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Showing papers in "Journal of Social Issues in 1985"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors proposed a cognitive-processing model to account for the generalization of attributes from a sample to a population, which assumes that impressions of groups are most heavily influenced by the attributes of those members most strongly associated with the group label.
Abstract: The effects of intergroup contact on stereotypic beliefs, it is argued, depend upon (1) the potential susceptibility of those beliefs to disconfirming information and the degree to which the contact setting “allows” for disconfirming events, and (2) the degree to which disconfirming events are generalized from specific group members to the group as a whole. To account for the generalization of attributes from a sample to a population, we present a cognitive-processing model. The model assumes that impressions of groups are most heavily influenced by the attributes of those members most strongly associated with the group label. In order for group stereotypes to change, then, disconfirming information must be associated with the group labels. However, a number of powerful cognitive processes work against this association. As a consequence, we predict that stereotype change will be relatively rare under “normal” circumstances but may occur when disconfirming information is encountered under circumstances that activate the group label (e.g., when disconfirming attributes are associated with otherwise typical group members).

551 citations



Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared social support across groups and found that levels of some aspects of support and the effectiveness of support components vary across these subgroups, as illustrated by one study focusing on social class.
Abstract: Much of the research conducted on social support over the last decade has focused on specific population groups. Until recently, very little work compared social support across groups. The importance of this type of research is discussed, including the potential role of social support in explaining subpopulation differences in psychological distress. Studies are reviewed that compare support and support effects across sex, ethnic, and age groups. In general, the findings suggest that levels of some aspects of support and the effectiveness of support components vary across these subgroups. Even the stress-buffering versus direct-effect functions of social support may vary across subgroups, as illustrated by one study focusing on social class. The implications of these studies and directions for future research are discussed.

352 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper reviewed research on instructional methods designed to operationalize the principal elements of Allport's (1954) contact theory of intergroup relations and discussed the implications of this research for contact theory and for instruction in desegregated classrooms.
Abstract: This paper reviews research on instructional methods designed to operationalize the principal elements of Allport's (1954) contact theory of intergroup relations. These cooperative learning methods employ ethnically mixed learning groups, who study material presented by the teacher and are rewarded based on the learning of the group as a whole. Field experimental research on these methods in desegregated elementary and secondary schools has found relatively consistent positive effects on intergroup relations, as well as on the achievement of minority and majority students. The implications of this research for contact theory and for instruction in desegregated classrooms are discussed in light of the research evidence.

209 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine mediation as an exercise in which the mediator has interests and operates in a context of power politics and cost-benefit calculation, and find that a mediator intervenes because of its interest in the conflict or in obtaining an outcome, and can play three roles-communicator, formulator, manipulator- in accomplishing its objectives.
Abstract: This study examines mediation as an exercise in which the mediator has interests and operates in a context of power politics and cost-benefit calculation. It is based on eight cases of international mediation-the U.S.S.R. between India and Pakistan (1966), Algeria between Iran and Iraq (1975), the United States and Great Britain in Rhodesia (1975–1979), the five Western States in Namibia (1977–1983), Algeria between the United States and Iran (1980–1981), and the ongoing activities of the Organization of African Unity, The Organization of American States, and the International Committee of the Red Cross. It was found that a mediator intervenes because of its interest in the conflict or in obtaining an outcome, and it can play three roles-communicator, formulator, manipulator- in accomplishing its objectives. The mediator is accepted by the parties, not because of its neutrality but because of its ability to produce an attractive outcome. The mediator's power, or leverage, comes from the parties' need for a solution, from its ability to shift weight among parties, and from side payments.

208 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: For instance, this paper found that people are better able to identify members of their own race than members of another race in criminal justice system and intergroup contact situations, and cognitive and motivational correlates of own-race bias are discussed.
Abstract: Failing to recognize someone or misidentifying someone can have important personal and social consequences. The perceiver may suffer feelings of embarrassment or stupidity. The target may feel insulted, stereotyped, or in extreme cases may be falsely identified as a criminal. If the perceiver and the target are of different ethnic groups, misidentification can increase intergroup hostility, stereotyping, and intergroup anxiety. Laboratory and field research demonstrates an own-race bias in recognition accuracy. People are better able to identify members of their own race than members of another race. The significance of own-race bias in the criminal justice system and intergroup contact situations is reviewed, and cognitive and motivational correlates of own-race bias are discussed. Four possible explanations for this differential recognition effect are presented. The explanation derived from intergroup contact theory—that differential recognition stems from limited experience with members of other groups—has received surprisingly weak research support thus far, Greater attention to assessing different types of contact may increase our understanding of the ways in which intergroup contact can affect intergroup perceptions.

