Examines the role of interactivity in the presentation of science news on the World Wide Web. Proposes and tests a model of interactive information processing that suggests that characteristics of users and Web sites influence interactivity, which influences knowledge acquisition. Describes use of a think-aloud method to study participants' mental…

Although a growing body of scholarship describes the development of LGBT identity in college students and abundant literature provides evidence of the developmental impact of campus involvement, little has been known about the experiences of LGBT student leaders. We interviewed 15 students from three Midwestern institutions and analyzed data using…

Personal epistemology has typically been conceptualized in one of two primary ways: as a cognitive developmental process or as a system of beliefs. The approach that is elaborated here is to conceive of epistemological understanding as a metacognitive process that activates epistemic theories, a multidimensional set of interrelated beliefs about…

This article provides a brief theoretical framework as well as literature review and describes the activities of an on-going research program which examines the experiences of students and professors at a specialized bilingual teacher's college in the Republic of Colombia, South America. It follows the development of a new pedagogical model as…

Using an ethnographic approach the study describes the curricula that veteran urban high school special educators use in self-contained special education classrooms with majority Blacks and Latinos. The findings show that the teachers routinely exposed students to elementary level curricula and to material that was rife with racist images of…

This qualitative inquiry examined second graders' literacy learning by observing acts of processing on continuous text. Specifically, this study explored the variety, complexity, and change in second graders' "on-the-run" reading behaviors at three points in time across an academic year. Systematic observation and the analysis of more…

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory--Adolescent (MMPI-A) and Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory--2 (MMPI-2) True Response Inconsistency (TRIN) scales are measures of acquiescence and nonacquiescence included among the standard validity scales on these instruments. The goals of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness of…

The focus of this project was on characterizing and assessing design problem solving in the area of digital circuit design. Think-aloud protocols and computer traces of subject problem-solving behavior were used to elucidate the cognitive processes involved in designing combinational and complex sequential circuits by: (1) studying the differences…

The amount of variability contributed to large-scale performance assessment scores by raters is a constant concern for those who wish to use results from these assessments for educational decisions. This study approaches the problem by examining the behaviors of essay scorers who demonstrate different levels of proficiency with a holistic scoring…

Clear descriptions of job expertise are required to support applications and improvements in personnel training and job performance. This report describes a practical approach to task analysis that integrates the issues, content, and methods of cognitive science and personnel psychology. Cognitively oriented task analysis employs a breadth, then…

This study examined the influence of literacy-enriched play centers on preschoolers' conceptions of print. Subjects, 25 boys and 12 girls aged 4 and 5 years from 2 urban preschool classes, were systematically observed before and after 5 basic design changes were made in the classrooms. Four distinct play centers (post office, library, office, and…

How writers come by, find, or create their sense of purpose and whether readers are at all aware of or affected by this purposeful, sometimes elaborate rhetorical structure the writer labored to construct are questions that have motivated critical discussions of the construction of purpose. Using think-aloud protocols, the construction of purpose…

Briefly reviews prior use of the thinking aloud method. Advantages of this method are contrasted to other techniques of the studying the research process. Suggestions include (1) choosing subjects and reading materials; (2) planning, preparing, and training subjects for thinking aloud sessions; and (3) recording, transcribing, and analyzing data.…

Argues that in the study of literature, the authority of the text is confounded by the authority of the teacher. Suggests that more effective learning takes place when the authority of both text and teacher is set aside. (FL)

One ethical dilemma for psychologists is finding methods to share test results with their clients in such a way that the client is not deleteriously labeled, but is encouraged by the knowledge of assessed strength and growth areas. This paper offers one answer by presenting a structured protocol that draws on an iceberg metaphor for categorizing…