigation was conducted…

A study of Hmong adult immigrants in a Hmong literacy class investigated four aspects of their learning behaviors: specific behaviors manifested in the literacy classroom; overt learning strategies used for literacy learning; major motivations; and specific uses for Hmong literacy skills. Data were gathered through observation, interviews,…

This study examined discourse strategies used by males and females to convey embarrassing information to interlocutors of unequal status and unspecified gender. Subjects were 80 native speakers of Turkish (28 males, 52 females), from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds and geographic areas. Data were derived from a written discourse completion…

Symbolic meaning expressed by Chinese language characters is helpful to non-Chinese persons in understanding Chinese culture. The implicit metaphors in Chinese characters present pictographic descriptions of the meaning in the form of a story, situation, or symbol which places the otherwise abstract concept in a cultural context. All languages…