Subjects (students, coaches, communication instructors, general public) listened to audiotaped speeches, indicated the criteria used in evaluating speeches, rated the importance of criteria, and ranked the speakers. Findings indicate that subjects tended to interpret and apply criteria differently. Study suggests need for stronger feedback between…

Two panels of experts were asked to evaluate ten alcohol education pamphlets against five criteria. Variability of the ratings within and between the two panels suggests that such a method of evaluating educational materials is seriously wanting in validity. (Author)

A literature review reveals that learning disabled children are more likely than normal achievers to attribute successes, but not failures, to external factors. The implications of locus of control for the field of learning disabilities are discussed in terms of its relation to academic achievement, learned helplessness, and remediation programs.…

The Learning Style Inventory (LSI) measures an individual student's learning style and preference for physical learning environment. LSI scores for 321 students in grades 3, 6, and 7 were correlated to their self-concept scores. Eight LSI variables discriminated significantly between subjects with high and low self-concepts. (SJL)

Four indices of achievement relative to a measure of general intelligence were constructed for a sample of 178 adolescents. Measures of achievement were taken from tests in reading comprehension and mathematics, from an English essay, and from the results of public examinations at 16+. (Author)

The involvement of high school students with instructional activities was investigated. Results indicated that attendance, completion of assignments, teacher ratings of student involvement, and student feelings of involvement during class activities were related to achievement in the social studies classes. (Author/GK)

Evaluates relationship between heavy television viewing and other variables, especially educational attainment, by testing 275 Edmonton (Alberta) fifth to sixth graders. Finds youngsters whose parents have higher socioeducational status (SES), characterized by heavy use of symbolic skills, watch less TV than SES counterparts; heavy TV watching is…

A questionnaire containing objectively scored measures of migration history, educational attainment, sex-role traditionalism, assertiveness, and symptoms of mental and physical illness was completed by 278 Puerto Rican women (aged 18-55) living in New York City. As hypothesized, sex-role traditionalism correlated negatively with symptoms. (Author)

Concludes that the misspellings of poor college-age readers have more internal errors and more dysphonetic misspellings than those of good readers. Offers suggestions for instruction based on these findings. (FL)

This study examines interrelationships among several episodic memory tasks, particularly correlations among various attributes of memory: imagery, associative, acoustic, temporal, affective, and frequency. Undergraduates completed 28 episodic memory tests using tasks such as free recall, paired associates, classical recognition, and memory span.…

Examined relationships among methods for assessing marital adjustment: self-reports of marital satisfaction, spouse reports of pleasing and displeasing behaviors, and trained observers' coding of positive and negative communication. Frequency of pleasing behaviors was only measure correlating with global marital satisfaction. Inverse relationships…

For 20 dental students the relationships of field dependency, scores on the dental admissions test, grades in technique courses, and time and error scores on mirror-tracing tests were studied. Preliminary results indicate that study of the perceptual-cognitive styles of dental students may have utility in counseling and admissions. (Author/SJL)

Data analyzed from the National Longtitudinal Surveys, female responses (N=3,690), indicated that marital instability increases the need for welfare, AFDC and food stamps. In response, Stephen Bahr questions the conclusions of this study by identifying its methodological limitations. (Author/RC)

Sociological and demographic research often uses variables computed as ratios. When the denominators are highly correlated, and the ratios are used in correlation or regression analysis, a statistical dependency is formed. This article investigates this problem, particularly with respect to partial correlation, multiple regression, and the…

Childless spouses were significantly more liberal toward divorce than were spouses with children, with childless wives being the most liberal of all. Husbands were more influenced by the perceived quality of the marital relationship, in support of cognitive dissonance theory. (Author)