The authoritarian/permissive dimension of hypnosis refers to the manner in which hypnotic suggestions are phrased. In the authoritarian mode suggestions imply the subject is under control of the hypnotist; permissive suggestions are phrased to emphasize the subject's own thinking. To compare the permissive suggestions of the Creative Imagination…

Findings of this observational study of 74 families tentatively support the conclusion that the psychological characteristics of emotional distress, authoritarian child-rearing values, and negative perceptions of children partially mediate the influence of some demographic/stressful life conditions on the positive and negative behaviors of…

This study was aimed at measuring the relative contribution of life events (potential stressors) and social support to the use of coercive control behaviors by mothers. Social support was measured both in terms of mothers' embeddedness in their social environment and of their preceived lack of support. Conflictual relationships were also…

This study was undertaken to identify the relative contribution of personal and environmental variables to the reported frequency of use of coercive control behaviors in a nonclinical sample of mothers. Seventy mothers of 6- to 8-year-old children participated; half were from single-parent families. Results of analysis of variance indicate that…

This paper seeks to integrate some ideas from family systems theory and attachment theory within a theory of public opinion and social movement. Citing the classic "The Authoritarian Personality," the paper states that the first authorities children know, their parents or other caregivers, shape children's attitudes toward all…

Reports a study that examined the relationship among classical authoritarianism, directiveness, and attitudes toward institutional authority among young adolescents in Adelaide, Australia. Concludes that the concept of classical authoritarianism has limited relevance to the social attitudes of children, and that attitude towards authority is not…

The concept of complexity in decision-making can be found in several lines of conceptualization in the area of national and international decision-making. One derives from the classic works on authoritarianism and dogmatism (Adorno, et al., 1950; Rokeach, 1960). Another approach relies on the variables that pertain to group dynamics and to…

This study describes one type of analysis used to gather data on attitudinal climate in elementary schools. The Quality of School Life Scale (QSL) was administered to 142 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students in one southwestern elementary school. Responses to the QSL were analyzed using statistical and nonstatistical techniques. The data results are…

The United States policy of branding governments--especially those in developing nations--as "good guys" or "bad guys" has been costly. The price has been paid in lost lives, confrontations with the Soviet Union, loss of diplomatic flexibility, and domestic political stresses. It seems an opportune time, now that the United…

Reports a study that examined the influence of authoritarianism on the formation of behavioral intentions by female college students. High authoritarians took subjective norms less into account relative to low authoritarians, providing support for the theory that personal and subjective norms can be distinguished empirically. (LS)

Modified versions of a family decision-making scale were administered to 291 students in grades 4, 5, 7, and 8 and 314 parents to assess their perceptions of the degree to which the child shares power and authority with parents and participates in making decisions at home. Study 1 found support for the hypothesis that parent-child authority…

A broad survey of democratic political attitudes of United States and West German students was developed jointly by the Governmental Education Division of the Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia and the Bundeszentrale fur politische Bildung in Bonn. This survey sought to probe twelfth-year students' attitudes toward…

A study tested the hypothesis that elementary school teachers who were less authoritarian in their beliefs were more effective in the classroom. The independent variable was the California F-scale score of the 142 subjects (all education graduates of Tennessee Technological University), while dependent variables were measures of classroom…

Hypothesizes that a conservative and individualistic orientation results in the fatalistic, alienated, and helpless outlook known as hopelessness. Provides extensive references to studies and theories characterizing conservatism and a work ethic belief as manifestations of an a maladaptive stage of psychological development. (MJP)

Surveys undergraduate psychology students in an attempt to ascertain the relationship among right wing authoritarianism (RWA) thinking, relativism and idealism, and political orientation. Discovers an inverse relationship between RWA and relativism but a surprising positive correlation between idealism and RWA. (MJP)