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The big data imposes the key problem of generalizability of the results. In the present contribution, we discuss statistical tools which can help to select variables adequate for target level of abstraction. We show that a model considered as over-fitted in one context can be accurate in another. We illustrate this notion with an example analysis experiment on the data from 13 university Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs). We discuss statistical tools which can be helpful in the analysis of generalizability of MOOC models. [For the full proceedings, see ED592609.]

Questions often arise spontaneously in a curious mind, due to an observation about a new or unknown environment. When an expert is right there, prepared to engage in dialog, this curiosity can be harnessed and converted into highly effective, intrinsically motivated learning. This paper investigates how this kind of situated informal learning can be realized in real-world settings with wearable technologies and the support of a remote learning companion. In particular, we seek to understand how the use of different multimedia communication mediums impacts the quality of the interaction with a remote teacher, and how these remote interactions compare with face-to-face, co-present learning. A prototype system called TagAlong was developed with attention to features that facilitate dialog based on the visual environment. It was developed to work robustly in the wild, depending only on widely-available components and infrastructure. A pilot study was performed to learn about what characteristics are most important for successful interactions, as a basis for further system development and a future full-scale study. We conclude that it is critical for system design to be informed by (i) an analysis of the attentional burdens imposed by the system on both wearer and companion and (ii) a knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of co-present learning. [For the full proceedings, see ED562093.]

his brief research report advocates integrating social justice into mathematics education for elementary pre-service teachers (EPSTs). It highlights the importance of this integration in addressing mathematics anxiety and improving attitudes toward mathematics. The report also discusses how negative attitudes and mathematics anxiety can hinder PSTs’ ability to teach mathematics effectively, stressing the necessity to incorporate mathematics applications into education method courses. Furthermore, it underscores the relevance of integrating social justice topics into the pre-service teacher mathematics curricula to promote critical thinking and humanization, thereby aiding in addressing educational disparities and promoting confidence in teaching numerical skills. This approach can potentially transform PSTs’ attitudes toward mathematics, alleviate mathematics anxiety, and enhance their teaching practices in elementary classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of systematic instruction with cloze tasks on the reading achievement of primary grade children. The cloze procedure was selected as an instructional strategy because of the close relationship of the cloze procedure to the psycholinguistic model of the reading process. Twenty-two first and nine second grade children from a university laboratory school were selected as subjects. Subjects ranged in reading ability from preprimer to third grade. No subject was experiencing severe difficulty in learning to read. Results from a cloze test, a test of word knowledge, and a standardized reading test indicated that the cloze treatment and the treatment combining self-selecting reading and phonic reinforcement activities had equal effect on the primary grade subjects. (RB)

A number of factors contribute to vaccine hesitancy including citizens' determination of the risks and benefits of vaccination. In this study, we use interviews and surveys to understand how United States and South Korean citizens quantify the risks of COVID-19 infection and vaccination. Many citizens used benchmark values such as 0%, 50%, 100% to estimate their risks of COVID-19 infection and COVID-19 vaccination. Although neither infection nor vaccination has a 50% risk of severe outcome, the citizens' thinking is consistent with the outcome approach described by Konold (1989, 1991). In his work, a 50% risk often implied uncertainty about if an outcome would happen in a single trial. It is important to support citizens' understanding of risk because in our sample the citizens who thought COVID-19 vaccination was riskier than COVID-19 infection were often unvaccinated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study explored 20 teachers' perceptions of the classroom behavior and work habits of 10 elementary-junior high school mainstreamed learning disabilities (LD) students and 10 nonlabeled control students. Results of the Devereux Elementary School Behavior Rating Scale and the rating of student behavior by an independent observer indicated that the classroom behavior of LD Ss differed very little from the behavior of their nonlabeled classmates. In addition, there was no evidence that the LD label biased the teachers' ratings. In fact, teachers rated nonlabeled Ss more harshly than LD Ss on several factors. (Author/CL)

A descriptive, qualitative research design was used in a study that examined the formal socialization process in high technology organizations. The primary objective was to determine if organiations involved in high technology tended to exhibit similar symbology in the discourse produced by management for the formal socialization process. Data were collected from personnel directors and from pamphlets and other publications that reflected the organizational ideology. Similarities that emerged--as reflected in the themes, slogans, general vocabulary, and material symbols--consisted of five primary values: innnovation, quality, teamwork, equality, and individualism. Of these, innovativeness and individualism appeared to be the primary values consistently and frequently associated with organizational claims expressing management's aspirations and stated beliefs about the organizations. Some differences also emerged. For example, some organizations appeared to use different symbols for socializing members, depending on the technological specialization of their products. Others were the result of factors unique to the particular organization being analyzed. (HOD)

