Digital Commons Network^™

The Predictive Validity Of A Police Officer Selection Program, Neil Bingham Davidson

Dissertations and Theses

This study was designed to determine the predictive validity of a police officer selection program and identify the contribution made by each major selection device to the total program. Police officers employed by the Portland Police Bureau who had completed three years of post-probationary employment were randomly assigned to a validation group and a cross-validation group on a two for one basis respectively. Beta weights were computed for the written test, interview and psychological scores in the validation group. The regression formula was then applied to the data in the cross-validation group. A cross-validation R of 0.12 was obtained between …

The Development Of Attitudes Toward Work Through "Career Education", Lonnie Fred Mcdonough Wheeler

Dissertations and Theses

Attitude measurement problems are discussed within the context of a contemporary movement in the field of education. A restricted definition of the alienation construct is suggested as a theoretical framework within which research in this area could be conducted. Construction and validation data on an instrument designed to measure attitudes toward work are reported. Pre and posttest scores (using the above measure as well as the Rotter I-E Scale) of two high school Career Education programs were compared. Neither program produced significant mean attitude change in terms of these measures. However, change detected by increase in the variance on the …

Role Exits Among The Aged, Nancy Whitelaw Mancini

Dissertations and Theses

The concept of role exit presented by Zena Smith Blau in her book, Old Age in a Changing Society, refers to the ongoing process of relinquishing previously enacted social roles; a process which is part of everyday life for men and women of all ages. However, Blau argues that role exits in later life are different from those in earlier stages of the life cycle because they tend to be terminal and involuntary. These factors, according to Blau, cause role exits in old age to negatively influence the individual's overall satisfaction with life.

This thesis examines the concept of …

Close Supervision Program: An Analysis Of A Human Services Program, Thomas Wright Jr., V. Henderson Trotman

Dissertations and Theses

Multnomah County, Oregon, like many other counties across the nation, faces the perplexing problem of meeting the needs of the youthful offender. Historically, and even in more recent times, juvenile court authorities have relied primarily on detention facilities to provide secure custody for youthful offenders. However, the continued increase in delinquency and a growing storm of criticism of the juvenile court have led to a re-examination of current policy and a number of proposed changes on both the national and local level.

A policy change in Multnomah County with regard to detention of youthful offenders has led to the closure …

An Exploratory Study Of The Role Of Research In Social Work At Portland State University, Jo Mackay Imeson, Audrey Englebardt Zalutsky

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore and to evaluate the role of research in social work from the points of view of different populations affiliated with the Portland State University School of Social Work community. Students, faculty and field instructors, and agency directors were asked to express their subjective opinions in an effort to explore attitudes regarding the role of research in social work and to evaluate their estimate as to the value and position of the research component in the curriculum at Portland State University. The research program is intended to assist the student in becoming an …

A Study Of Local Union Business Agents In Portland, Oregon Area, Lillian L. Morrison

Dissertations and Theses

Labor unions are an integral part of the economy of the United States. At the grass roots, union influence and/or effectiveness depends on the local union organization, its management, and its relationship to and involvement in community affairs. This influence and involvement is focused on the local union leadership in the person of the business agent. A substantial body of literature exists on leadership in general as well as specific information about leadership in labor unions, and includes contributions from the fields of Sociology and Psychology as well as Economics. This research paper is a study of local union business …

Attendance At Out-Patient Clinics As A Function Of Risk Taking For Alcoholics, John Ketcham Fryer

Dissertations and Theses

Many-psychotherapists feel that the capacity to risk is a necessary ingredient for change. Whether that change occur in a person seen in a professional context or in a person who views new behavior as being more rewarding, risk and change go hand in hand. Coleman (1972) described this relationship in the following way:

Life often poses problems in which the pursuit of increased satisfactions involves giving up present hard-won security and taking new risks. For the neurotic, this is likely to prove an especially anxiety-arousing conflictful situation [p. 226].

