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This paper critically examines available theoretical models which have been derived front statistically established patterns of association between contextual and organizational variables. These models offer an interpretation of organizational structure as a product of organizational structure as a product of primarily economic constraints which contextual variable are impose. It is argued that available models in fact attempt to explain organization at one remove by ignoring the essentially political process, whereby power-holders within organizations decide upon courses of strategic action. This `strategic choice' typically includes not only the establishment of structural forms but also the manipulation of environmental features and the choice of relevant performance standards. A theoretical re-orientation this kind away from functional imperatives and towards' a recognition of political action is developed and illustrated in the man body of the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the community situation of shipyard workers on Tyneside, certain aspects of their orientations to work and general social perspectives, and the relationship of these to each other and to the structure of social relations at work. In terms of their community situation shipyard workers would seem to come close to Lockwood's traditional proletarian type of worker. There is evidence to suggest, however, that these workers' social perspectives are not at all clearly traditional proletarian. The explanation for this is found, at least m part, m the much greater complexity of social relations at work than are accounted for in the model of traditional proletarianism. The paper suggests that existing typologies of the orientations and social perspectives of workers need to be refined by more detailed studies of the structural and relational aspects of both work and community situations. The paper concludes with a brief examination of changes in both industry and community and the likely effect of these on the social perspectives of shipbuilding workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper deals with the organizational context of medical practice, help-seeking, and illness behavior in a manner which attempts to show their relevance to more extensive sociological issues. In the first part of the paper, both the advantages and costs of bureaucratization of medical practice are discussed in relation to changes in society itself. The second part of the paper deals with the strategy for developing a social psychological help-seeking model. Although the entire paper attempts to identify strategic areas for research in medical sociology, the third part of the paper is more specifically directed to needed areas in research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper was to test the hypothesis that oldest daughters are more likely to become pediatric nurse than girls: in other sibling positions. A test of this hypothesis was made on a sample of 109 student nurses at the Children's Hospital School of Nursing. The hypothesis was accepted for students who come from large sibling.. groups (four or more siblings), and rejected for students who come from sibling groups of three or fewer members. The theory advanced to account for this phenomenon was that oldest daughters were more likely to be strongly identified with their mothers and to choose an occupation with a feminine orientation. It is felt that more evidence is needed to substantiate the theory, although there are indications that it may be valid. These data suggest extensions of this study. It might be of special interest to study the mothers of these girls to discover the characteristics of women who might develop in their daughters a strong feminine identification. Very little information is available on this point except as daughters mentioned it more or less incidentally in their answers to the questionnaire. Also, it would be of interest to know what happens to the other. members of these sibling groups. Do other daughters in these groups become housewives, enter other kinds of nursing schools, or choose careers entirely in contrast with those of their pediatric nursing sisters. A special contribution of this paper is the method used to test a hypothesis relating to sibling position. This variable has perhaps been neglected due to its complexity. Many clinical studies, however, give the impression that sibling position is an important variable in the formation of personality. Results of this study suggest that sibling position is indeed important in the selection of a career in pediatric nursing, if one simultaneously takes into account number and sex of siblings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on "demographic metabolism," a reflection of the fact that social organizations often exhibit continuity although their human components come and go. Ryder focused on the cohort as an analytic tool for analyzing demographic metabolism; we offer an index of regeneration which reflects the fact that social organizations often contain many overlapping cohorts. The index measures the rate of change in ratio of newcomers to veteran members. The paper considers (1) how and why reganizations processes vary, (2) the potential consequences of such variations, and (3) how social organizations deal with regeneration phenomena. Illustrative data are offered for two American universities, and the discussion is extended to other complex organizations, families, nation-states, and cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article is in response to comments by the author G. Harvey on the research paper "Response Biases in Field Studies of Mental Illness." Most of his criticisms, however, concern issues which authors raised in an earlier draft of the paper and in more recent work. The study under scrutiny here was the first of a series of investigations authors have been conducting to explore bias and invalidity in survey research. It is important to note that the paper was not intended to answer all questions concerning response biases. Rather the purpose was to extend the work of author Bruce P. Dohrenwend, who in his provocative 1966 American Sociological Review article raised the spectre of response biases in field studies of psychiatric disorder. Harvey is incorrect when he claims that authors have taken the a priori position that association means error. A closer inspection of the paper will reveal that it was concerned with testing the two hypotheses outlined by Dohrenwend regarding the correlation between "social desirability" and symptom scores.

