Orientation Toward Research Articles

Heralding the Authoritarian? Orientation Toward Authority in Early Childhood

In the research reported here, we examined whether individual differences in authoritarianism have expressions in early childhood. We expected that young children would be more responsive to cues of deviance and status to the extent that their parents endorsed authoritarian values. Using a sample of 43 preschoolers and their parents, we found support for both expectations. Children of parents high in authoritarianism trusted adults who adhered to convention (vs. adults who did not) more than did children of parents low in authoritarianism. Furthermore, compared with children of parents low in authoritarianism, children of parents high in authoritarianism gave greater weight to a status-based “adult = reliable” heuristic in trusting an ambiguously conventional adult. Findings were consistent using two different measures of parents’ authoritarian values. These findings demonstrate that children’s trust-related behaviors vary reliably with their parents’ orientations toward authority and convention, and suggest that individual differences in authoritarianism express themselves well before early adulthood.

Jefferson Scale of Lifelong Learning-Health Professions Students Version (JeffSLL-HPS): An Instrument to Measure Health Professions Students' Orientation Toward Lifelong Learning

Abstract The Jefferson Scale of Lifelong Learning — Health Professions Students (JeffSLL-HPS) is intended to measure health professions students' lifelong learning. The authors, with permission, mo...

Kenya Believe it? Tracking Orientation Toward Reconciliation After a Period of Acute Civil Conflict

Kenya Believe it? Tracking Orientation Toward Reconciliation After a Period of Acute Civil Conflict

A Cognitive Elaboration Model of Sustainability Decision Making: Investigating Financial Managers’ Orientation Toward Environmental Issues

This empirical paper examines individual-level cognitive factors associated with developing an orientation to sustainable development issues among a population of business practitioners from France. Across two studies, we survey 180 financial managers and 83 finance students, as well as 144 managers from other business disciplines and 117 non-finance business students. We consider ability and motivation variables integrated and adapted into a cognitive elaboration model for sustainable decision making. Specifically, we examine the degree of influence of two factors on the ethical sensitivity to sustainability: the moral maturity of the individual, and the perceived moral intensity of a sustainability issue. Our investigation offers insights into how financial managers perceive the importance of sustainability for corporate strategy.

English Adaptation versus Mother Tongue: Reliability of the English Version of Moddi—F Administered to Hong Kong Chinese College Students

Two samples of Hong Kong college students completed the English and the Chinese version of the Multidimensional Orientation Toward Dying and Death Inventory (MODDI-F), respectively. Results show substantially lower coefficients of internal consistency in the English version when compared with its Chinese counterpart. The construct validity of the instrument, i.e., the statistical relationships between its subtests, was confirmed. Whenever available, the use of a questionnaire that is worded in the participants' mother tongue is recommended.

Adaptive Compressed Sensing Radar Oriented Toward Cognitive Detection in Dynamic Sparse Target Scene

Recently, the idea of compressed sensing (CS) has been used in radar system, and the concept of compressed sensing radar (CSR) has been proposed in which the target scene can be sparsely represented in the range-Doppler plane. With sufficiently incoherent transmission waveform, the target scene can be reconstructed by the technique of CS. With the idea that the transmission waveform can adapt in response to the operational information in cognitive radar system, we propose the notion of adaptive compressed sensing radar (ACSR) whose transmission waveform and sensing matrix can be updated by the target scene information fed back by the recovery algorithm. The methods for optimizing the transmission waveform and sensing matrix separately and simultaneously are both presented to decrease the cross correlations between different target responses. The principle for an ACSR system to synthesize the transmission waveform and sensing matrix matched to the target scene is also investigated. This novel ACSR system offers more degrees of freedom than classical radar system and better recovery performance than the CSR system.

The Chinese Version of the Multidimensional Orientation toward Dying and Death Inventory (Moddi-F/Chin): An Introduction

Preliminary data on the test criteria of the Chinese version of the Multidimensional Orientation Toward Dying and Death Inventory (MODDI-F/chin) are presented. Data from a sample of Hong Kong college students (N = 256) revealed internal consistencies of the eight subtests between .68 and .91, on the whole favorable shape of frequency distributions, and evidence of construct as well as differential validity of the instrument. The use of the full set of 47 items is recommended for the time being.

