THE FRIENDSHIP NETWORKS OF FOREIGN STUDENTS: A REPLICATION AND EXTENSION OF THE FUNCTIONAL MODEL*

The aim of this study was to replicate and extend the study of Bochner et al. (1977) which presented a functional model for the development of overseas student friendship patterns. Whereas Bochner et al. (1977) used only 30 Far Eastern foreign students and 6 host nationals in his Hawaian study, this study used 140 foreign students from each continent. Subjects were asked to specify various aspects (including nationality) of their three best friends, and also their preferred companion for each of a range of everyday situations. The friendship network data revealed a strong preference for co-national friends first, other nationals second and host nationals third, while the preferred companion data showed co-nationals first, then host nationals and finally ‘other’ nationals. The results closely match the results of Bochner et al. (1977) and provide further evidence for the functional model.     

Trust as an Explanation for Relational Differences in Revenge

We present 4 experiments that explore relational differences in how individuals respond to the harmful behavior of others, finding that revenge is less likely against romantic partners than against various other kinds of offenders (i.e., strangers, coworkers, roommates) both for a laboratory provocation and using hypothetical vignettes. We also implicate trust as a viable explanation for these findings, showing that individuals view the actions of a trusted other (i.e., a romantic partner) as less intentional relative to a less trusted other (i.e., a coworker) and that an experimental manipulation of trust in an offender alters levels of vengeful desires.     

THE DUTY TO FEED IN CASES OF ADVANCED DEMENTIA

Cases of dementia present us with difficult ethical dilemmas as we strive to care for those unable to care for themselves. In this article, I review the relevant Islamic texts on caring for the ill, alleviating suffering, and feeding the hungry—all in light of the modern clinical environment. I find that the ethical appropriateness of tube feeding at the end of life is not as clear‐cut as it may seem. My analysis, however, suggests that Muslim scholars ought to favor insertion of a feeding tube in patients who can no longer respond to assisted feeding. Nonetheless, several important issues require further clarification in this clinically important but neglected area of ethical inquiry.