Why should this be true? It seems that one of the …

Implications Of American Missionary Presence In 19th And 20th Century Iran, Linda Colleen Karimi

Dissertations and Theses

American missionaries to Iran exerted little influence in the area of religion, rather their impact was in education and medicine. Two decisive factors involved in their success were the awakening of Iran to the advances of Western technology and the limited scope of indigenous opportunities in the fields of learning and medicine. Their work in Iran was, however, hampered by opposition from those elements wishing to retain the status quo. In spite of such reactions, they were able to maintain their positions in Iran for approximately one hundred years. It was the advent of the Pahlavi dynasty which initially limited …

A Descriptive Study Of Previously Institutionalized Educable Mentally Retarded Adults Residing In Multnomah County, Oregon, Susan J. Kiley, Jeffrey D. Sher, Richard C. Sunshine

Dissertations and Theses

This is a study of mild and borderline mentally retarded adults living in Multnomah County, Oregon, who at one time in their lives were patients at Fairview Training School. The concept of "normalization" is merging with the political necessity of "advocacy" to create a different role for the traditionally silent and previously institutionalized retarded citizen, along with new roles for the professional worker with the retarded. Mentally retarded citizens have only recently begun to speak out for themselves; even less frequent it seems, has any concerted listening on the part of the public or professional community which deals day to …

The Treatment-Moral Career Of Clients In A Community Based Treatment Program, Charles Edward Forster Jr.

Dissertations and Theses

The research reported here was intended to consider in an exploratory fashion the impact of a community based treatment program, Services for Problem Drinker Drivers, (SPDD), for persons convicted of driving while under the influence of liquor on: (1) the self-concept, (2) consequences for public identity, and (3) the careers or changes over time in both self-concept and public identity of clients in the program.

The Relationship Between Self-Concept And Responses Of Others During A Marital Crisis, Kathryn Ann Farr

Dissertations and Theses

Symbolic interaction theory indicates that an individual's self-concept is related to the way in which the individual perceives others as responding to him/her. Although this theory is widely accepted in social psychology, it has been given little empirical attention. In this study a typological model was developed in an empirical examination of the relationship between self-concept and responses of others during marital crisis. Self-concept was defined as the organization of qualities (roles, social-psychological feelings) that an individual assigns to himself/herself. Kind of qualities were described, and social-psychological feelings about self were examined on a positive to negative continuum. Responses of …

The Relationship Between The Housing Environment And The Child's Behavior: Strategies For Adapting To Multi-Family Housing, Anthony J. Filipovitch

Dissertations and Theses

This study is an inquiry into some of the effects of the housing environment on the behavior of children. The city can be seen as a structure which facilitates communication and interaction because of the large number of intersecting individual pathways which the city represents. Young children, however, have little experience of this city: for the most part, their microcosm extends only a few blocks from home. Cities are a function of density and large numbers of people, and these two characteristics are also descriptive of multi-family structures. In the child's microcosm, multi-family dwellings could be considered as the type …

Towards The Integration Of The Historical And Structural Theories Of Urban Form, David Tilford Martin

Dissertations and Theses

In this thesis we examine the effect which the obsolescence of central city housing exerts on the decentralization within urban areas of high status residents. In particular, we investigate whether housing obsolescence is a useful addition to a model which explains the decentralization of high status residents in terms of the intensity of competition for central city land.

All of our data are official Census figures for 1970. The subjects of our study are Standard Metropolitan Statistical Are.as (SMSA.'s) whose central city had a population of 100,000 or more. From this group we delete the New York and Chicago Consolidated …

What Indians Think An Indian Is : A Study Of Personal And Educational Attitudes, Susan W. Oliver, Christine L. Peterson

Dissertations and Theses

This study, was conducted with four Indian groups: three of Portland and one in Whiteriver, Arizona. The purpose of the study was to identify attitudes about Indian identity and education through the use of a questionnaire on Indian stereotypes. Each group was unique in it’s response. Members of each group all had a different frame of reference for “who an Indian is.” Therefore, a conclusion could not be drawn because of the differences in attitudes between all four Indian groups.

Pretesting A Questionnaire At The Solo Center On The Impact Of Divorce On Children And Parents, Shirley Anne Paetzhold

Dissertations and Theses

This study was concerned with the impact of divorce on parents and children. The writer spent a minimum of sixteen hours per week from September, 1974 to May, 1975 in field work at the Solo Center, as part of the requirements for a Master’s Degree in Social Work at Portland State University. Multiple areas of interest for research at the Center narrowed to a focus on the closely interwoven problems of child custody, child support, and visitation.