Premarital sexual intercourse is viewed as deviant behavior by most parents in our culture and with sufficient intensity to qualify this substantive area for inclusion in the subfield of deviant behavior. However, title has been done to apply the basic Propositions developed within the field of deviance to Premarital coitus. In this paper I apply key aspects of three basic approaches: (1) labeling, (2) anomie, and (3) social and cultural supports, to this substantive area and indicate the ways in which this application may throw light on the strengths and weaknesses of each of these approaches and on their relevance for various types of deviance. Suggestions are made for developing a general theory of deviance using some of the conclusions of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nearly twenty years ago, the author wrote a paper for presentation at a section of the annual meeting of American Sociological Society in which he sought to demonstrate the feasibility and utility of analyzing marital problems in terms of dynamic situational fields composed of interacting roles. Of little moment in the general progress of social psychology, the paper is nevertheless pregnant with meaning for the author. In the first place, it represented the results of his own efforts to integrate such of their ideas as he had assimilated from sociologists G. H. Mead, John Dewey, Sigmund Freud, Kurt Koffka, R. E. Parks, E. W. Burgess, H. D. Lasswell, and many others whose thinking and orientation are symbolized by these names, into a theoretical frame work which the author could apply to the very concrete and real problems of analysis and understanding of human behavior in the groups he was studying at that time. In the second place, the paper symbolized in his own experience the shift which characterized much of social psychology in the thirties from an orientation that led to phrasing explanations in terms of intrinsic attributes to one which can be called interactional.

The future of Sociology lies in the continued expansion and fullest use of quantitative research. However, socalled sociometric techniques are still in their early development. These techniques can be used only on carefully selected problems, usually directed at the study of a limited aspect of some more complicated phenomenon. This is to be expected. One should build long and diligently before these techniques can be applied to more complicated problems with much hope of success. This paper describes an attempt to study a complex social phenomenon as objectively and as quantitatively as was possible in the absence of applicable tested techniques. A study of the public relief activities in a rural county was being made, partly because of a request from the state department of welfare. One phase of the project was to find out how local citizens thought the relief problem should be met, what kind of relief agency and program they wanted. This meant an opinion study of a cross-section of the County's population, including illiterates, factory workers, grocers and doctors not all of whom are noted for being handy with paper and pencil.

The article presents information on the thirty-eighth annual meeting of the American Sociological Association to be held on December 4 and 5, 1943 at Hotel McAlpin, New York City. Papers on social research to be presented at the meeting are: "A Controlled Analysis of the Relationship of Guided Participation in Extra-curricular Activities to the Scholastic Achievement and Social Adjustment of College Students," by Reuben Hill, University of South Dakota, "Techniques of Social Reform: An Analysis of the Dry Movement," by Alfred McClung Lee, Wayne University, and "Reliability of the Idea-Centered Question in Interview Schedules," by Morton B. King, Camp Shelby, Mississippi. Papers will be followed by open discussion. Papers on Sociometry to be presented at the meeting are: "What Level of Living Indexes Measure," by Margaret Jarman Hagood and Louis J. Ducoff, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and "Some Regional Variations in Levels and Standards of Living," by Edgar A. Schuler, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Since the very beginning a lack of methodological sophistication has plagued the psychology of religion. Unfortunately, methodological liberalization brought with it a greater use of paper and pencil tests, especially questionnaires. Despite the fact that every behavioral scientist knows the severe limitations of paper-and pencil. Instruments, they continue to be the dominant method employed in the psychological study of religious phenomena. The timed cross-examination approach is actually a combination of two instruments rolled into one. One Instrument is the personality test or attitude scale already validated and reliable; the other instrument is the timed cross-examination do vice, superimposed on the former. This particular scale consists of 45 statements designed to express subjects' sentiments toward the chunk To use the scale for timed cross-examination purposes, it is first necessary to write polar opposite statements for each statement appearing in the original. Study of religious beliefs and attitudes. As was indicated early in this paper, practically all of the generalizations about religious beliefs and attitudes are based on paper and-pencil instruments.

