This study examined the letters that 438 children aged 2 through 12 wrote to "Santa Claus" in care of a local newspaper in 1992. The letters were scored for: (1) number of toys requested; (2) non-toy requests; (3) specific requests for others; (4) intangible requests (i.e., world peace); (5) total toy price; and (6) number of toys…

A study examined the interactions of siblings in television families in three popular sitcoms of the 1950s--"Father Knows Best,""Leave it To Beaver," and "Ozzie and Harriet." Nine episodes of each sitcom were videotaped, and the behaviors were coded using a system developed to code sibling behavior in 1980s sitcoms.…

To test the findings of a 1981 study, which concluded that the Supreme Court of Chief Justice Warren Burger has attempted to reverse the liberal policies of the court presided over by Earl Warren by adopting a policy of ignoring precedent, a second study duplicated the earlier study's general research design, except that it focused on freedom of…

Intended for any consumer who wishes to be informed and on guard against the persuasive tactics of the media, this book presents a method for analyzing and understanding the basic pattern of persuasion in commercial advertisements. The first chapter explains why it is important and useful to develop this critical skill. The next five chapters…

Observing that most adults' present conceptions of the computer have been shaped by media images, a content analysis was conducted of 169 articles on computers published in six popular magazines from the 1940s through 1969. The articles were coded in terms of their themes and topics, and the specific terms used to refer to computers in each…

Supports the hypothesis that as the sciences have grown in recent decades, becoming more diverse and pluralistic, the mass media have reported a broader range of controversies involving science. (RB)

Concludes that the New York press was not responsible for Canada's anti-Northern attitude following the Civil War. (RB)

Analyzes ten of the most publicized and widely used textbooks in the technical writing field for reading level, organization, completeness in covering the subject and providing sufficient models, and price. (RB)

Analyzes "Captive Voices," the study produced by the Commission of Inquiry into High School Journalism, pointing out statistical flaws and questioning the Commission's inquiry techniques, but applauding it as a good beginning. (RB)

Analyzes the conceptual approach to music education and suggests a need for a broader conceptual framework in exploring music for young children. (SDH)

The pilot study reported here applies content analysis techniques to twenty interviews carried out in preparation for mediated searches as part of the "Uncertainty in Information Seeking" project. The tools used in the analysis (Atlas.ti and TEXTStat) are described and their contribution assessed. TEXTStat, a free program, was used to…

Examines the effects of principle of inference, relatedness of content, and mode of test presentation on the development of the conditional reasoning abilities of primary-grade children. (Author/SDH)

"Battlestar Galactica," ABC-TV's prime-time science fiction series for 1978-79, illustrates how popular, mass media entertainment can communicate contradictory meanings that correlate with unresolved cultural tensions. The ambiguity of visual design is especially confusing because it is contrapuntal to the simplicity and clarity of the…

The first step in aggregating qualitative data is to establish parameters for cross site analysis. Establishing parameters should include: (1) building a conceptual framework, (2) defining units of analysis, (3) developing core questions, and (4) establishing guidelines for handling unique features in each site. Two basic approaches to analyzing…

A content analysis of selected Soviet newspapers and magazines was conducted to examine what cultural events from the United States were featured in the Soviet press, whether the event or artist was presented favorably or unfavorably, and whether the stories were used to make an ideological statement. Nine publications were examined over a…