INFORMATION SEEKING, OPINION LEADERSHIP, AND SENSE OF POWERLESSNESS FOR DIFFERENT ISSUES. PAPER PRESENTED AT THE NATIONAL SEMINAR ON ADULT EDUCATION RESEARCH (CHICAGO, FEBRUARY 11-13, 1968).

A STUDY WAS MADE IN NEBRASKA IN 1965 TO EXAMINE THE RELATIONSHIP OF FOUR INDEPENDENT VARIABLES--OPINION LEADERSHIP, INTEREST, GREGARIOUSNESS, AND SENSE OF POWERLESSNESS--TO THE EXTENT OF INFORMATION SEEKING AND THE RATIO OF INTERPERSONAL TO MEDIATED SOURCES, AND TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE FIRST FOUR AND THE LAST TWO VARIABLES HOLD TRUE FOR DIFFERENT AREAS. DATA WERE COLLECTED BY PERSONAL INTERVIEWS WITH OVER 400 PERSONS. AS PREDICTED, THE DEGREE OF INFORMATION SEEKING AND OF RECOURSE TO INTERPERSONAL SOURCES WAS POSITIVELY RELATED TO OPINION LEADERSHIP, AND INTERPERSONAL INFORMATION SEEKING CORRELATED POSITIVELY WITH INTEREST IN SPECIFIC ISSUES (WOMEN WORKING AND TAXATION). HOWEVER, THE EXTENT OF INFORMATION SEEKING AND OF RECOURSE TO INTERPERSONAL SOURCES WERE NEGATIVELY RELATED TO THE SENSE OF POWERLESSNESS ONLY ON THE TAXATION ISSUE, AND THE EXTENT OF INFORMATION SEEKING FAILED TO CORRELATE POSITIVELY EITHER WITH THE DEGREE OF ISSUE INTEREST OR WITH GREGARIOUSNESS ON THE ISSUE OF WOMEN WORKING. MOREOVER, USE OF INTERPERSONAL SOURCES WAS NOT POSITIVELY RELATED TO GREGARIOUSNESS ON EITHER ISSUE. THIS PAPER WAS PRESENTED AT THE NATIONAL SEMINAR ON ADULT EDUCATION RESEARCH, CHICAGO, FEBRUARY 11-13, 1968. (LY)