Some Complexities in the Effects of Diversity Experiences on Orientation Toward Social/Political Activism and Political Views in the First Year of College

This study analyzed longitudinal data from 19 institutions to determine if the net effects of diversity experiences on orientation toward social/political activism and political views are discernible as early as the fi rst year of postsecondary education. Statistically controlling for other infl uences, including precollege measures of each outcome, we found that interactional diversity positively infl uenced both social/political activism and liberal political views, and that classroom diversity had a small positive infl uence on social/political activism. More importantly, however, we also found that the magnitude of the effects of both interactional and classroom diversity is substantially determined by individual student precollege characteristics.

An Investigation of People's Time Orientation, Attitudes, and Behavior Toward Advertising in an International Context

ABSTRACT Past studies have indicated that there are cross-cultural/national differences among people's perception of time and how they use time available for them and what factors affect their time-related purchasing and consumption decisions. It is stated that each culture or subculture could have its own dominant construct of time. The present study examines time use and orientation and time attitudes toward different activities, including advertising in an emerging economy of Georgia. Study results indicate that present orientation and consciousness of future, planning orientation, time saving, realization of present in the light of past, and action orientation are salient factors channeling time orientations of Georgian consumers.

Orientation Toward International Business Relations and the Influence of Values of Middle Eastern Business Elite

This research maps out a framework for the application of the value structure of Jordanian business elites, relying on Schwartz's (1992) theory of the contents and structure of values. The results suggest that Jordanian managers attribute the highest importance to achievement and security values and the lowest importance to tradition and hedonism. Moreover, the study explores the relationship between different value types and the willingness of Jordanian decision makers to conduct business with individuals from other countries. Finally, the sample suggests differences in values related to willingness for business collaboration among various countries, as a function of perceived cultural context.

Empathic and Sympathetic Orientations Toward Patient Care: Conceptualization, Measurement, and Psychometrics

To develop instruments for measuring empathic and sympathetic orientations in patient care and to provide evidence in support of their psychometrics. Third-year medical students at Jefferson Medical College responded to four clinical vignettes in 2010. For each vignette, students indicated the extent of their agreement with an empathic response (conveying their understanding of patients' concerns) and with a sympathetic response (sharing patients' feelings). The authors calculated, based on students' responses to the clinical vignettes, two measures of empathic and sympathetic orientation. Students also completed the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE) and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Of the 258 students in the class, 201 (78%) responded to all four vignettes and completed the JSE and IRI. The authors confirmed construct validity of the measures of empathic and sympathetic orientation through factor analysis. The empathic orientation was significantly associated with the measure of empathy (as measured by the JSE) but not with measures of sympathy (as measured by specific scales of the IRI). Conversely, sympathetic orientation was significantly associated with measures of sympathy. Thus, these results support the validity of the empathic and sympathetic orientation measures as assessed by four clinical vignettes. Coefficient alphas for the two measures were, respectively, 0.79 and 0.84. The validated measures of empathic and sympathetic orientation provide research opportunities to enhance the understanding of the contributions of empathy and sympathy to physicians' competence and patient outcomes.

Factor Structure of the Multidimensional Orientation Toward Dying and Death Inventory Among Hong Kong College Students: A Preliminary Study

This study examines the factor structures of the Chinese version of the Multidimensional Orientation Toward Dying and Death Inventory (MODDI-F/chin), originally established in German language, in a sample of Hong Kong college students (n = 256). Both confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory factor analysis were performed to examine the factor structures of the MODDI-F/chin. The results showed that, identical to the German version, the MODDI-F/chin consisted of a 5-factor Fear domain and a 3-factor Acceptance domain. The fear of another person's dying was the weakest of the four factors in the Hong Kong sample but represented the first and strongest factor in the German sample of the original study. Although preliminary and not representative of mainland China, our results show that the factor structure of attitudes toward dying and death that had been established empirically with German people can be replicated with Chinese students of Hong Kong.

Situating Strategies: An Examination of Comprehension Strategy Instruction in One Upper Elementary Classroom Oriented Toward Culturally Relevant Teaching

Drawing on ethnographic and discourse analytic methods, this article examines how comprehension strategies aligned with goals in a classroom oriented toward culturally relevant teaching. Findings indicate that (1) two distinct sets of comprehension were taught in the room and (2) one set aligned more easily with culturally relevant teaching than the other.

