Campaign advertising and political ambiguity

This paper develops a model to explain candidates' strategic decisions to provide or withhold information about policy positions in the course of an election campaign. The analysis treats this problem as a game of imperfect information. Attention is focused on modeling voter suspicion of candidates whose positions are ambiguous. Specific numerical examples illustrate that candidate decisions about providing information via informative advertising depend upon candidate policy preferences, campaign fund endowments, partisan reputations, and incumbency status. The model also provides theoretical underpinnings for empirical findings regarding the effects of campaign advertising.     

Up-grading the calibre of linkage agent performance

It is the purpose of this paper: To offer a perspective of theories and research outcomes available to and likely to be sought out by persons who aspire to bring together knowledge production and needs of knowledge users; and, to introduce persons to linkage “modus operandi” designed to help them navigate prudently between the twin terrors of their practice — that is, change for the sake of change on the one hand, and, institutional rigor mortis on the other.     

Psychiatric expertise in civil commitment: Training attorneys to cope with expert testimony

The learned treatise approach to challenging the psychiatric expert witness in civil commitment proceedings was investigated in the present study. An Ad Litem's Handbook, modeled after Ziskin (1975), was written and distributed to a group of attorneys who also received workshop training in aggressively defending the proposed patients at civil commitment hearings. TheseTRAINED attorneys were compared with control groups of attorneys not receiving the training intervention in terms of trial tactics, cross-examination profiles, and other courtroom behaviors in order to assess the impact of such training and the impact of the learned treatise approach in civil commitment hearings. Results indicated that, in spite of explicit endorsement of such tactics by the court,TRAINED attorneys did not alter their courtroom behaviors significantly in directions suggested by the special training and, like their untrained counterparts, did not aggressively challenge the psychiatric expert whose testimony argued for commitment of their clients.The research reported here is based primarily on the author's doctoral dissertation, completed at the University of Texas at Austin, May 1977. The author would like to acknowledge the assistance of Joseph Horn, Ph.D., dissertation committee chairman and the other members of the committee for their guidance.     

Soviet bloc involvement in the Salvadoran civil war : The US State Department's 1981 “white paper” reconsidered

The United States State Department's 1981 “White Paper” alleging Soviet-bloc involvement in the Salvadoran Civil War has been the subject of considerable journalistic and scholarly censure. However, many of the criticisms do not withstand serious scrutiny. This study examines the evidence available at the time and later. It concludes that, despite some errors, the State Department's report was based on fairly solid intelligence.     

Industry interactions with federal laboratories

This article is based on two surveys of US firms, all of them members of the Industrial Research Institute, on their interactions with university and federal laboratories. It covers mainly the federal part of the responses. Although questions remain to be answered (a followup survey is planned for mid-1991), the firms had a surprisingly high level of awareness of and interaction with the federal laboratories. Many of them plan to increase their external R&D funding. We believe the firms including such external resources in their strategic planning will achieve stronger competitive positions than those that do not. Director of the Graduate Program in Technology and Science Policy. Previously, he was principal scientist and group manager for Industrial Policy and Planning at the Solar Energy Research Institute in Golden, Colorado. He also served as policy analyst with the National Science Foundation's R&D Assessment Program and, subsequently, as acting leader of the Working Group on Innovation Processes and their Management. Roessner received degrees in electrical engineering from Brown University and Stanford University, and a master's degree and Ph.D. in Science, Technology and Public Policy at Case Western Reserve University. His research interests include the diffusion of technological innovations, national technology policy, government-industry relationships in technology development and use, the management of innovation in industry, and indicators of scientific and technological development.     

Technology transfer in snow control engineering

The design and construction of a complex snow fence system, the development and implementation of a visual range monitoring system, and the development and use of a snow profile prediction model for highway design, are used as examples of successful technology transfer. Contributing factors include a strong imperative and commitment to solving an urgent problem; the availability of knowledge, the direct involvement of scientists and engineers working together throughout the planning, implementation, and evaluation stages; and a synergetic relationship between research and application.     

Detection of malingering in competency to stand trial evaluations

A simulation design with multiple contrast groups was used to test the effectiveness of two instruments, the Structured Interview of Reported Symptoms (SIRS) and the Georgia Court Competency Test—Mississippi State Hospital (GCCT-MSH) in detecting malingering of competency to stand trial. Thirty simulators were compared with 23 incompetent defendants, 25 competent defendants, 30 offender controls, and 7 suspected malingerers on both instruments. Results revealed that the simulators and suspected malingerers scored significantly higher on all of the SIRS primary scales and significantly lower on the GCCT-MSH than the three comparison groups. The SIRS had an overall hit rate of 97.8% using three or more primary scales as the criterion for malingering. Information concerning the simulator's strategies of deception is presented.