200 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors critically examine the burgeoning empirical literature, with particular reference to the research reported in this volume, and examine the general effectiveness of mediation, especially in comparison to adjudication, findings regarding the types of disputes and disputing parties for which mediation appears most useful, classification of mediator tactics and evidence regarding the effectiveness of these tactics.
Abstract: During the last several years there has been an upsurge in interest in the mediation of social conflict. Innovations in mediating disputes at all levels of society have also given rise to research aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of mediation and a better understanding of the nature of the mediation process. We critically examine the burgeoning empirical literature, with particular reference to the research reported in this volume. Four major issues are examined: (1) Evidence about the general effectiveness of mediation, especially in comparison to adjudication; (2) findings regarding the types of disputes and disputing parties for which mediation appears most useful; (3) classification of mediator tactics and evidence regarding the effectiveness of these tactics; and (4) methodological and conceptual problems confronting the student of mediation.

158 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors showed that a generalized increase in outgroup acceptance will be produced by an interpersonal as opposed to a task orientation toward team members, and assignment of persons to teams on the basis of their unique personal attributes rather than attributes that explicitly exemplify their category.
Abstract: Several cooperative heterogeneous team-learning interventions have been developed to promote improved intergroup relations in desegregated school settings. Despite their positive effects, little or no evidence demonstrates any generalization to new children or to children outside the classroom setting. Furthermore, social-categorization theory suggests that some procedural aspects of these interventions interfere with these intended benefits. Data from an experimental laboratory paradigm structurally paralleling these small-group cooperative-learning interventions, and testing hypotheses derived from social-categorization theory show that a generalized increase in outgroup acceptance will be produced by (a) an interpersonal as opposed to a task orientation toward team members, and (b) the assignment of persons to teams on the basis of their unique personal attributes rather than attributes that explicitly exemplify their category.

145 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, two longitudinal studies examined the influences of social support, networks, and support interventions on the adjustment of teenage mothers and their babies and found that perceived support, social network resources, and interventions were related to better postpartum adjustment for young mothers and improved health and development for their babies.
Abstract: Two longitudinal studies examined the influences of social support, networks, and support interventions on the adjustment of teenage mothers and their babies. Structured interviews were conducted prenatally and during postnatal follow-up in both studies. Group and home-based educational support interventions were also conducted through the baby's first year of life. Perceived support, social network resources, and support interventions were related to better postpartum adjustment for young mothers and improved health and development for their babies. Some negative effects were also suggested. The results confirm the importance of assessing specific sources of support and of distinguishing between the concepts of perceived support and social networks. Implications for future social support research and interventions are discussed.

141 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that the conceptual and empirical distinctions between symbolic racism and old-fashioned prejudice have been exaggerated, and that symbolic racism may be best understood as one symptom of generalized tendencies to derogate out-groups.
Abstract: Research on “symbolic racism” has underscored an important paradox in racial attitudes: whites' rejection of racial injustice, in principle, has developed without diminishing resistance to the social policies designed to correct the injustice. Yet despite the currency of symbolic racism in contemporary research on racial attitudes, questions about the meaning of the concept remain unanswered. The results of two investigations reported in this paper indicate that (a) the conceptual and empirical distinctions between symbolic racism and “old-fashioned” prejudice have been exaggerated, and (b) symbolic racism may be best understood as one symptom of generalized tendencies to derogate out-groups—tendencies associated with a configuration of personal attributes that reflect commitments to conservative sociopolitical values and conventional standards of conduct. These findings are discussed in reference to the persistence of racial prejudice, as well as its implications regarding exposure to and the effects of interracial contact.