The article presents author's comments in response to the criticism of his research paper by Professor Herbert Blumer. To begin with, he defends his metaphorical reference of blank mind with which Symbolic Interactionism researcher approaches data. He clarifies that the blank mind describes a mind whose knowledge derives from experience. Blank mind indeed is like a sheet of white paper and derives all knowledge from experience alone because the mind has no innate ideas. Next, he supports his charge that inadequate testing and replication procedures in the Symbolic Interactionism model permit the influence of power and personality on findings. He states that Symbolic Interactionism researchers should rely on sensitizing concepts grounded on sense instead of on explicit objective traits. The study of the ongoing real world requires a high order of careful and honest probing; creative yet disciplined imagination, resourcefulness, flexibility, pondering, and a constant readiness to recast one's images as this world can best be studied by two modes of naturalistic inquiry: exploration and inspection.

The article presents abstracts of various papers related to immigration in Europe that were published in several periodicals. One of the papers discussed is "Planned Indian Immigration: The Role of the High Commissions," by B.A. Chansarkar. This paper offers a critique of some of the existing arrangements for the movement of voucher holders out of India and into Great Britain and makes a number of specific proposals as to how these might be improved, particularly under the aegis of the particular High Commissions concerned. Another paper discussed is "A Shipboard Study of Some British Born Immigrants Returning to the United Kingdom From Australia," by Alan Richardson. The aim of this study is to explore some of the psycho-social determinants of return migration among British born married, male, skilled, manual workers and to compare those who intend to resettle permanently in Great Britain with those who were undecided about resettling there. A tentative conclusion suggested by the results is that permanent' returnees are more likely to be motivated by economic considerations. The undecided returnees, on the other hand, are more likely to be motivated by emotional considerations.

This paper discusses the difficulties involved in relaxing the self-interest assumption as it is traditionally used in conjunction with the assumption of rationality. A formal model of altruistic behavior is developed and employed in the analysis of the problems of burden-sharing among rational allies. It is demonstrated that altruistic behavior among political actors is not, in general, sufficient to remove all areas of contention between the actors although the scope of disagreement is shown to be narrowed by altruistic behavior. Additional applications of the model of non-self-interested behavior are presented and suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reevaluates certain aspects of Dahrendorf's conflict theory in relation to social mobility. Specifically, the relationship between the degree of openness or closedness of the mobility opportunity structure of society and the degree of intergroup antagonism is examined. A game simulation is initiated whereby the researcher is able to create simulated situations of varying mobility opportunity and observe, by means of pre- and posttest questionnaires, the relative antagonism between groups within the situation and the participants' latent antagonism outside the simulated situation. The findings provide support for Dahrendorf's hypothesis, but also indicate that further dynamics are involved in the structure of mobility systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that emphasis on the irrationality of crowd participants is at best misplaced. Building on a detailed examination of a particular instance of crowd behavior and a blend of several different theoretical perspectives, I propose a new approach to crowds, in which participants exercise considerable cognitive skill while consciously trying to produce concerted rewarding actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the applicability of a recently developed pith model of the process of educational and early occupational attainment to a longitudinal study of a national sample of black and white males. The model that explains the white data does not explain the black. Ten major departures of the black data from the results expected on the basis of studies of whites are noted. It is concluded that these racial differences reflect the existence of two different ideal-typical systems of mobility in America. The implications of this distinction are observed in the operation of social-structural and social-psychological variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three perspectives are usually used to explain differences in political beliefs and behavior of men and women: political socialization, structural, and situational. This paper examines evidence bearing and one of these theories, political socialization, and finds relatively minor support for it. A variety of alternative explanations flow from these results, the most radical of which would call for abandoning the political socialization perspective altogether. A more cautious reading of the findings suggest a new interpretation, one that integrates both political socialization and situational theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper a behavioral model consisting of sociodemographic, economic, ecological, need, and social psychological variables is developed and used to account for differential patterns of health and illness behavior among members of a pre paid medical group. Data from a sample of students who were enrolled in a university health plan were used to estimate parameters of structural equation models for males and females. The model suggests that social-psychological factors, such as symptom sensitivity and students' appraisal of the services provided, affect the extent to which they seek outside medical care. While medical need and insurance coverage both directly affect the choice of health services, sociodemographic and ecological factors appear largely to affect utilization indirectly through their effect on intervening social-psychological variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper pleads for hermeneutic processes to be taken into account in the discussion of role conflict. In order to avoid reification of mechanistic assumptions underlying cross-pressure models of social action, it is suggested that theory as well as research should take into consideration that norms and behaviour are mediated by interpretative processes. These constitute a level of 'social understanding' which can be operationalized in role-conflict terms as three different types of conflict. Reciprocity of perspectives and evaluation, as the main dimensions of interpretation processes, are shown to be the main features of conflicts in role interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews theoretical models which try to account for cooperation and conflict between two organized decision‐making entities. Although most existing models focus on either “negotiation” or “influence” actions, both may be seen as part of a single process of interaction. Some recent theories have tried to take account of both types of action and there is a need for further work in this direction. Suggestions are made about explaining both types within a motivational framework. Three major types of theoretical models dealing with influence actions are (1) cognitive, (2) learning, and (3) reaction process. Integration is needed between the first two. One direction for such an integration is to treat both the present situation (cognitive) and previous learning as sets of variables which affect current incentives, motives, and expectancies. Although reaction process models view each side's actions as more mechanical than seems appropriate for most situations, the emphasis of such models (and of learning models) on the interaction between the parties needs to be retained in more general models. Journal Abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most so-called "theories" and "explanations" in the behavioral sciences tend to be formulated in qualitative terms which are often ill-defined. Hence, consequences can seldom be rigorously deduced from them, and those consequences that are extracted can seldom be conclusively tested. This paper reports the results of using a specifically designed research methodology to obtain and generalize a quantitative explanation of human behavior in multi-person, interactive games. The games are interactive in the sense that the payoff to one individual resulting from the selection of a particular strategy depends on the strategy selections of the other participants. In the early stages of this work the relevant independent variables were estimated by use of the subject's responses to a series of questions asked before his choice was made. Although these questions were formulated using operational definitions of the concepts, what they yielded were subjective measurements. The objective of the research, of which what is reported here is only a part, was to explain choices of individuals and groups in conflict situations.

