Describes court-imposed contact statutes that provide for enforceable post adoption contact between birth parents or relatives and the adoptee or adoptive parents. Compares statutes permitting courts to enforce post adoption contact agreements among the parties and court imposed post adoption contact agreements without regard to parties'…

Discusses evaluation in terms of what can be expected, changes in the use of evaluation methods, and the importance of evaluation credibility. Notes that evaluation has improved in practice and in decision-maker support for it; credible evaluations are now typically incorporated into policy and have become a routine organizational practice. (AEF)

Presents viewpoints of six information technology leaders in higher education on the use of technology, how to justify the cost, what value it will bring to education, what its adoption will mean for the future of colleges and universities, and future possibilities. (Author/LRW)

Summarizes trends and recent declines in adolescent pregnancy, abortion, and adoption relinquishment. Reviews research regarding adolescent pregnancy resolution decision-making. Discusses contextual factors, such as attitudes and socialization about abortion, parenting, and adoption, and the influence of parents and partners on likelihood of…

Discussion of faculty attitudes toward distance education and potential barriers to faculty acceptance and adoption focuses on a study that investigated faculty perceptions regarding distance education competence, value, and educational technology support by philosophical position towards distance education. Suggests the need to more effectively…

This longitudinal study examines the gender differences in attitudes toward computerization at a liberal arts university. Discusses gender effects research in computer use; diffusion of innovations; innovation adoption; and gender effects on innovation adoption. Results show women are more cautious in their interpretation of technological…

Explored a potentially viable, although controversial and little-researched, option for increasing the pool of prospective parents for children in need of adoptive homes: adoptions by gay men and lesbians. Analysis of data suggests gays and lesbians experience considerable obstacles in their efforts to become parents. Implications for practice and…

This study examined passive genotype-environment correlations (GECs) for language related abilities by comparing environment-child language associations in adoptive and nonadoptive families. Findings indicate genetic mediation of the association between home environmental variables with children's language-related abilities. Implications for…

This study used a longitudinal, panel design to examine the effects of negative information acquisition, compliance with opinion leader endorsements, and social demographic characteristics on consumers' symbolic adoption of food irradiation. Data collection coincided with the first market test of irradiated food conducted by a commercial firm,…

This manuscript addresses adoption and the related gifts and challenges faced by adoptees. Challenges such as the search for identity, reconciliation, and identifying how they belong are also discussed. This manuscript also addresses common myths and misconceptions about the adoption experience. A creative intervention, using super heroes and…

The purpose of the study was to determine the impact of professional group membership on the rate of adoption of e-learning. The sample consisted of Engineering, Finance, Human Resources, Legal, and Marketing professionals from a Fortune 500 manufacturing company. Professional groups were categorized based on Rogers (1995) five categories of…

The globalization of business has led to the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) around the world. Recently, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a roadmap for IFRS implementation starting in 2014, with earlier adoption permitted. Yet according to recent surveys, few U.S. universities have a strategy in place to…

This paper presents findings from a longitudinal qualitative study of Illinois foster parents that revealed a connection between how they view their financial situation and the ways in which they understand and carry out their roles as foster parents. The study illuminates the child welfare and family system dynamics that underlie the experiences…

Japan and Korea have highly developed information and communications technology infrastructures and have recently reformed their higher education systems and encouraged e-transformation. However, Japanese universities have not embraced e-learning as wholeheartedly as their Korean counterparts. The paper concludes that this is due to governmental…

Building upon three theoretical paradigms (technology acceptance model, social cognitive theory, and task-technology fit), the present study aims to investigate the relationship among intrinsic and extrinsic factors influencing science teachers' intentions toward teaching with information technology (IT). A sample of 226 middle school science…