Abstract: The present paper discusses issues related to the study of altruism. The argument is made that altruistic behavior should be differentiated on the basis of the moral quality intrinsic in that behavior. A motivational approach to the definition of altruism is presented, since the focus on motivation has important implications for understanding the nature of human beings, the development of helping behavior and the dynamics of interpersonal interaction. Finally, the paper discusses problems of operationalizing the proposed definition of altruism and describes studies which investigated this concept. Although social psychological research about helping has been burgeoning for the last fifteen years, only recently have social psychologists begun to differentiate among various types of helping in their empirical studies. Helping behavior is considered to be a general category. Thus, a study of the nature of the specific acts and the relationship among them is needed if one tries to understand the dynamics of helping behavior. However, first, in order to perform these goals definitions of helping behaviors are necessary. The present paper defines helping behavior as an act which benefits others and no external rewards are promised a priori, in return. Cases in which rewards are promised a priori are considered exchange acts.1

Abstract: Theory, assessment, and instruction in the field of human abilities have tended to emphasize intelligence at the expense of wisdom and creativity. Were these three abilities indistinguishable, such an emphasis would be understandable and acceptable. But a review of the literature as well as data I have recently collected suggest that the three abilities are distinguishable, and that there are important differences among them. Moreover, present measurements and instruction even of intelligence are to a much narrower operationalization of the construct than would be ideal. It is argued that educational psychologists and others need to give more serious attention to all three of these constructs and their interrelationships.

Abstract: The Yale Children's Inventory (YCI), a parent based rating scale, and the scales derived from it have been developed to identify and measure multiple dimensions of learning disabilities with particular emphasis on attentional deficits. Scale construction was based on factor analytic procedures. Measures of internal consistency, test retest reliability, and coefficients of congruence support the reliability and stability of the 11 scales. A discriminant function classified normal and learning disabled children with a relatively high rate of accuracy. The relationship and content of the three relevant YCI scales were compared to the DSM-III diagnostic categories for ADD. As operationalized, DSM-III criteria for hyperactivity formed a cohesive factor, while criteria for attention and impulsivity were not distinguishable from each other since they loaded together on a single factor. In contrast, the equivalent YCI scales for attention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity were found to be distinct.

Abstract: Legitimacy is a much used concept in the social sciences. However, the absence of precise operational meaning has prompted questions about its utility as an explanation of compliance with social norms. Most recently, Alan Hyde has argued that legitimacy cannot be disentangled from other explanations of compliance such as coercion and self-interest and should, therefore, be abandoned. However, institutional, attitudinal, and behavioral dimensions of legitimacy can be operationalized. As part of our research on small claims courts we examined variations in institutional processes and legitimacy, gathered data on levels of voluntary compliance, and questioned defendants about their reasons for paying claims against them. We conclude that institutional legitimacy is related to voluntary compliance, and that the “language of obligation” is an important part of normal discourse. Operational meanings for legitimacy are available and empirical research about legitimacy should be a prominent part of the social science research agenda.

Abstract: Social structure is viewed as interaction animated by culture. Culture is modeled as comprising a system of transindividual Piagetian schemata guiding social action. Such a schema is reinforced when the action it mandates in some social setting yields the reactions from other people guided by their own schemata that fit its goal and expectations. An enduring social structure is a pattern of action that reproduces itself by stimulating and reinforcing the schemata animating its actions. These concepts are operationalized by a program written in PROLOG. The program takes as a knowledge base a representation of the preferences and judgments of social causality of subjects in some historical situation. It assembles schemata from this knowledge base that are stimulated by past actions of other subjects, and that then monitor the flow of action to see if the desired reactions to their action are forthcoming. The model is illustrated by simulating Skocpol's analysis of China's sociopolitical structure in the 193...

Abstract: This study develops a comprehensive operationalization of the defensible space concept (Newman, 1972). A total of 11 indicators of defensible space were developed that take the contextual reality of the person-environment relationship into account. Then 23 telephone kiosks in Dublin city, Ireland, were rated on these indicators. A SSA-1 analysis of the structure of these indicators defined two distinct environmental contexts in which kiosks were located-public and semipublic environments. Subsequent analyses of the structure of the indicators within these environments demonstrated that the meaning of indicators is inextricably bound to the environmental context of which they are part. These findings helped to clarify contradictory findings in the literature regarding the defensive role of some indicators and suggest that definition of environmental contexts is a prerequisite to prediction of crime or vandalism occurrence.

Abstract: By integrating some of the more persuasive elements of the major current approaches, this article develops a conceptualization of social power and a formula for predicting the enactment of power between social collectivities. The predictor measure is defined as the ratio of either party's relative resources (including specifically those pertaining to social collectivities) to its relative position uis-auis contended issues. Data from shop committees and managements of sixteen organizations in Israel support the main contention that the extent of balance or imbalance in the resources/position ratio can predict the intended enactment of potential power better than either resources or position separately.