Measuring Medical Studentsʼ Orientation Toward Lifelong Learning: A Psychometric Evaluation

The principle of lifelong learning is pervasive in regulations governing medical education and medical practice; yet, tools to measure lifelong learning are lagging in development. This study evaluates the Jefferson Scale of Physician Lifelong Learning (JeffSPLL) adapted for administration to medical students. The Jefferson Scale of Physician Lifelong Learning-Medical Students (JeffSPLL-MS) was administered to 732 medical students in four classes. Factor analysis and t tests were performed to investigate its construct validity. Maximum likelihood factor analysis identified a three-factor solution explaining 46% of total variance. Mean scores of clinical and preclinical students were compared; clinical students scored significantly higher in orientation toward lifelong learning (P < .001). The JeffSPLL-MS presents findings consistent with key concepts of lifelong learning. Results from use of the JeffSPLL-MS may reliably inform curriculum design and education policy decisions that shape the careers of physicians.

Orientations Toward Disability: Differences over the lifecourse

This article presents the results of a study of differences in orientation toward disability over the lifecourse. The study was based on an instrument developed by the authors, the Questionnaire on Disability Identity and Opportunity (QDIO). This instrument measures two dimensions of disability: participation and orientation. Orientation, in turn, consists of the dimensions of identity, role, and model. In an earlier study, the QDIO was validated with a convenience sample of 388 people with disabilities in the United States. Using the same data, this article focuses on the association between disability orientation and ageing. Among other findings, we found that age was negatively associated with “disability pride” and positively associated with exclusion. However, the interpretation of these findings is limited by the fact that age was strongly associated with age at disability onset in this sample. The discussion speculates about why older adults are less likely to have been exposed to the “social model” of disability and suggests the value of these findings for interventions with older populations.

The Effect of Professional Orientation Toward Role Conflict WithBudget Participation and Orientation of System Goal As Moderating Variables

Professionals (physicians) who work in Public Hospital and hold a structural position would have dual role both as a physician and a manager. As a physician, they should orientate on their professional values. As a manager, they have to work based on efficiency and achievement of organizational goal in running any activity. This research aims to analyze the effect of professional orientation toward role conflict and the effect of budget participation and orientation of system goal as moderating variables toward the relationship between professional orientation and role conflict. This research is performed by census method. The respondents are the physicians who hold a position as a Chief of Satuan Medik Fungsional (SMF) in public hospital of class A and B in Bekasi. The data analysis of hypothesis testing uses the Simple Regression Analysis and Moderated Regression Analysis (MRA). The results indicate that professional orientation influence role conflict positively. Budget participation and orientation of system goal are moderating variables which have negative effects toward the relationship between professional orientation and role conflict.

Social Interdependence and Orientation Toward Life and Work1

The relationship between social interdependence and orientation toward life and work was investigated in this study. Participants were 135 dyads of Chinese employees from 4 companies. Cooperativeness was significantly related to positive indexes of orientation toward life and work, competitiveness was related to a positive orientation toward life, and a predisposition to act individualistically was related to general measures but very few of the work‐specific measures. Coworkers' ratings indicate that cooperators were perceived as being very positive and productive employees, while competitors and individualists were perceived negatively in terms of work productivity and relationships with others. The discrepancy between self‐perceptions and perceptions of coworkers indicate that competitors especially may have a self‐beneficial delusion about the effectiveness of their behavior.

Class Clowns: Talking out of Turn with an Orientation Toward Humor

Class Clowns: Talking out of Turn with an Orientation Toward Humor The classroom is a primary site for children to learn accommodation to cultural practices and norms, but also for them to develop strategies for disruption and humor while avoiding sanctions. Although the teacher has the power in the elementary classroom, there are twenty or so prospective disruptors and all sorts of possible disruptions with humorous potential at various different points in the interaction. In our paper, we investigate disruptive humor in the first six years of school from the perspective of the pupil adjusting to the restrictions and possibilities of the system, rather than from the usual perspective of the teacher, who wants to control classroom behavior. We explore recorded classroom interaction to determine the types of humorous disruptions and their interactional effects, showing how pupils adjust to the conventions of classroom behavior, but also how they test the system for humorous purposes. We argue that humorous disruptions often function to assert individual identity or to create a particular class personality in the otherwise faceless group orientation of the elementary classroom.

Achievement Goal Orientation Toward General Education Versus Overall Coursework

Two studies were conducted regarding the achievement goal orientations of college students within two contexts: coursework in all courses and in general education courses. Interactions were detected for achievement goals by class level and context. Findings raise concern about student attitudes toward general education, despite its importance to other stakeholders.

Achievement Goal Orientation Toward General Education Versus Overall Coursework

Abstract Two studies were conducted regarding the achievement goal orientations of college students within two contexts: coursework in all courses and in general education courses. Interactions were detected for achievement goals by class level and context. Findings raise concern about student attitudes toward general education, despite its importance to other stakeholders.