This paper summarizes an investigation of the effects of psychological and situation variables in an experimental game study of retaliation which was designed to simulate aspects of accidental nuclear war. The study of retaliation is of prime importance in the context of accidental war. This is because an accidental war can be thought of as the result of decisions-probably the result of an escalating sequence of decisions to retaliate. It is only the initial stimulus, such as an unauthorized nuclear detonation, that is an "accident." An experimental game with options to attack and to retaliate was presented to 196 college students. Measures of authoritarianism, orientation to military-political strategy, and attitudes relating to nuclear war were obtained. Statistically significant findings were that expected iteration and social influence inhibited retaliation while authoritarianism fostered it. The principal independent variables were selected partly on the basis of plausible relevance to nuclear decision-making.

The article is with reference to a progress report made in a research project aimed at describing systematic trends in the violence between political groups. The report is in two parts. Part one describes the formulation of an empirical test for the existence of (1) a short-term (15-30 years) and (2) a long- term (80-120 years) periodic fluctuation in the historical occurrence of war. Although some background is given about why such a test should be made, the research described in part one is based, largely, on empirical rather than theoretical generalizations. In another words, not much attention is given to the "why" of such patterns. The tests intends to confirm the existence of the expected patterns. It is desirable to go beyond the simple observation that an empirical regularity exists to some explanation of the forces leading to that regularity. The available data do provide clues as to possible explanations. The second part of the paper speculates about several possible reasons for these patterns. The explanations are consistent with the data, but their testing must await the collection of historical material broader in scope than that now available.

