Some contemporary trends in social and clinical psychology suggest that individual differences in imaging abilities may become increasingly important. Outlines some of the conceptual and methodological problems that must be clarified if productive research is to be undertaken and reports results of three studies designed to isolate tests which…

In this paper, tables for the appropriate sample sizes are presented and discussed in the context that the determination of the effect size must precede the determination of the sample size. (Author/PN)

Provides a critique of research done by A. M. Dockery, R. Kelly, K. Norris, and T. Strombeck regarding the cost and value of hiring trainees. Discusses the perceived shortcomings in the method and looks at the implications of the research. Dockery et al. provide a rejoinder. (JOW)

In educational effectiveness research, multilevel models are increasingly used because these models take the multilevel structure of the data into account. In this paper, the effect of ignoring one or more levels of variation in hierarchical linear regression is explored, using a model with four hierarchical levels (individual pupil, class group,…

As an extension of B. Thompson's 1998 invited address to the American Educational Research Association, this paper cites two additional common faux pas in research methodology and explores some research issues for the future. These two errors in methodology are the use of univariate analyses in the presence of multiple outcome variables (with the…

This study develops a three-stage model of the question-answering process and investigates several potential sources of extraneous variability. Discussion includes implications of findings concerning what it means to "use" library materials and services, adverbs used as response category labels, and subject's responses as predictors of…

This study examines and compares the purpose, content, and form of the problem statement by researchers in disciplines other than library and information science (LIS). Their assessments of the attributes of a problem statement were compared to the literature and an evaluation of problem statements evidenced by researchers within LIS. (Contains 16…

This document contains two papers related to the 1993-94 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS). The first paper documents some of the problems that were encountered during student sample selection and the methods used to resolve those problems. It also provides some suggestions to alleviate some of the problems in future SASS studies. Significant…

In 1987 the U.S. Census Bureau created a universe of private elementary and secondary schools for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This universe has been updated every 2 years through list frame updating and area frame updating. For the list frame updating, lists of private schools are obtained from various associations around…

In order to determine the extent of loss due to theft of books and bound journals from the main stacks of Doe Library, three types of inventories were conducted: a volume count, an item-by-item inventory of the D-classed materials, and three sample inventories. Depending on certain assumptions, the results show that losses could range as high as…

During round 16 of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), 900 NLSY sample members were randomly assigned to be interviewed about the period since their round 14 interview. Their responses were compared to those of approximately 8,000 NLSY sample members who were assigned to be interviewed about the 1-year period since their round 15…

Describes a study done by Herbert White that resulted in rankings of library and information science programs based on perceptual assessments by faculty and library directors. Problems with this methodology are discussed, and further findings based on extensive interviews with subjects of the White study are reported. (CLB)

This document provides the description, summary, and evaluation of methodological procedures and results for the field test of the 1995-96 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS:96). Chapter 1 describes the background, purposes, and scheduled procedures of the NPSAS:96 and the unique purposes of the field test. The NPSAS is a…

Describes results of a field study where 74 people were interviewed about their experience with using either an electronic or a printed version of a brief project description. The popular belief that electronic information systems are more efficient was not confirmed. Methodological problems of comparative media studies are discussed. (Author/LRW))

Discusses results of a survey of special librarians that investigated research knowledge and activities. Topics include formal and informal training in research methodology; continuing education; barriers to research, including a lack of institutional support; and the disinterest in and lack of understanding about research and its relevance to…