Abstract: The concept "Quality of Life" is a fairly popular concept in both the medical and lay press. However, from the literature it appears that it is operationalized in a diversity of ways and rarely a conceptual analysis of this term is given. In this paper a number of rules are given for the measurement of Quality of Life. A plea is made for a more thorough analysis of the research questions in oncology which pertain to quality of life and the role of quality of life outcome in medical decision making. It is mandatory that all involved in patient care specialists, general practitioners, nurses, social workers and psychologists should be involved in the design of quality of life studies in oncology.

Abstract: The operational curriculum is receiving increasing attention as a research focus.' Investigators are studying the complexity of the environment with an emphasis on the patterns of interactions among a wide range of phenomena. Traditionally such studies have been limited to the description of curriculum development or implementation from the perspectives of only one declsionmaking or experiential group. These studies have limited data collection to observable phenomena characterized by identifiable products and tight controls. 2 However, many researchers no longer consider it appropriate simply to select a "research recipe" which results in a single outcome or product 3 These designs decrease the usefulness of the results in school settings because they frequently fail to consider the multidimensionality of context and individual perspectives that affect curriculum in schools. A conceptual framework or explanatory theory' is useful for structuring contextual elements within complex settings. A conceptual framework is defined as a structure that can be used to operationalize a curriculum theory by systematically identifying and defining the components and elaborating the ways in which they are related. 5 Frameworks can provide a guiding structure

Abstract: Effective interviewing techniques are required for successful social work practice. Consequently, mastering this relatively complex technology is vital for both social work students and agency professionals. This article will provide a descriptive analysis of the Micro-Video Analysis Training Program which may be operationalized in either an academic classroom or agency. Also discussed are the primary components of the training program and their inter-relationships within the context of the Micro-Video Analysis approach. Hopefully this material will assist those with social work education responsibilities to teach interviewing skills more effectively.

Abstract: This document developed from a Consultative Meeting held at UKs Institute of Population Studies discusses 3 issues: 1) definition of the concept of community participation with particular reference to family planning programs; 2) operational guidelines that can be used in the development of community participation family planning projects; and 3) future research and action in the field of community participation. Community participation is defined as an educational and empowering process in which people in partnership with those able to assist them identify problems and needs and increasingly assume responsibility themselves to plan manage control and assess the collective actions that are necessary. Community participation cannot simply be grafted onto an existing model of services provision; it requires a different strategy. The community must learn how to become organized and to interact with a family planning association on equal terms rather than through the introduction of an externally designed structure. There must be a thorough understanding of the existing situation in a project area and of the ability of the project either to overcome obstructing factors or to work within their context. Among the operational issues in community participation projects are context preparation project structure objectives implementation unanticipated consequences periodic assessment project phase-out and impact measurement. There is a need to operationalize the intangible objectives of community participation so that criteria can be identified for evaluation. On the other hand a community participation project cannot be authentic unless the people are encouraged to assess project activities themselves in terms of their own objectives and priorities.

Abstract: While the family life cycle concept is widely used in the consumer behaviour literature, its value for explaining variation in buyer behaviour is less than it could be. The major problems with the concept as presently used are that: (1) it was borrowed from sociology without any basic revisions for consumer behaviour use; (2) it is presently generally operationalized as a static classificatory scheme and therefore cannot account for changing family structure; and (3) researchers have failed to link family life cycle to the concept lifestyle - another concept so crucial to explaining variations in buyer behaviour. The present paper focuses on these shortcomings and presents a model designed to make the concept more useful. Furthermore, a way of testing the model is offered. Data are presented which emphasize the need for any model to be able to incorporate the rapid change the American family is presently undergoing.

Abstract: Personal construct theory (1) suggests threat is experienced when a person develops constructs that are inferentially incompatible. Death threat theory (2, 3) has attempted to operationalize such inferential incompatibility by measuring the extent to which the self and death are described by different constructs. This paper argues that the death threat theory operationalization of inferential incompatibility is inappropriate and is not consistent with personal construct theory. Three major criticisms are made: a. the incompatibility of constructs is not measured, b. the theory advocates a form of cognitive simplicity, and c. the theory confounds the construction of life with the view of the self. The conclusion is that death threat theory is not consistent with personal construct theory.

Abstract: An Eriksonian analysis of the impact of traditionalism and feminism on the identity formation of university-attending women was presented and four “identity strategies” were postulated: traditionalism, ambivalent semi-traditionalism, confident semi-traditionalism, and feminism. A study assessing the reliability and validity of an operationalization of the identity strategies was described and it was concluded that Erikson’s characterization of female identity formation has not been well understood in the literature, that more attention must be given to the unique situation women face in contemporary universities, and that efforts should be made to more adequately integrate theoretical and empirical work in this area.