The concept of group character is finding increasing use by social scientists. This paper proposes to standardize the term social character and to construct a sociologically acceptable definition. The term is made a normative one, embodying the relationship between culture norms and the generality of their individual acceptance. The determination, then, of the social character of any group becomes the problem of the specification of the group ideals and the ascertaining of their correlation with actual behavior. Four categories of such relationship are set up for research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes an attempt to construct a scale to measure social insight by means of verbal response. We begin with the working hypothesis that social insight is the ability to recognize in principle in a given situation, the existence and operation of specific substitute responses such as projection, rationalization, regression, sublimation, transference, etc and the need of some specific stimulus to adjust group conflicts or tensions, such as a humorous remark to relax a dangerous intensity, a suggested compromise to attain temporary agreement, a face saving remark to avoid embarrassment and to preserve status or to discover the missing part required to complete a pattern of thought, the ability to recognize these mechanisms in principle and to apply these formulas in specific social situations like a conference between two or more persons, is not the same as "ability to get along with people," often used as a definition of social intelligence. It is possible that social insight may have other aspects than the two mentioned. However, we believe that an approach may be made to an operational definition of social insight by limiting the study to these aspects. In this connection, it is evident that we may use to advantage in the measurement of verbal response the distinction made in symbolic logic between, the expressive function of language and the representative function of language. Certain Freudian categories are available to describe the former and we find in semantical and in syntactical analysis useful categories to describe the latter.

Sociometry is an axis with two poles. The arm towards one pole is directed towards the discovery of the deeper levels of society's structure. The other is directed towards promoting change of society based upon the dynamic facts found in its structure. Since one cannot anticipate the structure of society, the sociometrist must be an experimental realist and plunge into the task of uncovering the actually functioning structures in which people relate themselves to one another. It is an unavoidable task, yet one surely worth the effort, if one ever gain control over social processes in which one participates and to which the destiny not only of oneself as individuals is bound up, but also the destiny of man as a species if he is to better his lot and build a harmonious society. Social process is used in this paper to define the temporal development of interpersonal relationships as contrasted with structure, which is herein used to designate the spatial facts of such relationships. Social process is the way by which structure comes to exist. In contrast to structure, which may be conceived spatially, social process is the manner by which sociation occurs, develops and results in structure, the psychosocial organization of relationships maintaining between individuals.

The notion that ideologies play an important part in contemporary social life seems to have penetrated into the sphere of popular discourse. Today even the newspapers occasionally refer to ideologies when they wish to allude to a complex of ideas, a body of doctrines, the programs of movements, the platforms of parties-in fact, to any creed or theory that takes on an intellectualized and rationalized form. It would be difficult to imagine a single social problem in the analysis and proposed solution of which one does not have to take account of ideological factors. They are an elusive but significant part of the contemporary social landscape. They serve as landmarks which help to find the way in what otherwise would be a chaotic social world, by providing with guidance in defining and evaluating situations. Ideologies enable a person to identify with social movements and groups which offer interpretations and solutions of problems which could only rarely be undertaken by each individual independently. They aid in reducing excessive individuation and indifference in respect to social problems by furnishing us with goals by which more or less articulate groups become integrated. It is the object of this paper to. elaborate the proposition that our contemporary social problems cannot be adequately treated and that the situations to which they refer cannot be understood without taking due account of, the role of their ideological involvements.

Remarriage as a means of rectifying a mistake in divorce has been given less attention. Instances of such remarriage are commoner than is sometimes supposed. The author's attention was drawn to the subject by a number of clients of the Institute of Family Relations who got divorces, afterwards decided that they were happier together than they were apart, and remarried each other successfully. This paper reports on 200 such cases. Some of these are decidedly complicated, various other marriages having served to embroider the main pattern. Of the 200 cases here reported of remarriage of the same persons, 96 were happy on the second attempt; 29 were doubtful and 75 definitely unhappy. The mean length of first marriage was 5.1 years, nearly one third lasted less than two years, while nearly one fourth were of at least ten years' duration before the divorce. There is very little relationship between the length of marriage prior to divorce and the length of intermission prior to remarriage. A short marriage may be followed by long separation or vice versa. One might suppose that those longest married would require the shortest time to discover that their divorce was a mistake; that there would be, in other words, a negative correlation between first marriage and intermission. This is not found. The correlation is positive, though small.