One of the most solidly established results in the social sciences is the positive correlation between higher levels of income and a higher incidence of democracy across countries. However, explanations for this relationship have proved varied and uncertain. This is because existing methodologies have treated the relationship as a linear and continuous one and searched for average incremental impacts of democracy on development, or of economic growth on transitions to democracy. This paper instead plots and examines the actual trajectories of countries between 1955 and 2009 in a two-dimensional space of democracy and economic development. The trajectories are often highly non-linear and exhibit extreme irregularity, belying the notion of any simple relationship between income and democracy. Instead, the dynamics suggest an underlying dual-equilibrium pattern, with one equilibrium unfavorable to both democracy and development, the other favorable to stable democracy and long-term economic growth. Most transitions to democracy fail to reach the favorable equilibrium, and instead create an unstable intermediate state, such that many countries 'bounce' or 'cycle' between dictatorship and democracy without achieving sustained economic growth. Describing these dual equilibria in terms of different social network structures resolves many of the paradoxes of democracy and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the process of communication between people who have different categorical knowledge about certain items. One side of the communication is a person with technical knowledge, and the other side is a person who has non-technical knowledge. An experiment is designed to investigate the communication effectiveness when the communicators are provided with different categorical knowledge. The results of the study indicate that communication is less effective when the messages are sent from the nontechnical person to the technical person rather than the communication in which the messages are sent from technical to non-technical direction. In addition, the communication is more effective if the senders adjust their messages in such a way that they fit into the receivers' categorical knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present scientific study's objective is to challenge the managerial principles applied within the Romanian public sector. The organizational behavior that defines the public system is transcending from the bureaucratic weberialism towards Friederick Taylor's management. The study intends to quantify the manner in which taylorism/the new public management might be implemented in the public institutions' realities. Today, the altered effects of bureaucracy are measured quantitatively and qualitatively due to the lack of resources within the public system(and the threat of state bankruptcy in Europe). From a different perspective, the present study also analysis the altered effects of the new public management: managerialism means that the public servants are exposed to public life (the growth of the politicized traditional model of career development in the public office). Romania will need to promote the Anglo-Saxon model of flexible development of career management within the public service. In order for this to take place, the private-public sector dilemma must be solved, promoting the participative political culture and assuming responsibility at the public policies level for the governing models in order to counteract "The states' failure". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issues of intercultural dialogue and intercultural competence play a key role in shaping and reshaping the future. Intercultural rhetoric use cultural difference to build knowledge and support wise action. The most important purpose of the paper is to examine the strategies used to design an intercultural dialogue. The main research whose results are being disseminated through this paper are part of a national research project, "Equality of chances, management of diversity within organizations and sustainable development" (Parteneriate 92116), project granted by competition in August 2008. It benefits from the expertise of a dynamic team of university professors as well as enthusiastic PhD students. It's based on a partnership relation between: University of Bucharest (Faculty of Administration and Business), National Scientific Research Institute for Labor and Social Protection, "Spiru Haret" University, Academy of Economic Studies (coordinator). The paper examines examples of good practices used to design an intercultural dialogue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The general objective of the paper is the scientific foundation of the necessity to implement the model of the creative economy and knowledge-based society in Romania. The reason why we have chosen this topic for our paper regards also the fact that 2009 had been declared "The European Year for Creativity and Innovation" In this respect, the paper is aimed at describing the attitudes young Romanians have towards creativity in general and the creative industries in particular. The target of the present study is represented by young people because it is first and foremost young people who are more knowledgeable about the creative industries and are kept abreast with the most recent discoveries, developments and advancements in the field. The main research whose results are being disseminated through this paper are part of a national research project, "Creative economy and knowledge-based society: Challenges and opportunities for Romania" (IDEI 1224), project granted by competition in 2007. Taking after the British classification model of the creative industries in an attempt to implement the concept in the Romanian economy as well, this study is meant to be a first step in acknowledging this issue on a scientific basis. Moreover, the purpose of this paper is to quantify, to some extent, the openness of our society for the new fields of activity comprised by the creative industries. This study offers perspectives for future research, diverting the focus from the population as a way of evaluating attitudes towards the business environment in search of evaluating the behavior of companies in this sector. The paper highlights the importance of the topic for