Provides highlights of the 1979 convention of the Association for Education in Journalism, where AEJ members discussed moving their headquarters to California, raising membership dues, multi-careers for journalism students, reporting on the energy crisis, and journalism ethics. (RL)

The responses of 322 beginning first graders to the six subtests of the Metropolitan Readiness Test were factor analyzed. A single General Readiness factor appeared to best describe the instrument. Implications for use of the Metropolitan Readiness Test are briefly discussed. (Author)

In a study to test whether imagery accounts for the effects of empathy on attributions, it was determined that the imagery explanation of empathy effects was untenable and that the recall of perspective-relevant details was unlikely to mediate attributions of causality in imaginary scenarios. (Author/MH)

This study replicates findings of a study reported by Anderson et al. (EJ 184 138). Interpretation of ambiguously worded paragraphs was related to sex and college major. Titles on the paragraphs reduced ambiguity, although some students still gave an interpretation that was not consistent with the title. (Author/CP)

Hierarchical cluster analysis is shown to be an effective method for forming scales from sets of items. Comparisons with factor analytic techniques suggest that hierarchical analysis is superior in some respects for scale construction. (Author/JKS)

Multivariate analysis of variance revealed a significant relationship between student ratings of instruction and curriculum area but not between ratings and course format. The technical and practical ramifications of these findings are discussed. (Author/JKS)

Support for the contention that the empirical specification of the Piagetian concept of reversibility during training is not a requirement for conservation induction is presented in this experimental study. (Author/JKS)

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) and 20 tests from the French Kit were administered to over 100 undergraduates. Analyses revealed ten factors: verbal comprehension, visualization, memory span, syllogistic reasoning, general reasoning, induction, mechanical knowledge, number facility, spatial orientation, and associative memory.…

A correction procedure for estimating correlation coefficients when faced with the problem of a restricted range in the variables due to an explicit selection procedure was empirically investigated. Results indicated that the assumption of linearity is critical, but that homoscedasticity is less important. (JKS)

The effects of a social model on first- and second-grade children's persistence in problem solving were studied using a wire-puzzle task. Both duration of effort and success of the model significantly affected children's persistence,compared with that of a control group. (Author/RD)

A study compared the effects of two different noise intensities on the cognitive performance of students. Findings indicated that at the higher noise intensity in the learning environment, performance on the reading comprehension task decreased. (LRA)

A method to provide estimates of parameters of specified nonlinear equations from ordinal data generated from a crossed design is presented. The statistical basis for the method, called NOPE (nonmetric parameter estimation), as well as examples using artifical data, are presented. (Author/JKS)

The problem of determining an optimal passing score for a mastery test is discussed, when the purpose of the test is to predict success on an external criterion. For the case of constant losses for the two possible error types, a method for determining passing scores is derived. (Author/JKS)

Repeated measures designs often involve dichotomization of a continuous variable in order to be amenable to the analysis of variance nature of such designs. An alternative to that approach wherein the independent variable is kept continuous is presented. (JKS)

There are a variety of formulas for reducing the positive bias which occurs in estimating R squared in multiple regression or correlation equations. Five different formulas are evaluated in a Monte Carlo study, and recommendations are made. (JKS)