This paper will deal with the transition from adjustment in the mental hospital to readjustment in the family and community. The problems of the mental hospital which are of interest for the sociologist fall into three main groups. The first includes those processes which take place before the patient is committed, the second, those which take place in the hospital; the third, those which function to release the patient from the hospital and rehabilitate him to his family and community. The mental hospital is designed as a temporary place of treatment and cure. The hospital and community environments differ in their demands upon the individual, adjustment in the hospital does not assure adjustment in the community. Convalescents are released to the community where they must assume responsibilities, where good readjustment demands assuming a good many responsibilities, and considerable initiative. Hospital facilities extend only partially into the community and are limited by the commitment of the patient.

Using data from two independent surveys, this paper examines those ghetto retail merchants who are likely to have their business establishments attacked during civil disorders. The findings, unusual in their complementarity, suggest that riot participants select many of their targets and that the pattern of selection reflects a variety of concerns, from personal gain to "pre-political" motivations. Interpretations of these findings undercut theories of collective violence that rest on suck concepts as suggestability, contagion, and "animal spirits." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores convergences between symbolic interactionism and exchange theory in four major areas: (1) both theoretical orientations assume the operation of constructive mental processes when actors act toward their environment; this assumption is explicitly staled by symbolic interactionists and implied in exchange-theoretical propositions dealing with valuation, decision-making or justice; (2) exchange theory implies processes akin to G. H. Mead's "self" and "generalized other" in the sense that interaction in exchange requires persons to imaginatively assume the roles of others and view themselves in terms of the conceptions of others; (3) in both perspectives social organization is viewed as emerging from constructed individual acts "fitted" to one another; such "elementary" interactions give rise to institutional modes of behavior which, once established, exist as a reality sui generis over and against the individual actors; (4) in both perspectives social dynamics is conceived in dialectic terms, arising out of contradictions between micro- and macro processes and inherent tendencies in social organization toward inconsistency, conflict and change. It is proposed that a possible synthesis between exchange theory and symbolic interactionism can begin by postulating a dialectical process in which objective realities become subjectified by actors and subjective meanings become objectified in social institutions. A synthesized theory based on such general postulates can be empirically tested when (a) the concrete "subjective" and "objective" contingencies which make acts meaningful for the actors are posited and empirically indicated and (b) longitudinal observations show changes in some of these contingencies so that predictions about behavioral changes can be made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the small groups literature on status organizing processes in decision- snaking groups whose members differ in external status. This literature demonstrates that status characteristics, such as age, sex, and race determine the distribution of participation, influence, and prestige among members of such groups. This effect is independent of any prior cultural belief in the relevance of the status characteristic to the task. To explain this result, we assume that status determines evaluations of, and performance-expectations for group members and hence the distribution of participation, influence, and prestige. We stipulate conditions sufficient to produce this effect. Further, to explain the fact that the effect is independent of prior cultural belief, we assume that a status characteristic becomes relevant is all situations except when it is culturally known to be irrelevant. Direct experiment supports each assumption in this explanation independently of the others. Subsequent work devoted to refining and extending the theory finds among other things that, given two equally relevant status characteristics, individuals combine all inconsistent status information rather than reduce its inconsistency. If this result survives further experiment it extends the theory on a straightforward basis to multi-characteristic status situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this Paper an attempt is made to evaluate three answers-normative, coercive and exchange-to the Hobbesian question: how can one establish a society in which force and fraud are not routinely used in satisfying wants? Of the three answers, the normative solution is found to be least acceptable because, unlike the two non-normative explanations, it (1) focuses on the problem of maintaining a system in which the participants have already internalized norms prohibiting the use of force and fraud rather than on explaining how the relevant norms emerged; (2) tends to confound the problem of establishing a relatively well ordered system with the problem of increasing the level of integration of systems in which order already prevails; and (3) seriously underestimates (a) the degree of conflict which may be generated by shared values and (b) the role of norms based on self-interest in the creation and maintenance of social systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the success of the Davis-Leinhardt graph theoretical model in predicting structural trends in a data bank of 742 sociograms from diverse small groups. The model has an over-all success rate of 70%, but two key predictions are not supported. An alternative model is then tested. Its prediction that the sums of pair relations tend toward cluster-ability is supported in 77% of the tests, and its prediction that differences of pair relations tend toward a transitive tournament is supported in 90% of the tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is critical of some uses made of the "ideal type" and of the fruitless efforts to grasp the significance of this basic tool of science through the work of Max Wetter. Weber, a genius in many respects, did not have a scientifically mature grasp of the class of logical devices to which the ideal type belongs, namely, idealizations, which in the older sciences represent an inevitable, almost commonplace, research strategy. idealization; we suggest, may conveniently be thought of as falling along a continuum between the propaedeatic and the theoretical. Most of Weber's types and most others used in sociology either do violence to the basic strategy of idealizations or fall close to the propoedeutic extreme of the continuum. However, a few idealizations which remarkably approximate the purely theoretical ones found in physical science are available in the discipline, although they are not recognised as such. Several of these are herein singled out and briefly discussed. Sociology, we plead, must snake a special effort to recognize the theoretically fertile strategy of the idealization. A roper and deliberate use of this device helps avoid fruitless squabbles about extra-scientific aspects of theories and enhances our chance of getting down to the serious business of theory construction with a focused sense of purpose and a cumulative orientation. Finally, in order to avoid past difficulties, we suggest that the term "ideal type" be dropped altogether from our vocabulary in favor of its less troublesome relation, idealization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