Romania, a catching up country according to the last Report of Innovation Scoreboad in the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This scientific approach is organized upon the principle that conflict is inevitable, complex and emotionally challenging for teams. In order to deal effectively with conflict, teams need to be able to create a climate where team members feel safe to be open one to another. They need to be able to approach conflict with a positive attitude. They have to able to trust one another and work together closely. Finally they need to be aware of and sensitive to emotional issues that arise during conflict. Successful managers transform differences into opportunities and are able to lead through conflict. These successful managers are those who work with successful teams. Groups constitute the basic building blocks of any organization. For many tasks, teams accomplish much more work in less time than the same number of individuals can separately. Employees can also grow more quality-conscious through group interaction as they learn about others' experiences, problems and solutions, as work in process flows through the organization. This paper establishes some principles of creating high performing teams and offers some key words of recognizing the symptoms of breakdown conflicts in teams. As organizations continue to restructure work teams, the need for training in conflict resolution will grow. Conflict arises from differences in terms of power, values and attitudes. To avoid the negative consequences that can result from disagreements, most methods of resolving conflict stress the importance of dealing with disputes quickly and openly. Conflict is not necessarily destructive, however. When managed properly, conflict can result in benefits for a team. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four water-soluble azo dyes including Reactive Red MS, Reactive Blue B, Mordant Black PV and Acid Orange 156 were selected to investigate their adsorption properties and modes on the surface of TiO2 particles at varied pH levels and in the presence of sodium chloride, respectively. Also the adsorption parameters of the dyes were obtained using experimental data fitting method. The results indicated that high pH values caused low adsorbing capacities of the dyes into TiO2particles, and their adsorption decreased significantly in pH range of 4-8. Moreover, the amounts of four dyes absorbed into TiO2 were increased in the presence of sodium chloride and two acid dyes were much higher than two reactive dyes in the terms of the amounts absorbed into TiO2 at the same conditions. In addition, the adsorption isotherms of four dyes were described well by Langmuir adsorption model and reactive dyes showed higher adsorption constants and coverage on the surface of TiO2 than acid dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This scientific approach presents by means of comparative models, the European approval of the lobbying concept, with regard to the possibility of defending the interests of the employees in opposition to the employers with help from lobbyists. The research carried out in the business, political and mass-media sector has shown that lobbying is a common practice for the modern democracies. Nevertheless, I have considered that the profession involved in the lobbying act should not be selected at corporate level, just as entering/exiting such market should not be controlled by the public authority, this being a liberal profession. Lobbying is prohibited in some countries in Europe. Such an example is France, where firms or groups that defend private interests cannot be constituted. The French consider that any type of organization should not interfere between the authorities and the citizens and making a profit at the same time. The entire comparative analysis outlines the necessity for a bylaw, applicable to the present day Romanian lobbying activity, which at the present moment comprises only guidelines with regard to accessing public information and transparency. One of the purposes of this paper is to highlight the degree of pressure the organizations must face from the political institutions in the present day, especially the unions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the present study is to examine how visitors of personal web-sites evaluate web-site owners' self-presentation styles. Especially, this study is about the difference between men and women in evaluating others' self-presentation styles. The same self-presentation styles might be perceived differently by the gender of presenters and viewers. This study investigated visitors' likeability and perceived competence of web-site owners. The results revealed that both male and female visitors had higher likeability of the other gender than the same gender. Besides, as for perceived competence, both men and women perceived the other gender more competent than the same gender, and women perceived the bragging man more competent. According to these results, it is suggested that there are gender differences in evaluating others' self-presentation styles in personal web-sites. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the ways in which relationships develop and become more intimate is through the exchange of personal feelings, thoughts, beliefs, and desires. If self-disclosure is conceptualized as a means through which closeness or familiarity is produced between partners (under the premise that the disclosure is not negative), can such a response be attributable to mediated forms of self-disclosure between a viewer and character on television? The present study empirically tests the effects of two dimensions of self-disclosure―depth (private vs. public information) and mode of information delivery (character-to-viewer vs. character-to-character vs. narrator-to-viewer). Findings support the prediction that a viewer's overall enjoyment of witnessing the disclosure of a character's personal information, identification, and transportation are functions of depth and mode of information delivery. Further, results suggest the important role of "character address" in heightening audience engagement. Implications for the similarity of interpersonal and mediated relationships, societal expectations of privacy, effective entertainment formats, and online self-disclosure are discussed. