Sociology Commons^™

Isolating Factors Predicting Cooperation In Work Groups: Leader Motivation And Style, Denise Hunter Velaski

Dissertations and Theses

There is evidence that cooperation in the workplace can have positive outcomes for organizations. To take advantage of these outcomes, it would be useful to gain information about the causes of cooperation. This study attempts to isolate some factors, leader motivation and style in particular, that may predict cooperation within work groups.

Adult Daughters As Caregivers To Elderly Parents : An Exploration Of The Care Relationship, Margaret Anne Reynolds

Dissertations and Theses

In this study, the nature of a current social problem is explored: the provision of services to elderly parents by their adult daughters - a part of the informal system of social support for the elderly. In particular, the influence of the caregiver's construction of old age on their assessment of parental autonomy is examined.

Worker Perceptions Of The Fast-Food Giant : Interviews With And Class Comparisons Of Teenagers Working At Mcdonalds, Joyce A. Korshgen

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines the relationship between social class and adolescents conceptions of work. Four major areas of the adolescent's work experience are examined: (1) tasks and training, (2) relations with co-workers and managers, (3) organizational structure and change, and (4) family life and work. Forty female adolescent, nonmanagerial employees who worked part time at McDonald's franchise stores were interviewed.

Attitudes Of Otolaryngologists Towards Speech Pathologists Working With Voice Disordered Clients, Judith Patricia-Bader Cross

Dissertations and Theses

This study was designed to collect information about the working relationship of otolaryngologists with speech pathologists who provide service to voice disordered clients.

The Mobilization Of The Gay Liberation Movement, Ramom De Souza Torrecilha

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines the development and evolution of the gay movement. It raises the questions as to why the gay movement was not organized prior to the 1960's. The study starts in the 1940's and ends in 1970. It employs qualitative research methods for the collection and analysis of primary and secondary data sources. Blumer's description of general and specific social movements and Resource Mobilization Theory were used as theoretical frames of reference. The former explained the developmental stages in the career of the movement and the latter focused on the behavior of movement organizations.

Adolescent And Parental Perceptions Of Adolescent Self-Disclosure Communication And Relational Satisfaction, Diane S. Lund

Dissertations and Theses

As children approach adolescence, their communication relation&hip with their mothers and fathers undergoes significant transformation. Research has hitherto been conducted on family communication as an isolated variable. This study analyzed adolescent and parental perceptions of adolescent self-disclosure and relational satisfaction by adolescents and parents.

Richard Whately's Theory Of Argument And Its Influence On The Homiletic Theory And Practice Of John Albert Broadus, Robert Allan Vogel

Dissertations and Theses

In his Treatise On the Preparation and Delivery of Sermons, the Southern Baptist preacher and educator of the latter nineteenth century, John A. Broadus, acknowledged the influence of classical and contemporary theorists upon his work. Among those named, particularly with regard to notions of argument, was Richard Whately, the Anglican Archbishop and rhetorical theorist of the early nineteenth century. The research task involved in this thesis was to determine whether and to what extent Whately's theory of argument was employed in Broadus's homiletic theory and practice.

The writer gathered his data using methods of documentary research. Most of the sources …

The Effects Of Maternal Support And Non-Support On The Family Concepts Of Sexually Abused Girls, Sharon R. Hitchens

Dissertations and Theses

Incest, and the problems arising from it, have increasingly come under the scrutiny of therapists and researchers. All family members are affected by incest and all have been studied. Victims are particularly devastated by sexual abuse by a family member but it is a commonly held belief that having a supportive mother can mitigate the trauma a victim experiences. In this study, girls between the ages of ten and eighteen who were the victims of sexual abuse by a father-figure were compared to a group of girls not thought to be incest victims. The incest victims were divided into two …

The Effects Of Income Inequality On Racial Residential Segregation In The Portland Metropolitan Area, Katayoun Aidinezhad

Dissertations and Theses

Changes in the patterns of income and residential segregation were examined in the Portland Metropolitan Area. The 1970 and 1980 Census of Population and Housing were used in calculating the indexes of dissimilarity between black and white populations. The data indicated a significant decrease in the residential segregation of blacks in suburban areas between 1970 and 1980. The central city area still remained highly segregated with a segregation index of 69.5.

Taeuber's index of dissimilarity was used in calculating the unevenness in the distribution of income between blacks and whites. Suburbia showed a significant decrease in income segregation compared to …

Juvenile Delinquency In Saudi Arabia, Yousef Ahmed Alromaih

Dissertations and Theses

The present study involved an examination of the delinquency problem in Saudi Arabia within the framework of social control theory. Specifically, the study was based on the thesis set forth by Travis Hirschi, i.e., that delinquent acts result when an individual's bond to society is weak or broken. Also taken into account, however, were the findings from the research of Wiatrowski, et al. that suggest a need for a) some modifications in Hirschi's conceptual framework and b) inclusion of socio-economic factors in the social control model.