Indian Alcoholism On Reservations, Cleora E. Jackson

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this practicum is to describe the destructive use of alcohol among Southeastern Idaho Indians. This practicum is based on John and Irma Honigmann's (1) theory of "loss of stake." It is John and Irma Honigmann's contention that whatever may be the social functions of drinking, and whatever the personal reasons, having a stake in society tends to induce people to conform to the norms of society with regard to drinking behavior. The three case histories in this practicum will illustrate more of what is meant by the theory of stake in society.

A Descriptive Study Regarding Perceptions Of Sex Roles In Cooperative Households, Emily Fultz, Billie Huntwork

Dissertations and Theses

The roles of men and women are among the many elements of contemporary American society which are in a process of rapid and sometimes disruptive change. The more or less traditional ways in which men and women have viewed themselves and each other are being openly challenged by a number of significant factors. Although there have always been those exceptional persons who questioned the inevitability of seemingly given role differentiation, today's social climate makes such questioning more common and acceptable.

A few specific factors may be mentioned as being particular interest. With modern communication and mobility, the options for varied …

An Exploration Of The Feelings And Attitudes Of Women Separated From Their Children Due To Incarceration, Dorothy Lundberg, Ann Sheekley, Therese Voelker

Dissertations and Theses

Although significant research has shed light on what happens to children when they are removed from their parents, few studies have explored the effects on parents undergoing separation from their children. Discussions tend to be confined to separate dimensions exploring child's needs on one side and parental obligations on the other. Much of the planning and prolonged care provided for children in placement reflects a traditional child-centered focus. This has led to a lack of attention to parental needs, and a gross ignorance about their lives, feelings and aspirations.

When women are involuntarily separated from their children through incarceration, a …

Recent Role Changes Made By Women And The Effect These Changes Have Had On Marital Adjustment, Nancy L. Scolar

Dissertations and Theses

Sex Roles, A History. From Insects to humans, gender is associated with specific behavior. Below the mammals there are sex differences in dominance that are correlated with androgen function on the inside, and with certain types of stimulation on the outside. In higher forms, the increasing complexity of brain development means increasing capacity for modification through experience and learned modes of adaptation to the environment.

By the time the primate level is reached, social influences have become so intricate and compelling as to clearly foreshadow culture.

According to Elizabeth Janeway in her article Reflections on the History of Women, in …

Criteria And Outcome Of C. S. D. Foster Home And Residential Placements Of Court-Referred Adolescents, Joan Dickey

Dissertations and Theses

This study is concerned with a set of cases referred to Children's .Services Division, Marion County, by the Marion County Juvenile Court for placement. Placements include foster homes and residential treatment facilities, including group homes.

The goal of this study is to uncover criteria to determine the appropriateness and the efficacy of foster and residential placements for adolescents in order to provide feedback necessary for the development of practice theory.

Drop-Out Study, Chemawa Indian School, Terry Farrow, Gordon Oats

Dissertations and Theses

Repeated inquiries and statements are made about the number of American Indian students who drop out or are pushed out of school. The Waxes noted that while drop-out rates are difficult to calculate because of a shifting population and absence of centralized, accurate records, current figures indicate that about one-half of those who enter the primary grades drop out before entering high school. Furthermore, only about a third of those entering school actually graduate. A study of Pima and Papago schools revealed much the same trends. Seven percent of the children ages six to eighteen are not enrolled in any …

Marx On Population: A Critical Review Including A Comparison To Malthus And A New Perspective On Marx, David Orval Jermain

Dissertations and Theses

A critical review of Marx on population is made to determine if the modern Marxist population thepry can validly claim to follow from Marx. An historical review of population thought from the Greeks to Malthus is made and a dominant trendline is identified. Marx's population thought is presented and it is compared to Malthus. Anomalies in Marx are discovered. A new perspective on Marx using the history of demography is advanced in which Malthus is found deviating from the dominant trend line and Marx's criticism of Malthus as focusing on these specific points of deviation. Marx is found defending the …

Maturity Of Adolescent Unwed Mothers, Sarah L. Claiborne

Dissertations and Theses

Adolescence traditionally has been recognized and accepted as a period of exploration of an occasional rebellion against the adult world. Explorations are viewed by behavioral scientists as a quest for identity expansion, and as such, a necessary phase for attaining maturity. Several tasks have been identified which each adolescent must complete if he is to reach maturity. For the present these tasks can be summarized as character formation, attainment of sexual identity, establishment of mature relationships and emancipation from parental control.