American political life, both historically and at present, has proven unusually resistant to economic interpretation, either by the Classical Liberal or the Marxist versions of economic determinism. Instead, political scholars have placed heavy reliance on a variety of non-economic factors, the most recent being those of alienation, mass society and status Protest. However, in this paper we argue that a great deal of American political life can be explained economically, in terms of class conflict, if revisions are made in class theory. Accordingly, a multi-dimensional theory of class conflict, based on the work of Max Weber, is presented, using the dimensions of the credit and commodity markets along with the usual dimension of the labor market. This theory is then applied to three political problems: (1) the relation between agrarian and labor protest in the 19th century; (2) the contemporary radical right; and (3) the current Negro protest movement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper attempts to give some substance to the oft-heard complaint that sociologists too rarely examine problems in historical depth. it argues that many of the serious distortions that mar Lloyd Warner's study of Newburyport may be traced to his failure to utilize appropriate historical sources and methods of verification, and suggests some of the contributions history can make to an understanding of the modern community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I explore the ramifications of charismatic sensitivity, i.e., the propensity to impute charismatic qualities to actions, persons, institutions and cultural objects. My analysis takes its point of departure in Max Weber's analysis of charismatic authority, in trying to analyze charismatic authority more systematically than Weber was able to do, I have concluded that he was dealing with one particular variant of the charismatic propensity, which has more far-reaching, more permeative manifestations than his analysis has hitherto led us to believe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This Paper resents a definition and typology of "awareness contexts" and offers a paradigm for their study. The paradigm emphasizes the developmental interaction processes deriving from given awareness contexts, and directs attention to transformations of those contexts. The writings of four sociologists are located within the paradigm with respect to the types of awareness context they assume and the segments of the paradigm they treat. Implications of the paradigm for future research and theory are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intra-organizational stratification systems may be viewed as a series of social distance patterns "attached" to a set of fixed positions. The focus of the present paper is on the social distance strategies employed in inter-status and intra-status relationships on a psychiatric ward. A patient's position in the status hierarchy, as determined by sociometric choices, is considered a function of (1) her access to prestigeful groups, i.e., staff; (2) her access to the public and private knowledge of prestigeful groups; and (3) the qualitative nature of the contact situation in inter-status relationships. The various social distance strategies result in either status threats or power threats for staff personnel on the ward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous work on the effects of cooperative and competitive settings appears to be completely ambiguous. An examination of these studies suggests that the strength and direction of the effect is strongly influenced by the extent to which the group has an interdependence task. A review of the literature suggests that the results may be generalized to a variety of types of groups. The thesis is put forward that these results may be conceptualized in terms of a balance between two opposing behavior patterns: one oriented to greater individual productivity and one oriented to blocking the productivity of others. This paper reports an experiment confirming the hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tries to show that both functionalism and the Hegelian-Marxian dialectic present one-sided, but complementary and reconcilable, views of society. The basic postulates of functionalism and the dialectic reveal strengths and limitations which suggest a reformulation of both approaches in minimal form. Basically, the problem is to arrive at a theory of society that achieves an adequate balance between stability and the various sources of endogenous and exogenous change, between consensus and conflict, and between equilibrium and disequilibrium. After examining Dahrendorf's efforts in that direction, we conclude that convergence and overlap between the two theories show promise of a fruitful synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extent to which role performances within an organization are open to observation by others is structurally determined. Observability provides transparency of social arrangements and makes modeling of behavior possible. This paper discusses one aspect of observability, namely, the Provision of control over the behavior of status-occupants. Differential observability in connection with position of authority determines the type of interest role-partners have in the conformity of status-occupants. By applying Merton's distinction between attitudinal, behavioral and doctrinal conformity to his theory of role-set, some mechanisms of social control are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of alienation is a pervasive theme in the classics of sociology, and the concept has a prominent place in contemporary work. This paper seeks to accomplish two tasks: to present an organized view of the uses that have been made of this concept; and to provide an approach that ties the historical interest in alienation to the modern empirical effort. Five alternative meanings of alienation are identified: powerlessness, meaninglessness, normlessness, isolation, and self-estrangement. The derivation of these meanings from traditional sociological analysis is sketched, and the necessity for making the indicated distinctions is specified. In each case, an effort is made to provide a viable research formulation of these five alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationships between various indices of discrimination and rate of non-white increase and per cent non-white in a random sample of 150 Southern counties. The present study is a follow-up to a previous study of non-Southern Standard Metropolitan Areas (SMA) in which some of the same variables were interrelated but with different conclusions. In the earlier study it was found that for non-Southern SMAs neither rate of non-white increase nor per cent Negro was highly related to the discrimination indices used. There was some evidence, however, that negative results such as these would not be obtained if the analysis were carried out on units having a larger percentage of non-whites. Certain predictions concerning both the strength and the form of relationships were suggested by the first study. These predictions have been stated in terms of explicit hypotheses to be tested in the present study. For non-Southern SMAs relationships between rate of non-white increase and indices of income and job discrimination were slightly negative.

