Student misconduct continues to trouble institutions, negatively affecting institutional mission fulfillment. Although student codes of conduct and related processes exist to establish standards and address behavioral concerns, little research has proactively explored what characteristics impact student moral behavior intentions and understanding,…

Contends that the way in which language is used is symptomatic of conflicts of interest, and thus of secondary importance in explaining irrational and unprogressive behavior. (RB)

Research on individual's response to emergency situations in the presence of others has produced conflicting results. The bystander effect is the label applied to inaction or the unlikelihood of assistance with others present. The social facilitation effect occurs when the presence of others energizes response; strong habit responses are…

Hypothesized that stability of a friendly dyadic interpersonal relationship varies with similarity of perceived views of problems of lasting concern. Students (N=76) at the Indian Institute of Technology completed a three-part questionnaire about friendly relationships, Individual Problem Blank, and Problem Checklist. Results supported the…

Observes the seating arrangements by sex of three or more people seated at rectangular tables in 176 social and 150 nonsocial settings. Postulates the importance of situational context and learned sexual norms in the observed spatial behaviors. (RL)

In seminar situations, more informed decisions might be made as a result of verbal exchanges if a free flow of ideas is possible, but this study suggests that status structures deter development towards sound logical conclusions. Status hierarchies occur, and periods of useless oratory support status systems at the expense of educational aims. The…

This paper describes and reports research on a model of the determination of behavioral intention by belief structures, derived from a theory proposed by Don Dulany in 1968. The new model construes "belief structures," and defines message variables, in ways suggestive for communication research. Findings reported support several…

The purpose of this study was to determine the predicted differences in the effectiveness of social approval and disapproval cues. Three hypotheses were tested to determine what the effect on communication is if the source of the cue is a peer, family member, or society and what the response will be when a message advocates a position discrepant…

The purpose of this paper is to examine the function served by self-adaptor type behaviors (defined here as "hand touch" on the face, body, the other hand, and the fingers) in order to discover why people perform self-adaptors and what happens when they do. Following an extensive review of the literature, it is proposed that…

Study investigates the relationship between assertiveness and patterns of drug use. Found exploratory use of marijuana and hashish was the norm among this sample of college students. Current users and those never using such drugs were less assertive than those who had experienced these drugs but no longer did so. (Author)

Presents two studies that replicated and extended J. K. Burgoon and R. C. Koper's research by examining nonverbal behavior patterns, relational message interpretations, and credibility evaluations associated with communication reticence. Challenges the traditional view that reticence produces pronounced performance decrements and discusses…

The effects of several factors on willingness to take a counterattitudinal position in a forthcoming debate were investigated. Subjects were presented with the dilemma of either compromising their own position and thereby not forfeiting a competitive advantage in the debate or forfeiting a competitive advantage by not compromising their own…

Avoidance strategies involve the tactics and techniques people use when they don't wish to be influenced by others. To investigate the types of avoidance strategies men and women use to deal with an unwelcome persuasion attempt from an intimate partner, undergraduates wrote essays describing how they avoided such attempts. A 24-strategy coding…

The authoritarian-aggression attitudes of graduate education students were studied. Authoritarian-aggression is defined as the tendency to look for, condemn, reject, and punish people who violate conventional behavior. It was hypothesized that no significant differences in authoritarian-aggression attitudes exist between graduate students who…

Discusses variables which determine the strategies animals use to organize their lives. Describes advances in understanding animal behaviors. Shows how game theory has helped to explain the existence of alternative behavioral strategies and the constraints under which organizers exist. (Author/CW)