122 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, implicit assumptions and conceptual distinctions embedded within the analytic literature translate into suggestions for intervention, and issues that underlie efforts to implement interventions (e.g., funding, staffing) are also discussed.
Abstract: Two independent research traditions have evolved that deal with social support-an analytic tradition that emphasizes theory-based tests of hypotheses and an applied tradition that emphasizes evaluations of interventions. This paper seeks to stimulate feedback between these two traditions by examining how implicit assumptions and conceptual distinctions embedded within the analytic literature translate into suggestions for intervention. Assumptions that bear on the soundness of undertaking interventions of any kind are considered first, followed by assumptions that bear on the conceptualization of specific intervention strategies. Issues that underlie efforts to implement interventions (e.g., funding, staffing) are also discussed. Examples of research questions that explicitly link the analytic and applied traditions are provided.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors evaluate the general proposition that mediators tailor their tactics to the particular dispute circumstances, and find that Bargainers' "unrealistic expectations" are positively associated with mediator efforts to change these expectations and with telling the parties their position is unrealistic.
Abstract: How do professional mediators decide what tactics to use in public sector disputes? The present study was designed to evaluate the general proposition that mediators tailor their tactics to the particular dispute circumstances. The respondents were 32 mediators working with the Iowa Public Employment Relations Board. Interviews with these mediators were followed by a questionnaire that asked them to rate, for one case, the extent to which the dispute arose from any of 24 sources and the extent to which they used any of 37 mediation tactics. Correlations were calculated between the measures of dispute sources and mediation tactics. These correlations support the hypothesis that mediators adapt their activities to different dispute circumstances. Among the findings: Bargainers' “unrealistic expectations” are positively associated with mediator efforts to change these expectations and with telling the parties their position is unrealistic. Bargainer “hostility” is positively associated with mediator attempts to control hostility by using humor to lighten the atmosphere and by using directive tactics such as pressing hard for concessions. “Too many issues” is positively associated with mediator efforts to simplify the agenda, organize priorities, suggest trade-offs, clarify needs with constituents, and hold long sessions to facilitate compromise. Bargainers who “lack experience/expertise” lead mediators to simplify the agenda and to educate them to the impasse process.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors found that the typical responses of men to a competent woman include prejudice, stereotyped beliefs, and overt or subtle discrimination, unless competing responses are evoked by other features of the situation or by the stimulus person's unique qualities.
Abstract: Research on the evaluation of competent women is reviewed in the context of the experiences of some eminent academic women with the objectives of bridging the distance between these two sources of data, and of identifying some of the conditions under which competent women are likely to be evaluated less favorably than comparable men. Findings generally support the hypothesis that the typical responses (of men, primarily) to a competent woman include prejudice, stereotyped beliefs, and overt or subtle discrimination, unless competing responses are evoked by other features of the situation or by the stimulus person's unique qualities. Thus, a competent woman is most likely to be devalued when judgments are elicited in realistic contexts in which there are potential consequences for the evaluator (e.g., a real employer) and when the woman is unfamiliar.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper explored teacher and school characteristics that affect how teachers organize opportunities for intergroup contact and academic learning in their classrooms and found that positive attitudes toward integration influence teachers' selection of grouping practices that promote student interaction, such as active learning and equal status programs.
Abstract: Data from 5284 fifth-grade students and 886 teachers in 94 elementary schools are used to examine two aspects of the prevalence and effects of resegregation in desegregated schools. First we explore teacher and school characteristics that affect how teachers organize opportunities for intergroup contact and academic learning in their classrooms. Results suggest that positive attitudes toward integration influence teachers' selection of grouping practices that promote student interaction, such as active learning and equal-status programs. Negative attitudes toward integration, or teachers' beliefs in separate education for blacks and whites, promote their use of less flexible, resegregative practices, such as tracking and within-class grouping. Next, with data from teachers and students, we investigate whether different classroom organizations influence black and white students' achievement and behavior. Multiple regression analyses show that, with other important student, teacher, and classroom structures controlled, less resegregative classroom structures are more advantageous for black students' achievement. There is higher black achievement in classrooms using equal-status programs, cooperative activities, or flexible tracking.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a cognitive intervention aimed at improving relations between ethnic groups in general, and between Israelis and Egyptians in particular, was evaluated, which consisted of a specially designed booklet about Egypt for Israeli tourists, given to them before their visit to that country.
Abstract: This study evaluates a cognitive intervention aimed at improving relations between ethnic groups in general, and between Israelis and Egyptians in particular The intervention comprised a specially designed booklet about Egypt for Israeli tourists, given to them before their visit to that country The intervention group included 352 Israeli tourists; 131 other Israeli tourists were not exposed to the booklet Both groups toured Egypt, and both groups were given before-and-after questionnaires measuring interethnic attitudes The measures revealed changes as a result of the tour itself and additional changes related to the booklet The results are discussed regarding their contribution to interethnic attitude change