Abstract: I began this article with an effort to see how the concept of consciousness could be operationalized within an anthropological framework. It is clear from the examination of the concept that to use it to label or to judge is misleading. Instead, consciousness must be dialectical to be meaningful. Political, social or class consciousness emerges from a heritage of culture and a particular social context; it forms an understanding of society and so it shapes action. The presumption is that a particular action is reflective of some kind of an understanding, some kind of awareness. Further, the pattern of action is in turn a prime determinant of the consciousness of the actors.

Abstract: 1F 5IRST GENERATION studies of implementation were, for the most part, detailed accounts of how a single authoritative decision was carried out, either at a single location (Derthick 1970; Pressman and Wildavsky 1973) or at multiple sites (Derthick 1972).1 Implementation was conceptualized as a complex and dynamic process, characterized by a variety of participants with a wide range of perspectives whose interpretation and operationalization of earlier authoritative decisions had multiple effects, some anticipated, others not. With few exceptions (e.g., Sapolsky 1972), most first generation authors were pessimistic about a program's chances of being implemented successfully.2 For example, in 1977, Eugene Bardach (1977: 5) observed that "even the most robust policy one that is well designed to survive the implementation process will tend to go awry. The classic symptoms of underperformance, delay, and escalating costs are bound to appear" (emphasis added). With the publication of additional empirical studies of implementation, however, the picture of implementation as inevitable failure began to fade.3 Whereas faulty execution may have been the rule, there emerged a more eclectic view of implementation, one that acknowledged its variability and stressed the political as well as managerial dimensions of implementation behavior.4 The lead, or orienting, questions of these second generation studies became, and still are, "Why was X so well implemented, particularly in comparison with the less successful implementation of Y?" (Mazmanian and Sabatier 1983: 3) or "Why was X so well implemented in state A, compared to state B?" (Abolafia 1979; Goggin forthcoming).

Abstract: . Cross-national empirical research is confronted with several theoretical, methodological and practical problems. Concentrating on theoretical conceptualization, operationalization, design and fieldwork, the research note deals with some of these difficulties on the basis of concrete experiences gathered in the European-wide organized ‘European Political Parties' Middle Level Elites Project’.

Abstract: The Interaction Model of Client Health Behavior (IMCHB) was used to direct a systematic and comprehensive description of community-based elders. The abstract concepts, constructs, factors, and variables described by one element of the model were able to account for 54% of the variance in elders' health status and 47% of the variance in their well-being. The model, as operationalized in this study, pointed to clear demographic, social, and health profiles that identified the elder at risk for decreased health, well-being, and self-care potential. The IMCHB would appear to be a useful framework with which to establish an empirical base on which nursing interventions could be developed.

Abstract: Four commonly used operationalizations of the social support concept: network contact frequency, satisfaction with support (including nine dimensions), perceived availability of support, and use of support, were related to two measures of psychological adjustment (Beck Depression Inventory and Symptom Checklist-90) and to one measure of physical adjustment (Cornell Medical Index). Subjects were 68 45- to 85-year-old, highly stressed care-givers to spouses with Alzheimer's disease. Results indicate that of the four operationalizations, Satisfaction with Support was the only significant predictor of depression and general psychopathology. The set of four support variables showed the strongest relationship to depression level, next strongest to general psychopathology, and least to physical health. The satisfaction with nine social support dimensions related differentially to the types of adjustment. Results suggest the importance of specificity (sample, support operationalization, dimensions, adjustment measures) in social support research.

Abstract: This paper describes a model of the kinesthetic aspect of spatial habitability which is being developed for NASA as a means of assessing the volumetric requirements for the space station. The quantitative model, called ISOKIN, defines the level and type of constraint that a confining space imposes on its occupant. An activity will be constrained either in the ways it can be performed (that is, performer adaption may be required) or in the positions where it can be performed (no adaption required). This model provides both the analyst and the designer the means to operationalize and measure formerly intuitive notions about the suitability of various proposed space station internal configurations for the activities being planned for them.

Abstract: The management of illness behaviour has become a major area of interest, as well as a significant challenge, for the health and social sciences. Despite the amount of attention paid to illness behaviour, it is an area which is poorly understood and many (including patients, health care providers, social scientists, and health care systems analysts) might argue, is not effectively managed. In this chapter, the essential components of an illness behaviour model will be outlined, drawing upon he concepts of the various health and social sciences. This model is intended to facilitate effective and integrative management of the myriad of factors relevant to illness behaviour.