Examines the elements involved in fitting a bibliometric model to empirical data, proposes a consistent methodology for applying Lotka's law, and presents the results of an empirical test of the methodology. The results are discussed in terms of the validity of Lotka's law and the suitability of the proposed methodology. (49 references) (CLB)

A mixed-method conceptual framework was developed from the literature and refined through an analysis of 57 empirical mixed-method evaluations. Five purposes for mixed-method evaluation are identified (triangulation, complementarity, development, initiation, and expansion) and analyzed using the framework of 7 design characteristics. (TJH)

Discusses the role of semiotics in instructional systems research, and examines the implications that a semiotic perspective yields for the research training provided to students in instructional systems. Research perspectives and methodologies are described, including differences in qualitative and quantitative research, and data analysis is…

Reviews application of causal modeling in family research. Discusses uses of and critics' views of causal modeling to explain reasons for controversial position of causal modeling in social sciences. Reviews requirements for effectively implementing causal modeling strategy, commenting on some attempts of family researchers to use it. Includes…

Notes that many employers use student's grade point average (GPA) as the criterion for interviewee selection, presenting problems for students who may have gotten low grades early in their college careers but higher grades later. Presents a formula for deriving an "equivalent GPA" for such students by taking into account education, experience, and…

Describes a card game designed to teach the scientific method, inductive thinking, and data analysis strategies. The objective is to guess the rule that differentiates the "legal triplets" (set of three playing cards) from the "illegal" ones. Suggestions are provided for a debriefing session in which the players reflect on…

Presents reasons for, and examples of, addressing environmental issues in secondary mathematics classrooms. (Author/MKR)

This statement of the National Institute of Mental Health Editors' Consortium discourages piecemeal publication of small amounts of data from the same study, requires study authors to inform editors about other manuscripts from the same study, and requires authors to submit copies of closely related manuscripts. (JDD)

Discusses five basic issues that teachers should address as they begin an action research project: (1) the main question to be answered; (2) relevant data; (3) specific data, and its collection method; (4) data analysis; and (5) interpretations or implications to be drawn from the data. (RS)

Presents an interview with Emerson J. Elliott, Commissioner of Education Statistics, on the subject of leadership, government service, and the relationship between research and statistics. Some principles of leadership that are distinctive to the federal bureaucracy are addressed. (GR)

Presents and discusses implications of a set of measures of information. Definitions of relevant terms, including fact, data, representation, information, and knowledge, are given; four levels of processing data are explained (i.e., data transfer, data selection, data analysis, and data reduction); and relationships between information and…

Review of research methodologies used in studies of online public access catalog (OPAC) users finds that a variety of research methodologies--e.g., surveys, transaction log analysis, interviews--have been used with varying degrees of expertise. It is concluded that poor research methodology resulting from limited training and resources limits the…

Discusses two approaches to data analysis in pretest-posttest research designs in which researcher has not formed groups based on pretest or used pretest information in assigning participants to groups, thus ruling out two-way analysis of variance. Describes use of repeated-measures analysis of variance and two-group analysis of covariance in…

Presents general principles for cleaning data sets. Suggests techniques: check for column shifts, data completeness, marginal frequencies, and selected cross-tabulations; examines a sample of cases. Gives strategies for preventing data processing errors. (SK)

Applied structural equation modeling to evaluation of cross-lagged panel models. Self-reports of physical and mental health at three time points spanning four-year interval were analyzed to illustrate cross-lagged analysis methodology. Data were analyzed from 856 patients with hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, or depression. Cross-lagged…