A conceptual model of the rhetorical community that addresses the sociodramatic processes through which social order evolves, is maintained, can change, and is threatened is presented in this paper. Following an introduction, the paper identifies the various uses of rhetorical vision and rhetorical community that are found in fantasy theme…

THE AUTHOR REVIEWS ONE OF THE BASIC SOCIAL SCIENCE CONCEPTS AS IT IS UTILIZED BY PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL SCIENTISTS, MAKING A CONCEPTUAL CLARIFICATION OF THE TERM "SYSTEM" AS IT RELATES TO THE FIELD OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION. INCLUDED IN THE ANALYSIS ARE KEY IDEAS EXPRESSED BY THE TERM, DISTINCTIONS THAT SERVE AS VALUABLE GUIDES IN…

BASIC SOCIAL SYSTEM AND ROLE THEORY CONCEPTS ARE APPLIED TO THE SCHOOL SYSTEM. POSITIONS, ROLES, INTERACTIONS, AND STRUCTURAL ASPECTS ARE BRIEFLY DEFINED. CHANGE IN A SOCIAL SYSTEM IS ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL FORCES. OVER THE YEARS, SCHOOL SYSTEM CHANGE HAS BEEN LARGELY SPORADIC, EXPEDIENT, SCATTERED, LATE, AND SUPERFICIAL.…

The extent to which evaluation research and psychology share some common objectives, methods and aims for validity is examined. The conventional dichotomy drawn between the two disciplines is seen as spurious and misleading to scholars and practitioners in each area. To demonstrate the proposed synergy between the two disciplines, an integrative…

When applied to older persons, basic concepts of Bowen Family Systems Theory, the most well developed theory emerging from the family movement in psychiatry, focus on the family systems of older people rather than on the problems of the aged. This Bowen focus on the value of intergenerational contact and continuity leads naturally to seeing the…

From the systems point of view, the objectives of higher education cannot be defined apart from the economic and social context in which the university operates. The report presents the results of a 4-year research project during which a mathematical model was developed to describe the way in which the university, as part of a socioeconomic…

Explored are some of the current problems in the functioning and planning of higher education institutions, particularly viewed through the experience of British institutions. A framework of institutional analysis, the open systems approach, is presented as an essential prerequisite to the understanding of the organization. From this framework is…

This paper explores potential benefits for the novel critic of exploiting analogies between the novel and the closed system for more rigorous description and interpretation of novels; and further development of the body of theory of novelistic criticism, particularly where there are differences in critics' interpretations of the same work. A…

Previous research is reviewed in which a multi-systems theory of communication behavior has been used to explain communication behavior of individuals and of several organization-related systems and subsystems. Recent research is then summarized which sought to develop conditional probabilities that communication behavior will occur in each of 16…

This paper discusses the philosophy of systems and systems thinking, considers some systems theories, and presents a conceptual model that represents the progression from systems theory to methodology and the implementation of synthesized theories. Following this discussion, the author examines the task of using a systems approach to develop and…

This bibliography is intended to inform administrators of the availability and wide scope of programming-planning-budgeting systems (PPBS) and their applications. The basic objectives of PPBS are: (1) to define jurisdictional objectives clearly and to relate them to defined needs and goals; (2) to stimulate the indepth analysis of all existing and…