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While research on conceptualizing media enjoyment has largely focused on the affective and cognitive dimensions of one’s viewing experience, minimal attention has been paid to the behavioral component of enjoyment. Drawing from Nabi and Krcmar’s (2004) tripartite model of media enjoyment, this study examines how affective, cognitive, and behavioral reactions to a participatory reality TV program predict program enjoyment and future program viewing. Responses to surveys over three weeks of Fox’s American Idol series suggested that cognitive and affective responses to a program were highly interrelated. Further, past program viewing positively associated with behavioral engagement, enjoyment, and viewing intention, though behavioral engagement showed minimal effects in the latter contexts. Also, cognitive and affective reactions predicted enjoyment, viewing intention, and subsequent program viewing. Implications for participatory reality TV and the study of enjoyment are discussed. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper adopted the Parallel Distributed Processing paradigm in cognitive psychology and applied it to comprehension processes. Essential aspects of PDP models were discussed with regard to mental representation constructs during comprehension. Re-conceptualization of comprehension processes, activation propagation computation, and PDP network operation were disused. Using a short story, we developed a network to illustrate how a PDP models based model works. The designed network was simulated in software and the resulting output activations turned out to be significantly correlated to empirical free recall data. Throughout the paper, the potential advantages of the PDP models both for research method and a theoretical guidance of comprehension processes, were emphasized with an expectation to facilitate scholarly interests in the PDP models in mass media message comprehension. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reality TV has been largely documented in literature as a genre which places non-actors in dramatic situations with unpredictable outcomes. However, over the past few years, the influx of reality TV in primetime programming has been highly reflective of its expansion in formats, evident from the variety of narrative structures and themes embedded in reality-based shows. This study redefines this entertainment genre and provides a richer conceptualization of reality TV by examining nine subgenres: dating/romance, makeover/lifestyle, hidden camera, talent, game show, docusoap, sitcom, law enforcement, and court. An online questionnaire revealed significant differences in self-reported character identification, interactivity, enjoyment, perceived realism, and perceived competition across these subgenres. Findings not only suggest that programs commonly defined as reality TV offer different experiences for viewers, but also provide strong support for its growing diversity of formats, as well as a reconceptualization of this TV genre. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper reports the results of two experiments on the role of situation models and linkages between models on movie comprehension. In both experiments, participants watch the last 45 minutes of Alfred HitchockÂ’s Rear Window . Half of the participants watched the movie in English and half watched in French with English subtitles. We expected participants to form fewer linkages between situation models in the subtitle condition due to the cognitive of reading subtitles which should interfere with the elaborations necessary to form linkages between the situation models. The first experiment examined the pattern of inferences generated during movie watching. The results showed that participants in the English condition made more backward inferences than participants in the subtitled condition which suggest that participants develop more associative links between situation models. In Experiment 2, after watching the last 45 minutes of the film, participants were asked to sort the 78 events into piles based on their similarity. The associated network that resulted from the similiarity data supported the results of Experiment 1 by showing that the representation of the movie involved more elaborative linkages when watched in English than in French with subtitles. The implication of these results from models of movie comprehension are discussed. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This present study explored how people socially responded toward anthropomorphized computers, moderated by copresence and reciprocity. With an increase in the reliance on new technologies, research has documented a variety of ways in which people appropriate overlearned social behaviors (e.g., politeness) not only to each other, but also to computers. Evidence has supported the mindless responses people exhibit when interacting with computers. However, anthropomorphism as an alternative explanation to these social responses has been largely discounted. An experiment (N = 151) was conducted to examine the relationship between anthropomorphism and politeness toward the evaluation of a computer. Other moderating variables, such as reciprocity and physical proximity are tested in this relationship. Results indicated that anthropomorphism and reciprocity affected politeness toward a computer. In addition, the effect of anthropomorphism and physical proximity on politeness was different depending on reciprocity. The results have implications highlighting the roles in which anthropomorphism of computers, physical proximity to computers, and reciprocity of computer interaction enhance the strength of positively-biased social responses. Furthermore, this study extends politeness literature by acknowledging the growing similarities between face-to-face communication and human-computer interactions as a result of anthropomorphism. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores how viewers' affective responses to characters, their anticipation of outcomes for the characters and their resulting perceptions of suspense contribute to their enjoyment and their interest in continual viewing of the television series, "Survivor." The article further explores whether the promotion of particular narrative features in a reality television series pertaining to character disposition and anticipated character outcome play a role in sustaining audience viewership.