Journal ArticleDOI
Deborah M. Kolb1
TL;DR: In this paper, a dramaturgical framework is applied to observational case data to identify a core of expressive tactics commonly used by mediators, which are organized around the theme of professional work.
Abstract: Labor mediators lack formal authority to compel parties to settle. What authority mediators do have emanates from their person, their behavior and skill, and the parties' ongoing assessment of them during a case. These “expressive” dimensions of mediation are latent features of the process, which makes them difficult to isolate and study. In this study, a dramaturgical framework is applied to observational case data to identify a core of expressive tactics commonly used by mediators. These tactics are organized around the theme of professional work. The findings suggest that mediators manage impressions of their expertise to frame settlements, impressions of their social position to convey neutrality toward the parties and a shared collegial network with chief negotiators, and impressions of their legitimacy to establish reputations for action and success. Contrasts in the ways these tactics are used suggest tentative postulates about the differential ways authority is mobilized in mediation.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article examined situational factors and mediation techniques associated with settlement and nonsettlement of collective bargaining disputes by means of mediation, using data from 260 mediation cases involving the British Advisory, Conciliation, and Arbitration Service.
Abstract: This article examines situational factors and mediation techniques associated with settlement and nonsettlement of collective bargaining disputes by means of mediation, using data from 260 mediation cases involving the British Advisory, Conciliation, and Arbitration Service. The results show that the nature of the issue in dispute, the source of request for assistance, and the threat or imposition of a strike during mediation all have a significant impact on the probability of settlement by mediation. The results provide support for many, but not all, of the mediation effects predicted as significant in the literature. The strongest determinants of mediated settlements were arranging preliminary meetings with the parties separately to explore the issues in dispute, assisting in the negotiators' relationships with their constituents, and threatening to quit if no progress was made in the negotiations. The use of directive mediation techniques was particularly effective when the dispute concerned nonsalary issues, or when a strike or lockout was imposed during the intervention.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the relative importance of perceived dispute characteristics and mediator skills for predicting the settlement of child custody and visitation disputes mediated in three different legal jurisdictions: The Los Angeles Conciliation Court, the Hennepin County, Minnesota, Superior Court; and the Connecticut Superior Court.
Abstract: This paper explores the relative importance of perceived dispute characteristics and mediator skills for predicting the settlement of child custody cases. The cases studied were child custody and visitation disputes mediated in three different legal jurisdictions: The Los Angeles Conciliation Court; the Hennepin County, Minnesota, Superior Court; and the Connecticut Superior Court. Although the ability to predict mediation outcomes was limited, several significant predictors were found: the duration and intensity of the dispute, the quality of the ex-spouses' relationship, and the perceived ability of mediators to promote inter spouse communication and to provide disputants with interpersonal insights. Dispute characteristics and perceptions of the mediators' behavior were about equally useful for predicting mediation outcomes.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: For example, Lewin's ideas about cognitive structure, the central-peripheral dimension, time perspective, differentiation, and rigidity were heavily influenced by Rokeach's open and closed mind and the Dogmatism Scale.
Abstract: Because I needed to get as far away from Brooklyn as I could when 1 graduated from college, I chose to go to Berkeley rather than Iowa; I was thus not privileged to meet or work with Kurt Lewin. Nonetheless, I have been influenced by his writings throughout most of my career. My formulation about the open and closed mind (Rokeach, 1960), and the Dogmatism Scale I had constructed to measure general authoritarianism as an alternative to the measurement of Fascist authoritarianism (Adorno, Frenkel-Brunswik, Levinson, & Sanford, 1950), were heavily influenced by Lewin’s emphasis on the ahistorical and contemporaneous, and by his concepts about the structure of the person and the life space-such concepts as cognitive structure, the central-peripheral dimension, time perspective, differentiation, and rigidity. Similarly, my work on the organization of values, attitudes, and belief systems was influenced by Lewin’s structural way of thinking, even though 1 preferred the verbal to Lewin’s topological style of conceptualization. Later, my work benefited from Kurt Lewin’s emphasis on change experiments and on his insistence that in order to understand a phenomenon we must study the conditions under which it will undergo change (Marrow, 1969). I was also deeply influenced by what he had to say about the importance of integrating psychological theory and research with social action. But in deciding what problems were worth my time and energy, 1 more or less consciously employed three criteria rather than Lewin’s two: theoretical relevance, social relevance, and personal relevance. I also saw a difference between trying to be socially relevant and trying to be socially useful. It seemed far easier for me to decide in advance of whatever research 1 embarked upon whether it might be relevant to a deeper understanding of society and the self than whether it would be socially useful. So 1 was content to proceed on the assumption that the more a

