Examined how aspects of preschoolers' peer-conflict behavior varied according to partner. Found that initiating and negotiating behavior in early sessions better predicted behavior in the fourth session for the same-partner versus change-partner group. Results indicated that much of preschoolers' conflict behavior was sensitive to influences…

Presents curriculum as a complex social process. Explores chaos theory as a metaphor for understanding curriculum and a framework for viewing the curriculum-development process. Provides examples of collaborative leadership (described by David Chrislip and Carl Larson) and shows how they might answer Joseph Schwab's call for a deliberative…

Defines "identity deployment" as a form of strategic collective action and asks under what political conditions are identities that celebrate or suppress differences deployed. Compares strategies used by lesbian and gay rights campaigns; shows that interaction among social movement organizations, state actors, and opposition movements…

Highlights a study that demonstrates what it means to press students to think conceptually about mathematics. Discusses similarities between classes--social norms--and differences between classrooms--sociomathematical norms. Concludes that, when teachers press hard for conceptual thinking, mathematics drives not only the activities but students'…

Uses pragmatist theories of inquiry and communication to interpret and critique resistance theories in education. Uses the notion of transactionalism of J. Dewey and A. Bentley (1946) to develop a theoretical framework for inquiry into school opposition. This approach, rather than simple avoidance or punishment, can lead to school-based inquiry…

Examined the relations of preschool and kindergarten children's responses to hypothetical social problem situations expressed through puppet interaction to the children's general social behavior at school, behavior in potential social conflict situations, and temperamental characteristics. Children's enacted friendliness and aggression were…

Examines whether dependency and self-criticism (personality types linked with depression) are related to social acuity. Uses 90 university students who completed 2 measures of social acuity. Finds that self-critical persons were significantly less accurate on both tasks, even when controlling for depressive symptomatology. Supports previous…

With the advent of the Internet, ethnography is being used to study the cultural practices of computer-mediated communication. Examines the nature and boundaries of virtual communities, the social presence of participation, social strategies of entry and membership, and technical utilities of data generation. Discusses ethical issues and areas for…

The initial purpose of the present study was to replicate procedures for teaching preschool children to recruit attention at appropriate times by having an experimenter signal the availability and unavailability of attention (i.e., arrange a multiple schedule involving reinforcement and extinction; Tiger & Hanley, 2004). Following the development…

Kenneth Burke's employment with the Bureau of Social Hygiene informed his rhetorical theory in the 1930s. Between 1926 and 1930, Burke researched criminology and drug addiction and ghostwrote a book for Colonel Arthur Woods, "Dangerous Drugs". An investigation of archives indicates that this research left its mark on Burke's "Permanence and…

Social scripting theory points to the fact that much of sexual behavior seems to follow a script. Similar to scripts that stage actors use to guide their behavior, social scripts instruct members of a society as to appropriate behavior and the meanings to attach to certain behaviors. In Western cultures, scripts for sexual activity are markedly…

Proficiency in social interaction with adults and peers is an important outcome in early childhood. The development of an experimental measure for assessing growth in social skills in children birth to 3 years is described. Based on the general outcome measurement (GOM) approach (e.g., Deno, 1997), the measure is intended for use by early…

This study investigated both relational and physical aggression in preschool children, explored potential differences in informant reporting and child sex on these subtypes, and examined relationships between types of aggressive behaviors and other types of negative and positive social behaviors. Naturalistic observations of social behavior,…

A boy who was visually impaired was trained to self-evaluate his social interaction, and a sighted peer was trained to provide relevant feedback to the boy through verbal reinforcement by the researcher. This feedback enhanced the boy's social interaction with his sighted peers, improved certain aspects of his social behavior, and increased the…

This study examined how the interaction between student and teacher characteristics affects teachers' predictions of students' academic and social success. Three hundred and eighty-four general education teachers responded to (a) one of 32 possible case studies describing a student, in which gender, reading achievement, social behavior, and…