Compares the costs and effectiveness of different recruitment strategies when a large and racially representative sample is needed, but specific requirements limit eligibility. Discusses common methods of social research recruitment, and evaluates five nonprobability sampling strategies. Discusses sample development when stratification is…

Discusses the benefits and costs associated with participation in voluntary organizations. Suggests that understanding benefits and costs is important because they can be used to enhance performance in voluntary groups. Discusses implications of research and makes recommendations for further research. (Author/JOW)

Discusses the concept of outsourcing in libraries and suggests that it is done for the cosmetic appearance of fiscal economies. Highlights include the possibility of achieving better service quality, but at a higher cost; and the importance of keeping management informed about and aware of the value of library services. (LRW)

Discusses how trainers can ensure that the monetary value of training results exceeds the cost of training. Describes how training programs at LensCrafters, Sears, and Apple have increased their return on investment. (JOW)

Examines the use of life-cycle analyses in conjunction with a roofing database to manage educational facility roofing as assets. Roofing database development, quantifying and benchmarking roofing investigations, and using warranties as part of a roof asset-management program are discussed. Tips on how to start a roofing management program are…

Describes the concepts and methods of economic evaluation of health programs and services. Explains why occupational therapists should participate in outcomes research to demonstrate the value of therapy. (SK)

Attempts to explain the differences between education costs and expenditures and explains the differences in the "unit price" of teachers in different regions and differences over time in the level of inflation. Also examines indices that can be used to make judgments about the differences in costs and outlines a plan to derive an index for school…

Discusses the twin issues of the cost of online education and its potential profitability based on results from studies commissioned by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation of six universities' distance learning costs. Describes how administrators are recognizing that the costs are greater than expected. (EV)

Compares methods for estimating consumer willingness to pay for information: contingent valuation, experimental auction, conjoint analysis, and hedonic price equations. Shows how, in the case of food dating, measurement of willingness is complicated by the question of whether the information adds to the product's value. (Contains 31 references.)…

Discusses elements that help define the term "quality" in distance education, emphasizing the need for interaction between all components in the process. Topics include three generations of distance education; quality as process management; the relationship between technology, interactivity, and quality; cost-quality ratio; and…

Article describes how organizations are beginning to develop and integrate health and disability management programs with an eye toward health promotion, disease prevention, and reducing disability-related lost time. (Author/JDM)

An upstate New York district's energy-conservation measures over the past 19 months have saved $376,000 that can be invested in academic and additional energy-saving programs. The district advises developing people-oriented strategies; updating structures, systems, and equipment; finding appropriate resources; and investing in the future. (MLH)

Outlines considerations for pursuing electronic business: website content; cost of authoring, hosting, and registering domains; design (usability, aesthetics, functionality, confidentiality); customer focus; marketing; and maintenance. (Contains 29 references.) (SK)

As early as junior high school, after she had gone to see The Music Man and came out idolizing Marian, Karen Bersche knew she was destined for librarianship. But she didn't get around to it until after she got a degree in counseling, started her family, and opened her own daycare center. She has more than made up for lost time since, first as…

Community college administrators frequently need to deal with program enrollment shifts resulting from economic and demographic shifts. Reallocating resources between areas of the college to adjust to those enrollment shifts can become a difficult process if there isn't a careful monitoring of enrollment patterns and program costs. The authors…