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article found that mediators choose behavioral tactics based on the kind of outcome they wish to achieve, not just the outcome they seek, but also on their own interpretation of case characteristics and their intuitive resolution skills.
Abstract: This research tests the notion that mediation is an art and thereby reflects mediators' unique interpretation of case characteristics and their intuitive resolution skills. Self-report data were collected from 327 grievance mediation conferences. Specifically, five mediators reported whether or not they encouraged a compromise settlement, proposed a concrete settlement, encouraged the parties to discuss a compromise settlement, separated the parties during the mediation conference, and/or advised the parties in private how they thought the grievance would be resolved by an arbitrator. In addition, mediators were asked to report the duration of the conference and the type of conference outcome. The findings show that although four of the five mediators varied their behavior across conferences, all were about equally successful in settling grievances. The kind of settlements the mediators achieved, however, varied according to their behavioral choices. It is suggested that mediators choose behavioral tactics based on the kind of outcome they wish to achieve. Mediator behavior is less reactive and more proactive and systematic than popularly thought. It may thus be time to recognize that mediators are skilled practitioners of a learned craft-not innately intuitive artists.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a case history of the author's experiences as one of the first civilian faculty members at an United States military academy, tokenism under extreme circumstances and its effects on an individual are described.
Abstract: Through a case history of the author's experiences as one of the first civilian faculty members at an United States military academy, tokenism under extreme circumstances and its effects on an individual are described. Hypotheses for future work in the area are proposed, and coping strategies are explored. Women's support groups, psychotherapists, social psychologists, sociologists, and policymakers are exhorted to be aware of tokenism and to work together to break the downward spiral of debilitating events that tokenism creates.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors reviewed the long-term effects of school desegregation on black assimilation, emphasizing evidence from several national surveys and discussed the implications for social policy, intergroup relations, and interracial equity.
Abstract: Many changes in American race relations have occurred in the three decades since the Brown v. Board of Education decision. Some of these changes are related to school desegregation and have been extensively studied—e.g., changes in racial attitudes among both blacks and whites, and changes in black self-esteem and achievement-test performance. In contrast, relatively little is known about the long-term effects of school desegregation on assimilation—full and equal participation of blacks in the social, economic, and political life of the society. When school desegregation is viewed in the context of the long-term functions of education, it seems important for researchers and policy makers to ask whether it promotes the social integration of blacks and whites in adult life and enhances the career attainments of blacks. These important issues have recently begun to receive empirical research attention. This article reviews recent research on the long-term effects of school desegregation on black assimilation, emphasizing evidence from several national surveys. Implications for social policy, intergroup relations, and interracial equity are discussed.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Although most members reported considerable satisfaction with the clubs, participation had no discernible impact on the psychosocial adjustment of the adolescent patients or their parents.
Abstract: This study evaluates the impact of participation in self-help groups for people with scoliosis and their families. In a cross-sectional study, adolescents with scoliosis, their parents, and adult scoliotics who attended scoliosis clubs (n=245) were compared with nonparticipants (n=495) who inquired about joining clubs. Although most members reported considerable satisfaction with the clubs, participation had no discernible impact on the psychosocial adjustment of the adolescent patients or their parents. Self-help groups appeared to be most beneficial for adult patients, especially those who had undergone the most demanding medical treatment.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examines both long-standing and newly emerging issues in light of the varied programs established since 1969 and with regard to the accompanying research and commentary, including the appropriateness of mediation for different types of disputes, concerns about power disparity, coercion, and state control; public knowledge and use of mediation; the affiliation of mediation programs with government agencies or communities; and their impact on the justice system, and on neighborhood development and empowerment.