The current study was interested in the media message use in a creative thinking process. The influence by the media instances to creativity and the relationship between media exposure and media instances in a creative task were investigated. In the study, participants were asked to create a movie scenario format story , after which they listed the instances, examples, or events they thought about during story development. Two experts in film production judged the stories in terms of originality and quality. The instance sources were content-analyzed and divided into media source instance and non-media source instances. Participants' media exposure was also measured with emphasis on genre specific viewing. The results showed that first, participants retrieved media exemplars during creating a story. Second, media exemplars contributed to originality and quality. Finally, the direct effect of media exposure to creativity and the indirect effect of media exposure to creativity, which includes the mediating variable of media instance generation were analyzed. No direct or indirect effect was found. The results were discussed in accessibility construct and creative tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Watching a film in a foreign language with subtitles should require more cognitive effort than watching a native language film. Consequently, people's comprehension of a film with subtitles may be less than a film where subtitles are not necessary. The types of inferences that people make are an indication of how well they comprehend a film. This experiment investigated the different pattern of inferences generated by participants watching a native language film versus a foreign language film with subtitles. In this framework, reading subtitles was assumed to have a detrimental effect to inference generation. To test this effect, this research used two versions of Rear window (Alfred Hitchcock, 1956). The first version is in English and the other is dubbed in French with English subtitled. Inferences were gathered by asking participants to write down any thoughts coming to mind during watching a film. The inferences were categorized as either backward (focus on previous information), forward (focus on future information), and current (focus on information in the current scene. Participants generated more current inferences in the foreign language film with subtitles. However, participants generated more backward inferences in the native language condition. These results are consistent with the idea that participants had less comprehension of the foreign language film with subtitles. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the relationship between one's interpersonal needs for inclusion, control, and affection and Internet behavior in the categories of interpersonal communication and information seeking. A 95-item survey, consisting of the FIRO-Behavior Scale developed by William Schutz in 1958 and a self-constructed Internet use scale, is administered to 100 students from the Communication Studies Research Participant Pool at a large midwest university. Findings show that Internet users with greater needs for inclusion are less likely to visit chat rooms and those with greater needs for affection are less likely to participate in online mating and dating services. The need for inclusion highly correlated with the need for affection. In addition, when assessing gender differences in the areas of interpersonal needs and Internet behavior, females scored higher in needs for inclusion and affection than males, and males reported greater information seeking motives online than females. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do people comprehend TV news stories? This research project applied research on mental models of text comprehension to people's understanding of TV news stories. Specifically, the landscape model of text comprehension was tested to determine how well the model could account for people's memory of a news story. Participants either read or watched a news story about a robot expo in Japan. The landscape model did a good job of predicting participants' mental representation of, and memory for, the print version of the news story (R2 = .86). However, considering the fact that the landscape model was developed to explain text-based comprehension, the original model did not adequately explain participants' representation of, and memory for, the visual story (R2 = .32). We expanded the landscape model to include visual representations of concepts by incorporating elements of Paivio's dual code theory of memory. When visual representations were integrated in the landscape model, the model did an excellent job of predicting participants' memory for the TV news story (R2 = .76). ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study gives voice to patients and physicians regarding their attitudes toward the PALS brochure. More specifically, we analyzed patients and providers open-ended responses regarding the content and utility of the PALS brochure. The PALS brochure was designed to encourage a partnership between patients and their providers and implemented at a midsize Midwestern University medical clinic. Respondents included the 99 patients and five physicians who completed the open-ended portion assessing the PALS pilot intervention. Patients and physicians perspectives on the PALS brochure content and utility are discussed. As shown in this study, patients who already have "proven" methods that work for them in communicating with their physician may not perceive the PALS brochure or other intervention tools as beneficial. However, those patients who like and need tools to assist in improving the quality of the health care visit perceived the PALS brochure as highly beneficial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abstract of the study "Lignin—A Renewable Precursor for Carbon Nanofibers," by Frank Ko and colleagues is presented.

An abstract of the article "How the Shape of Graph Evokes Different Discourses: Case of Continuous Functions" by Gaya Jayakody and Mina Sedaghatjou is presented.