This article has evolved from a preliminary report of a study conducted in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1950. Although the study was originally conceived as applied rather than pure research, the attitude-type scale devised afforded an operational formulation of the anomie concept. This formulation was broader, however, than that specified by Durkheim. This paper benefits from the findings of the New York research, although it is substantively based on the earlier research. The objective of the Springfield study was the measurement and assessment of the impact of a series of ADL card advertisements (anti-discrimination and American Creed messages) that were posted under controlled conditions in vehicles of the public transit system. The applied character of this research imposed a different research design than would have been developed if the study had exclusively focused on the anomie concept. In an exploratory study such as this, caution dictates that the findings be weighed principally on the scale of their suggestive potentialities.

The objective of this paper is to examine the characteristics of suburban communities as they relate to the structuring of social relationships of the resident populations. This presumes that the form taken by these phenomena in suburban communities somehow differs from the form to be observed in other types of communities, and, furthermore, that this difference is engendered by the suburban situation. By definition suburban areas, however sub-categorized, are primarily residential areas having a peculiar location; that is, they are farther away from the center of the major city than urban neighborhoods but closer than rural neighborhoods. The ecological position differs from both urban and rural positions. It is hypothesized that this positional relationship with the larger city has a definite influence on the social organization of the suburbs. As unique characteristics of suburbs the positional relationship to a larger city and the daily commuting pattern of suburbanites would appear to have an important influence on the patterns of social interaction and participation regardless of the nature of the derivative characteristics.

One of the major problems to which social psychologists are now addressing themselves is the process of identification and the nature and functioning of identity in conduct. These concepts are of strategic importance in any theory which attempts to relate the self and its workings to an ongoing social structure. As Nelson N. Foote and Anselm Strauss have pointed out, individuals identify themselves—answer the question "Who am I?"—in terms of the names and categories current in the groups in which they participate. By applying these labels to themselves they learn who they are and how they ought to behave, acquire a self and a set of perspectives in terms of which their conduct is shaped. It appears theoretically useful to break the concept of identification down into its components, both for comparative purposes and in order to provide finer tools for the analysis of specific problems of social structure and personal development. This paper is an attempt to provide such a breakdown for one type of identification, that of a man with his work.