Abstract: The rapid growth of mediation programs in the past decade has been accompanied by substantial research and commentary. Although most studies of mediation find it to be effective and satisfying for resolving disputes outside the courts, questions remain about its processes, effectiveness, and broad impact. This article examines both long-standing and newly emerging issues in light of the varied programs established since 1969 (and with regard to the accompanying research and commentary). These issues include the appropriateness of mediation for different types of disputes; concerns about power disparity, coercion, and state control; public knowledge and use of mediation; the affiliation of mediation programs with government agencies or communities; and their impact on the justice system, and on neighborhood development and empowerment.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on five procedural concerns raised by a number of analysts: problems of representation, problems of setting an appropriate agenda, obstacles to joint fact finding, difficulties of binding parties to their commitments, and obstacles to monitoring and enforcing negotiated agreements.
Abstract: Mediated negotiation has recently been used to supplement traditional methods of resolving complex public resource allocation disputes in the United States. Although many of these efforts have apparently been successful, procedural concerns have been raised by a number of analysts. In this paper, we focus on five of these concerns: (1) problems of representation, (2) the difficulties of setting an appropriate agenda, (3) obstacles to joint fact finding, (4) difficulties of binding parties to their commitments, and (5) obstacles to monitoring and enforcing negotiated agreements. Our discussion builds on three cases: a negotiated investment strategy undertaken by the state of Connecticut; a dispute over the siting of a low-income housing project in Forest Hills, New York; and an environmental dispute involving energy production facilities along the Hudson River. These experiences indicate that the difficulties associated with mediation can be overcome with the application of innovative techniques, and the assistance of a skillful and astute mediator.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a field study of a small claims court that utilizes mediation in pretrial resolution hearings was conducted and it was found that differences between adjudication and mediation outcomes could be partly explained by differences in the cases' admitted liability.
Abstract: Mediation has frequently been advocated as an alternative to adjudication for minor civil disputes that appear in the small claims court. It has been claimed that mediation is more likely to result in compromise, greater compliance, and higher disputant satisfaction with the outcome. This article raises questions about these claims for the superiority of mediation and poses an alternative hypothesis. The hypothesis was tested in the context of a field study of a small claims court that utilizes mediation in pretrial resolution hearings. It was found that differences between adjudication and mediation outcomes could be partly explained by differences in the cases' “admitted liability.” Cases involving the defendant's denial of all liability were more likely to be adjudicated, whereas those involving admission of partial or full liability were more likely to be settled by mediation. Many mediated settlements involved no compromise; many were more the result of coercive than of consensual processes. Compromise, when it did occur, was not necessarily a satisfactory outcome for one or both of the disputing parties.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the organized efforts of women psychologists who confronted sex discrimination in two different historical periods: 1941-1959 and the period beginning in 1969, were examined and compared, and a long range perspective on social change for those working to improve the status of women in academe was offered.
Abstract: This paper examines the organized efforts of women psychologists who confronted sex discrimination in two different historical periods: 1941–1959 and the period beginning in 1969. During the first period, the National and then International Council of Women Psychologists promoted the advancement of women in the profession. During the more recent period, the Association for Women in Psychology and then APA's Division 35 have performed similar functions. Source material to document these efforts is drawn from published sources and archives of the history of American psychology at the University of Akron, and from the American Psychological Association Archives in the Library of Congress. The paper compares women's efforts during these two very different historical periods and offers a long range perspective on social change for those working to improve the status of women in academe.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, three demonstration projects that developed ways to strengthen the informal helping networks of elderly clients are described and illustrated by these projects: assessment of client networks, possible goals of network intervention and the ability of programs to achieve them, and evaluation of interventions.
Abstract: Three demonstration projects that developed ways to strengthen the informal helping networks of elderly clients are described. The following aspects of network intervention are discussed and illustrated by these projects: assessment of client networks, possible goals of network intervention and the ability of programs to achieve them, and evaluation of interventions. Each program found barriers to intervening in networks derived from the client, the network, and the social service agency. Major barriers encountered include the client's privacy preferences and attitudes about relying on the network for help, networks that are exhausted or unsupportive, and agency structures that limit interventions. Although each program had some measure of success in strengthening social support for its clients, it does not appear that informal resources can easily and cost effectively substitute for formal services.