The Effect Of Women's Labor Force Participation On Marital Instability, Isik Akin Aytac

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines the effect of women's labor force participation on marital instability. It is hypothesized that women's income-earning affects marriage in two ways: 1) the "independence effect" facilitates divorce by enabling women to be self-supporting; 2) the "parallel marriage effect" improves marital satisfaction and the quality of the marital relationship because women with higher incomes generally have more power in marriage. The "independence effect" is measured by whether or not women's income is sufficient, defined as income above the poverty line for the appropriate family size as established by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Parallel marriage" is measured …

Social Structure, Health Orientation And Health Behavior, Khalifa Ali Baej

Dissertations and Theses

An attempt has been made to examine the relationship between social structure and medical factors in a framework which links cosmopolitanism to health orientation and behavior. Specifically, this study has attempted to investigate the variations in health knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and behavior among individuals whose social structure varies in terms of cosmopolitanism.

A Social-Psychological Case History : The Manson Incident, Judith Elaine Bullis

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines the social-psychological impact of of the Manson incident; which begins with the Tate-Labianca murders, continues with the arrest of Charles Manson and some of his followers, continues with the trial of Charles Manson and the co-defendants, and results in a popular image.

The Use Of Humor In The Social Construction Of Role Relationships In A Behavioral Treatment Setting, Daniel D. Martin

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the use of humor between workers and managerial personnel of two different treatment teams within a residential treatment center for emotionally troubled youth. Three primary questions guided the research: (1) What indigenous types of occupational humor will be found within the treatment teams?, (2) How will the use of humor vary between front and back regions of treatment work?, and (3) How does occupational status affect the way in which team members target on another to be the "butt" of jokes and other humorous remarks?

Incest: A Study In Networking In Multnomah County, Oregon, Joanne Mcclarty

Dissertations and Theses

Reported cases of incest in Multnomah County, Oregon, as in the rest of the country, are increasing yearly. Effective networking between agencies is important in order to successfully work with the problem. The research problem of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the present network of agencies working with incest in Multnomah County. In order to evaluate network effectiveness the following objectives were established: to provide a "cultural" description of the major components of the Multnomah County network; to determine whether a common definition of incest among practitioners exists and to compare the networking system in this county …

A Longitudinal Study Of Recidivism For 88 Forest Camp Inmates, Loreli S. Manning

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent a group of 88 subjects, who were sentenced to the Forest Camp in the early seventies, remained law abiding in the ten years which followed their release. In addition to analyzing recidivist patterns, the study attempted to identify which variables were associated with subsequent recidivist and non-recidivist behavior and relate those findings to previous studies in the literature.

Fort Ross: Russian Colony In California, 1811-1841, Kathryn E. Mitchell

Dissertations and Theses

The essential objective of this study was to fill a bibliographic void of secondary source material concerning Russian California. This was accomplished by combining available translations and more specific studies on the subject into one extensive work. Introductory chapters provide: (1) a brief statement regarding Russia's massive eastward expansion through Siberia, to Kamchatka and Alaska; (2) an examination of the nature of the Russian-American Company; and (3) a detailed look at the programs instituted by the Company to provision Alaska and Kamchatka. The establishment of Fort Ross in 1811 is viewed as one of those programs. The settlement's primary function …

Counseling The Batterer, Robert Oliver Brown

Dissertations and Theses

Domestic violence has received increasing attention in recent years as an area of concern for the helping professional. Despite this interest, programs for counseling the batterer are relatively few and counseling interventions for use with this client population are in what could be termed an experimental phase. The purpose of Counseling the Batterer is to review the pertinent literature concerned with counseling the batterer, to explore several programs which have been involved in this effort, and also to design a model group counseling program for abusive males. The foundation for the model program is based on the pertinent literature and …

The Career Decision, Donna Marie Klover

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to define what is meant by the "career decision", examine what life factors influence that decision, how it is affected by one's self-concept and value system, and its connection with one's needs, goals and life style.

The German-Oregonians, 1850-1918, Roberta Lee Schmalenberger

Dissertations and Theses

Of all the foreign-born elements of Oregon's population, the German-born have been the most prominent in terms of size and continuity. At the turn of the century they were an organized and enterprising ethnic group that supported a German-language press, numerous social clubs and ethnic churches. The German-born contributed their share to the development of Oregon through men whose names are almost household words today: Meier and Frank, Weinhard, Dammasch, Villard and Weyerhaeuser. Yet for all of their visibility, the Germans in Oregon have not been remembered as a particular ethnic group.