An abstract of the article "High School Teachers' Use of Calculators in Classroom Settings" by Fetiye Aydeniz and colleagues is presented.

An abstract of the article "Exploring Geometric Transformations by Prospective Teachers with Dynamic Geometry on Touchscreen Device" by Mina Sedaghatjou and Gaya Jayakody is presented.

Interaction in face-to-face groups displays a number of structural properties, such as tendencies toward mutuality and triadic closure. We examine the extent to which such structural network properties operate within interactions that emerge in the internet social networking site, Facebook. Triads, which represent collections of 3 actors and the ties among them, are important to study because of their link to global structures (e.g., Davis and Leinhardt, 1972, and because of their role in network theories, such as those regarding the role of weak ties in the dissemination of information (Granovetter, 1973). Previous research demonstrated that information contained in triad censuses can be accounted for largely by lower network properties, such as network density and dyadic distributions (Faust, 2006; 2008). In this study, we examine the network ties among wall posts made in Facebook, using data gathered by Viswanath et al. (2009) for over 90K users. We select random nodes from the network, and then establish possible triads within the egocentric, subnetwork of the social graph. Triads consist of ego and two other nodes from friends of their friends. We investigate changes in these triads, and the component dyads, over a two year period, using information derived from successive triad censuses (Holland and Leinhardt, 1970). We distinguish between regular triads and "forbidden triads" (e.g., Johnsen, 1985). Our findings demonstrate that both tendencies towards mutuality, and the problem of low density in a large, internet social network, play important roles in determining the evolution of triads in Facebook interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, almost every TV program has an official website which allows individuals to partake in a myriad of activities beyond the traditional TV viewing experience. Some activities include seeking program information, participating in fantasy games, downloading videos and ringtones, posting on message boards, chatting with fans, and subscribing to newsletters. Taking on a uses and gratifications perspective, this study (N = 350) investigates the psychological and social needs motivating individuals to engage in TV program websites, and the link between personality traits and behavioral involvement with these websites. Implications for program enjoyment, interactivity, and sustained audience viewership are discussed. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of crime and the criminal justice system is largely shaped by the media and these images have been long thought to increase fear of crime. It was posited in the 1970s that those who watch more television were likely to be more fearful of crime. Over time, this position has been tested with mixed results. Crime dramas and reality crime shows have soared in popularity in recent years, as evidenced by the multitude of shows such as Law and Order, CSI:, and COPS. These programs have a dominant theme of justice, with the offender almost always being caught and indicted for his or her crime. Data from a survey of students, faculty and staff at an urban eastern Virginia university are used to assess the relationships between the viewing of crime shows and the perceptions of fear. We suggest that since the majority of crime shows on television end with the apprehension, and often conviction, of the offender, extensive viewing of crime on television leads to a reduced fear of crime. We propose that viewing crime television provides the impression of an efficient criminal justice system and thereby a safer worldview. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When people watch a movie, one of the viewers' basic goals is to have a coherent understanding of what they are watching. To accomplish this, viewers construct mental representations of the movie as the movie unfolds. This representation includes information about the characters and situations within the movie, and prior expectations based on knowledge about the genre of movies, the director, and/or the actors and actresses starring in the movie. This combination of information provides the basis for understanding the movie as it unfolds and for predicting future events in the movie. Unfortunately, little research has focused on how people create a coherent understanding of what they are watching. That is, communication scholars have tended to ignore comprehension. In this paper we present three research traditions that have sought to understand how we comprehend the media. One tradition can be traced back to Stuart Hall's (2001/1980) essay on the encoding/decoding model, which arose within British cultural studies. This research tradition focuses on the global comprehension and representation of media stories. A second tradition focuses on relationships between characters within a story and their role in forming a unified mental representation of the story. A third tradition focuses on the role of situation models in the comprehension of visual and text stories. These three traditions approach comprehension differently, each with their own methodologies. This paper will present each tradition, focusing on their theoretical and methodological contributions to understanding how we understand the media. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extant literature has documented parasocial interactions as a response to media. The present study tests the interpersonal nature of parasocial interactions, as they are predicated under the assumption of being mediated "seeming face-to-face relationships." In an attempt to examine responses to others who share similar levels of PSIs, an experiment (N=150) measures levels of evoked jealousy and envy as a function of one's perceived similarity of PSI between the self and another interactant. Findings are expected to elucidate the nature of PSIs as they are manifested in the context of interpersonal interactions and suggest implications for future research. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]