Society's attitude towards the rebellion and exploitation of youth is mixed. This confusion seems related to a general breakdown …

Irish Families In Portland, Oregon, 1850-1880: An Immigrant Culture In The Far West, Michael Kazin

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is an attempt to begin an examination of the social history of immigrant families in the cities of the West Coast. I chose to study Irish families in particular because they were the first group of migrants to come in large numbers to the United States from a primarily peasant culture, and because studies of Irish in the cities of the East have emphasized their resistance to assimilation into the dominant Anglicized Protestant society.

A Follow-Up Study Of Community Organization Concentrators, Hedy-Jo Huss Powell

Dissertations and Theses

This follow-up study of 1970-73 graduates of the Portland State University School of Social Work was aimed at identifying the community organization and social welfare planning skills that M.S.W.s are using in their current practice. The study sought information from graduates that could be useful in evaluating the current Social Welfare Planning concentration and planning future curriculum.

Two groups of graduates were surveyed utilizing a mailed questionnaire. The first group consisted of the universal sample of former students identified as community organization concentrators; the comparison group was a sample of graduates who had majored in direct services.

The study explored …

Negotiation Within The Therapist-Client Interview, Rhoda Elaine Estep

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis combines a theoretical perspective and a methodological technique in order to clarify the concept of negotiation. The theoretical perspective represents a merging of a formal analysis as suggested by Georg Simmel and Erving Goffman and an interactional emphasis upon reciprocity of actions as proposed by Herbert Blumer. Accordingly, a methodological scheme was constructed to examine negotiations in terms of their forms and content.

Development Of A Teacher Rating Instrument: Methodological Implications, Carole Gygi

Dissertations and Theses

In order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the complexities which constitute an effective teacher and promote a positive learning climate, a field study methodology was employed to develop an evaluative instrument and to gain descriptive data.

For the purpose of developing an instrument to describe and measure effective teachers, 24 actual learning sessions (classes) were observed, extensive notes taken, and tape recordings were made in order to isolate and describe the behaviors which seemed critical to the situation being studied. This was done by observing the teacher as he taught and the learners while they learned. The teacher …

Interaction Patterns In The Campground, Dennis Lee Rockwood

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this project was to examine interaction patterns in various campground settings and to elaborate on camping literature which has suggested that the campground is a social event with high rates of interaction. In exploring this phenomenon, this report utilized observational techniques to document the temporal, spatial, familiarity, numerical, and behavioral dimensions of the observed interactions.

The data suggested that young adults and middle-aged persons were observed to be involved in, and initiated the highest proportions of, interactions. In general, males displayed far greater proportions of initiations than females. The highly developed campground exhibited higher proportions and rates …

Knowledge And Use Of Social Services In Gervais, Oregon, Elizabeth Lewis, Abby Maier, Lajuana J. Morton

Dissertations and Theses

During first year field placement, we worked with a number of rural families, most of them Mexican-American. It seemed to us that rural families in general and Mexican-Americans in particular were not being very well served by social service agencies. We questioned whether this might be due to a lack of Mexican-American perspective in traditional services or perhaps a lack of Mexican-American manpower or at least Spanish-speaking manpower.

This study, then, developed out of a general area of interest that can be stated as three questions: (1) Do rural people (especially Mexican-Americans) feel there is a need for various social …

A Study Of The Relationship Between Attitudes Toward Woman's Roles And Career Choices Of Women Graduate Students, Barbara Backstrand

Dissertations and Theses

The purposes of the present study were to explore how American college women view their roles and whether or not women who choose not-traditional-for-women (NTW) careers have more or less social support from significant others for that choice than women who choose traditional-for-women (TW) careers. A related question asked whether aspects of a woman's personal history predict her role attitudes and behavior as an adult.