Message Design Logic and Message Goal Structure Effects on Perceptions of Message Quality in Regulative Communication Situations

O'Keefe has suggested that variations in the goal sets individuals choose to pursue and the form of reasoning they employ are sources of variation in message designs. She offered an analysis of the specific consequences of differences in goals (“message goal structure”) and in forms of reasoning (“message design logics”), and shouted how this analysis could be used to describe systematically functional variations in regulative messages. The study reported in this article explored the consequences of differences in message design logic and goal structures for success in regulative communication situations; Messages that differed in these properties were presented to subjects for evaluation on a number of functionally significant dimensions. Level of message design logic was straightforwardly associated with every type of effectiveness that was assessed. Differences in message goal structures had more selective effects on message evaluations, often involving interactions with the level of construct differentiation of the message evaluator.     

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES AND RELATIONAL INTERDEPENDENCES IN SOCIAL INTERACTION

This research argues for the integration of individual difference and relational models in understanding social interaction. Two longitudinal studies are reported that investigate dyadic perceptions within a small group context. A round-robin design and variance partitioning procedures were used to isolate consistent individual differences and unique relational interdependencies in perceptions of leadership, openness, and liking. Both studies indicate that the magnitudes of individual level consistencies and unique relational interdependence vary as a function of characteristics assessed and the length of the relationship. The implications for conceptualizing and measuring relational aspects of interaction and for understanding the interface between individual difference and relational explanations for social interaction are discussed.     

The Social and Psychological Impact of Unemployment

This article reviews recent studies on the social and psychological impact of unemployment. Included are the economic costs of unemployment, the impact on the family and the individual, and recommended methods for providing services.