Older adults' trait ratings of three age groups around the Pacific rim

In this paper, we assess the traits that older adultsassociate with younger, middle-aged, and older adults in fivePacific Rim nations from Western and Eastern cultural traditions(Australia, People's Republic of China (PRC), Hong Kong,Philippines, Thailand). We find cross-cultural trends whichreplicate patterns found in the US context. In most cultures,attractiveness, strength, activity, liberalism, health, andflexibility are seen to decline with increasing age. Kindnessassessments are positively associated with age across cultures. Mixed patterns are found with assessments of wisdom andgenerosity, with respondents from the PRC and Hong Kong beingnotably more negative about increasing age than otherrespondents. Implications for the aging process across culturesare discussed, and suggestions made for future research.

Certain cyclically presented groups are infinite

We prove that the groups in two infinite families considered by Johnson, Kim and O'Brien are almost all infinite.

Resolution of natural groups using iterative assignment tests: an example from two species of Australian native rats (Rattus)

Sympatric individuals of Rattus fuscipes and Rattus leucopus, two Australian native rats from the tropical wet forests of north Queensland, are difficult to distinguish morphologically and are often confused in the field. When we started a study on fine-scale movements of these species, using microsatellite markers, we found that the species as identified in the field did not form coherent genetic groups. In this study, we examined the potential of an iterative process of genetic assignment to separate specimens from distinct (e.g. species, populations) natural groups. Five loci with extensive overlap in allele distributions between species were used for the iterative process. Samples were randomly distributed into two starting groups of equal size and then subjected to the test. At each iteration, misassigned samples switched groups, and the output groups from a given round of assignment formed the input groups for the next round. All samples were assigned correctly on the 10th iteration, in which two genetic groups were clearly separated. Mitochondrial DNA sequences were obtained from samples from each genetic group identified by assignment, together with those of museum voucher specimens, to assess which species corresponded to which genetic group. The iterative procedure was also used to resolve groups within species, adequately separating the genetically identified R. leucopus from our two sampling sites. These results show that the iterative assignment process can correctly differentiate samples into their appropriate natural groups when diagnostic genetic markers are not available, which allowed us to resolve accurately the two R. leucopus and R. fuscipes species. Our approach provides an analytical tool that may be applicable to a broad variety of situations where genetic groups need to be resolved.

Efficient simple groups

We prove that the simple group L-3(5) which has order 372000 is efficient by providing an efficient presentation for it. This leaves one simple group with order less than one million, S-4(4) which has order 979200, whose efficiency or otherwise remains to be determined.

Early intervention: Narratives of learning, discipline and enculturation

Current understandings about literacy have moved away from the belief that literacy is simply a process that individuals do in their heads. These understandings do not negate the importance of the individual aspects of literacy learning, but they emphasize understandings of literacy as a social practice. In many cases, responses to early literacy intervention seem to be grounded in theories that appear out of step with current literacy research and consequent evidence that literacy is socially and culturally constructed. One such response is the Reading Recovery programme based on Clay’s theory of literacy acquisition. Clay (1992) describes the programme as a second chance to learn. However, others have suggested that programmes like Reading Recovery may in fact work toward the marginalization of particular groups, thereby helping to maintain the status quo along class, gender and ethnic lines. This article allows two professionals to bring their insider’s knowledge of Reading Recovery to an analysis of the construction of the programme. The article interweaves this analysis with the personal narratives of the researchers as they negotiated the borders between different understandings and beliefs about literacy and literacy pedagogy.

Disability focus groups: A strategy for including people with disability in parishes

This paper reports the findings of an exploratory qualitative study examining parish awareness of the need to include individuals with disability in genuine and meaningful ways. Based on the interviews of over thirty persons, including people with disability, parents, parish workers, volunteers and human service workers within church agencies in the Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane, Australia, the authors devised a process for including individuals in parishes. This process, known as a Disability Focus Group, was then implemented in one parish as a pilot study. The outcomes of the pilot are discussed.

Being attuned to intergroup differences in mergers: The role of aligned leaders for low-status groups

The present research focused on responses of low-status group members to a merger with a high-status group. A study was conducted (N = 153) in which the alignment of the leader for the merged group (ingroup vs. outgroup) and leader behavior (equality, outgroup favoritism, ingroup favoritism, complementarity) were manipulated. The authors predicted that the leader, by his or her behavior, would play an important role in defining the new relationship between premerger groups. Overall, low-status ingroup leaders were evaluated more positively than high-status outgroup leaders. Ingroup leaders were evaluated more favorably and were more likely to engender a common identity in the merged group than were outgroup leaders when leaders behaved in an ingroup-favoring or complementary fashion. In contrast, evaluations of ingroup and outgroup leaders did not differ when the leader stressed equality or was outgroup favoring. The findings demonstrate the important role leaders can play in accentuating or de-emphasizing premerger status differences.

The expression of conflict in computer-mediated and face-to-face groups

This study integrated the research streams of computer-mediated communication (CMC) and group conflict by comparing the expression of different types of conflict in CMC groups and face-to face (FTF) groups over time. The main aim of the study was to compare the cues-filtered-out approach against the social information processing theory A laboratory study was conducted with 39 groups (19 CMC and 20 FTF) in which members were required to work together over three sessions. The frequencies of task, process, and relationship conflict were analyzed. Findings supported the social information processing theory. There was more process and relationship conflict in CMC groups compared to FTF groups on Day 1. However, this difference disappeared on Days 2 and 3. There was no difference between CMC and FTF groups in the amount of task conflict expressed on any day.

Levels of consensus and majority and minority influence

Three experiments are reported which examine the effects of consensus information on majority and minority influence. In all experiments two levels of consensus difference were examined; large (82% versus 18%) and small (52% versus 48%). Experiment 1 showed that a majority source had more influence than a minority source, irrespective of consensus level. Experiment 2 examined the cause of this effect by presenting only the source label ('majority' versus 'minority'), only the consensus information (percentages) or both. The superior influence of the majority was again found when either (a) both source label and consensus information were given (replicating Experiment 1) and (b) only consensus information was given, but not when (c) only the source label was given. The results showed majority influence was due to the consensus information indicating more than 50% of the population supported that position. Experiment 3 also manipulated message quality (strong versus weak arguments) to identify whether systematic processing had occurred. Message quality only had an impact with the minority of 18%. These studies show that consensus information has different effects' for majority and minority influence. For majority influence, having over 50% support is sufficient to cause compliance while for a minority there are advantages to being numerically small, in terms of leading to detailed processing of its message. Copyright (C) 2002 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.