Howard E. Sattler

EFFECT OF GROUP VARIABILITY ON POOLED GROUP DECISIONS

A probability dispersion model for assessing the effect of variability of knowledge within a group on accuracy of a pooled group decision demonstrates that: (a) the more heterogeneous the group, the more accurate the pooling result for groups whose members possess a knowledge level greater than .50, (b) the variability of the group makes no difference in the pooling result for groups whose members possess a knowledge level of exactly .50, and (c) the more homogeneous the group, the more accurate the pooling result for groups whose members possess a knowledge level lower than .50.

Children's Preference for Response Cost or Positive Reinforcement as Working Conditions.

Summary In a four-way lever-pulling task, 80 boys and girls at two grade levels (first and third) and two percentage of win conditions were exposed to response cost or positive reinforcement to determine their effects upon response time and task preference. Pennies were either withdrawn or withheld from children in a game where the outcomes were contrived. Significant results favored positive reinforcement and high win ratio in producing shorter average times to complete a response. Ss exhibited a preference to continue the task under the positive reinforcement condition. No significant interactions occurred, so that results were constant across grade level and sex.

Prospects for Modules in Educational Psychology

Over the years, vigorous attempts to articulate educational psychology in teacher education programs have met with little success. One novel step toward resolution of the problem is provided by the modular approach, a transitional stage &dquo;somewhere between the standard semester course and ideal individualized instruction.&dquo;2 Students may be given a wide range of options in the selection and sequencing of modules, and special interests of faculty may be respected in the determination of teaching assignments. Modular programs in educational psychology were undertaken on an experimental basis at the University of Wisconsin in 1970, and at Arizona State University in i97i. The following presentation illustrates some of the issues that were encountered in implementing the concept: first, an overview of the similarities and differences between the two modular programs; second, a discussion of the results and implications of a recent assessment of the modular interests of educational psychology students at Arizona State University; and finally, comment on prospects for success of the modular plan at Arizona State University.

Effect of Competitive Success and Failure on Pupil's Choice of Task.

Third-grade pupils representing both high and low economic strata were exposed to 2 competitive and 1 non-competitive experimental conditions. Children who were led to believe that they were competitively successful in performing an originally preferred task persisted in their preference for that task. Pupils who were led to believe that they were competitively successful at an originally non-preferred task did not switch their preference from an originally preferred task. The results indicate that contrived information concerning competitive success does not cause pupils to shift their preference for a task.