This paper explores the value of different paradigms to explain dispositions towards mathematics among primary school students from different social backgrounds. As part of a larger project designed to elicit students' thinking and attitudes towards mathematics, we seek to develop an explanatory model for the socially-differentiated outcomes in…

As a result of the emphasis given to the "black perspective" since the late 1960s, there has been a proliferation of research and writing on the black experience by black social scientists. However, a coherent and integrated body of knowledge on the nature of the black experience has yet to be established. There has been no attempt to develop a…

The author describes the model of social behavior in a social system first framed by Jacob Getzels, with the assistance of Egon Guba, in the middle 1950s. Significant changes in the conceptualization of organizational functioning have occurred in the years since then, though the methodological processes for studying that functioning have remained…

A multiparadigm perspective of educational administration is offered in this paper, which offers a conceptualization of administration as a heuristic device for considering multiple views of education. The first section describes the work of Sirotnik and Oakes (1986) whose "critical inquiry" multipardigm approach comprises three paradigms:…

"Breadth of perspective" is a significant concept for definition of public goals, especially in line with the two-way symmetric model of public relations practice. The concept involves four components: (1) awareness that more than one definition, stand, or conclusion is possible and is probably accepted as valid by significant persons or…

Rather than concentrating on similarities, it would seem far more profitable to search for ways in which schools are unlike other organizations or the models we have of these. It was suggested that we need to begin building images of schools that are congruent with their reality. This paper attempts the first stage in the task by identifying major…

Theories employed to explain regularities in social behavior often contain explicit or implicit reference to the presence of nonlinear and/or nonadditive (i.e., multiplicative) relationships among germane variables. While such nonadditive features are theoretically important, the inclusion of quadratic or multiplicative terms in structural…

This analysis is an attempt to specify the purposes and factors in organizational change and continuity. Denial of the purposeful premise makes possible an environmental perspective that views the characteristics of organizations as a function of their adaptation to their environment. This approach is based on the premises that (1) change in what…

Prompted by a concern for the appropriateness of the modes of discourse as a teaching device and in an attempt to elaborate on the registers of writing required of undergraduate students, case studies were made of six college instructors--two each from biology, English, and sociology. The six teachers were interviewed on two occasions, from 1.5 to…

Reviewed is research on the etiology and treatment of child abuse, specifically on three basic theoretical models: A psychiatric model emphasizing the individual abuser's role; a sociological model stressing the impact of social factors; and a model which focuses on the child's role in stimulating his own maltreatment. The second part of the paper…

Written by a biologist, this paper is intended to present information on the sociological study of man from a biological perspective. Perspectives include that (1) sociology neglects biological variables that are part of understanding human behavior and human societies; (2) the sociobiological or evolutionary view of human development is…

During the last few years the research enterprise dealing with the status projections of youth, and in particular, the numerous empirical studies focusing on occupational aspirations and expectations, has increasingly come under criticism within the sociological community. The paper acknowledges the criticism directed toward projection research as…

This paper describes ethnosociology and provides an application of this interpretive research model in dealing with problems in rural special education. The expansion of rural special education knowledge should begin with discovering and elaborating on special education knowledge at the local theory level. Such inquiry would be based on the…

The convergence theory asserts that industrial nations are becoming increasingly alike due to their economic and technological development. Most interpretations of the convergence theory either state or imply that political factors are unimportant in shaping the common welfare state toward which all industrial nations are converging. Using data on…

In reference to the American Indian's problem of maintaining his values while trying to participate in the economy of the larger society, the role of the change agent was explored via review of some 15 development models derived from the economic, political, sociological, and applied sciences. Included in the review were models which approached…