The demise of a visible German culture in …

Life Satisfaction Of Elderly Parents And Parent-Child Relationships In Old Age, Tehchou Yeh

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is designed to explore the nature of the relationship between elderly parents and their children and to investigate the association of that relationship with life satisfaction of the elderly parents. The examination of parents' life satisfaction is based on the activity theory of gerontology. The life satisfaction is measured by Adams's eighteen-item Life Satisfaction Index. The parent-child relationship is viewed from the standpoint of both the parents' expectations of their children and how the children fulfill these expectations. Filial discrepancies between parents' expectations and children's behavior are analyzed to fill a gap in the literature on behavioral and …

Career Supports And Career Mentors: An Analysis Of Their Prevalence And Their Relation To Career Success And Satisfaction Among A Group Of Women Lawyers, Sandra Lee Riley

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated three issues problematic to the state of knowledge on mentoring. These issues were: (a) lack of scientifically derived operational definitions in use in research on mentoring; (b) lack of agreement about how common mentoring is; and (c) lack of agreement about whether or not alternate forms of career support are more efficient than mentoring. The information collected to address each of these issues was acquired in two phases: a literature survey followed by a sample survey. The literature survey addressed the first issue. It resulted in the formulation of an operational definition of mentoring which was based …

Crime As A Routine Activity: An Investigation, Donna Scott Munroe

Dissertations and Theses

Crime as a social phenomenon has customarily been examined as sets of occurrences which happen outside the boundaries of the legitimate social structure. Research by Lawrence E. Cohen and Marcus Felson suggests that more fruitful explanatory models of crime may be developed from the routine activity approach, an approach which regards crime as a routine activity in the same sense that everyday work may be regarded as routine activity. Such an approach is consonant with the precepts of human ecology. Human ecology as a theoretical model posits an interrelationship among the divergent parts of the social fabric. In such a …

The Needs Of Older People As Seen By Themselves And Support Providers, Sarah Movius Schurr

Dissertations and Theses

This study compares perceptions of older people's needs from two vantage points: needs as seen by the older people themselves, and the needs of the elders as seen by their family support group. Two hypotheses were examined. The first hypothesis was that the elders and the support people would disagree on the needs of the elders. Secondly, the disagreement would be strongest on more abstract needs, like life satisfaction and contact with the opposite sex.

The Utility Of Alternate Theoretical Conceptualizations Of "Urban Environment" In Explaining Variation In Attitudes And Behaviors, John Conrad Allen Iii

Dissertations and Theses

The debate over what factors actually influence behaviors and attitudes of urban residents is the impetus which generated the idea behind this study. Urban literature suggests several explanations for attitudes including for example, alienation and anemia. These same explanations are assumed to influence behaviors such as: 1) smaller number of children, 2) involvement in voluntary organizations, 3) specialized voting behavior and 4) less kinship contact.

Rating Life Events : The Effect Of Experience And Point Of Reference, Richard John Alden

Dissertations and Theses

Life events inventories have been extensively used to investigate the relationship between stressful life events and the etiology of disease. In order to elucidate conceptual and methodological issues surrounding the use of these instruments, a Life Events Questionnaire was constructed and administered to 100 university students. Subjects indicated which of 40 events they had experienced and rated all events on a 20 point scale based on the amount of readjustment judged to be required by each event, both for themselves and for a hypothetical average person. Results of a three-way ANOVA indicated that in the majority of cases, neither the …

Involvement, Social Class And Attrition In Higher Education: The Case Of The Stop Out, Terrence Scott Daugherty

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis tests the validity of three theories purporting to explain the attrition of stop outs -- why students interrupt their studies with the intent to return to school. Data were gathered at two schools, Portland State University and Reed College. Two theories, those of social class and involvement, were tested at each school as contending explanations of attrition by path analysis of parsimonious models derived by factor analysis. These theories were found to explain little of the variance of attendance pattern (less than 4.3 percent) at either school. No particular lines of causation could be demonstrated at either school. …

Marital Interaction And Spousal Health And Well-Being, Ralph Arthur Schmoldt

Dissertations and Theses

An attempt is made to determine whether marital interaction is related to the health and well-being of husbands and wives and, if such a relationship exists, to explore the nature of the relationship. The dimensions of marital interaction of interest include cohesion, companionship, cooperation, and consensus. Cohesion is manifest in the feelings a couple has about their relationship. Companionship and cooperation are seen in a couple's joint activities. A shared outlook on life represents consensus.

Desertion Of Elderly By Adult Children, Jill C. Harvey

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines the widely prevalent belief that adult children desert their elders.

Data which suggested considerable family support of elderly family members were collected over a period of one year through counseling families with dependent parents. These families exhibited confusion and lack of knowledge but not desertion.

The Descriptive Function Of Language: Changes With Age And Pressure To Inform, Eve Susan Liebman

Dissertations and Theses

Currently language is viewed as a multi-dimensional construct, consisting of three interrelated components; content, form and function (Bloom and Lahey, 1978). In recent publications, language function has been referred to as pragmatics (Prutting, 1979). The essence of pragmatic theory is that language is used functionally in social contexts, to accomplish specific types of communication (Wood, 1981). One such communicative function is referred to as the informative function, which occurs when a speaker provides ideas and information to others, as in describing, naming and giving examples {Wood, 1981). It is not clear, however, when children become competent in making specific, clear …