The influence of expectations and hypothesis testing on subjects' use of particular types of evidence to estimate covariations was investigated. Results of the first study indicated that all subjects relied most on positive confirming evidence and did not over-utilize evidence that was consistent with expectations. Results of the second study…

The effects of meaningfulness of the stimulus materials and the presence or absence of contextual cues on problem-solving behavior were investigated. Third-graders (N=80) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions and their performance in a series of discrimination problems was observed. Subjects in Conditions I and II responded to stimuli…

The objective of this study was to compare an information processing based measure of television program form to a measure of form based on the perception of the organization of program production elements. Three hypotheses were set up to test the presumption that the two program measures are related to the same underlying dimension: show scores…

The conflict theory of decision making was examined by testing a conflict model which differentiated among three basic coping patterns in response to decisional conflict, i.e., defensive avoidance, panic, and vigilance. Male college students (N=53) were administered two decisional problems, "The Changing Work Procedures Case" and…

An initial model of the evaluation process in the leadership context is presented in order to consider information processing explanations of behavior in general and attributional analyses in particular. The model is designed to aid those individuals acting in supervisory capacities who must evaluate the performance of subordinates in an…

Confined to the interaction of subject sex with stimulus complexity, this paper reports a portion of the results of an experimental study which hypothesized a series of relationships between theatre audience members' information-processing abilities and their responses to complex and simple plays. The subjects for the study were 60 female and 30…

The effects of observational purpose are thought to impact on such diverse processes as categorization, behavior perception, trait ascription, and memory. The role of observational purpose in the categorization of behavior was explored to determine whether differences between trait and goal concepts affect certain information-processing…

The adequacy of Rosenberg's classification scheme, in which he divides children's learning characteristics into four styles, was investigated. Middle school students (N=377) were used as a sample, and their behavior was assessed by 30 teachers using the Learning Style Checklist. After intercorrelations of the 40 Checklist items were obtained, the…

A study in two countries investigated college students' conceptions of "academic literacy," defined as the system of information exchange or mastery of the elements of such a system. Subjects were nine students, four at Ohio State University, a long-established "mega-university," and five at Universitat Pompeu Fabra, a small, newly-established…