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Unit 7. reading/writing abstracts*

* Based on a Manual-Publications of the American Psycholigical Association Abstracts (1974)

An abstract is a brief summary of the content and purpose of an article. In some journals, the abstract is used in place of a concluding summary. The abstract allows readers to survey the contents of an article quickly. It is self-contained, fully intelligible without reference to the body of the paper. Information or conclusions that do not appear in the paper are not supposed to appear in the abstract.

(suggested length: 100-175 words)

I. An Abstract of a Research Article usually includes:

1. statement of problem

2. method

3. results

4. conclusions

It should specify: subject population (number, type, age, sex, etc.)

It should describe: research design, test instruments (i.e. questionnaires, tests, interviews), research apparatus of data gathering procedures

It should summarize: data or findings

It should report: inferences or comparisons or conclusions drawn from results

II. An Abstract of a Review or a TheoriticalArticle should include:

1. Topics covered

2. Central thesis

3. The Sources used (i.e. personal observation of author, review of published literature, or present, current research bearing on topic and conclusions drawn)

It should be short but informative.

Exercise:

A. Read the abstracts in the following set of 9. Categorize each abstract as one based on:

(a) a research article

(b) a review of research in a given field

(c) a theoretical article.

B. Using I and II above as an inventory checklist, see how many of the items listed for each type of article can be found in each of the abstracts.

Abstract No. 1

Kufeldt, Kathleen & Nimmo, Margaret (Faculty Social Welfare U Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4), Youth on the Street: «Abuse and Neglect in the Eighties», CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT, 1987, 11, 4, 531-542.

A report on an interview study of runaways & homeless youth (n = 489) conducted over a 1-year period in Calgary, Alberta. Analysis reveals two distinct groups: the true «runners» tend to leave their homes with the intention of not returning & thus their runs are extended: «in & outers» use the run as a temporary coping mechanism & their runs tend to be impulsive & of short duration. Findings also indicate that runaways, in particular the runners, are at great risk of being drawn into illegal activities; major factors affecting this risk are distance from home & length of time on the run. A significant proportion of Rs had run from substitute care arrangements. Results imply that adolescents in Canadian society suffer from systemic abuse & neglect. This researh led to the opening of a safe house for early runners in Jan. 1987. The operation of the house includes careful compilation of data to further advance understanding of the runaway population & its needs. 4 Tables, 6 Figures, 1 Appendix, 19 References. Modified HA (Copyright 1989, Socioligical Abstracts, Inc., all rights reserved).

Abstract No. 2

Tinsley, Barbara J. & Parke, Ross D. (Dept Speech Communication U Illinois, Urbana 61801), «Grandparents as Interactive and Social Support Agents for Families with Young Infants», INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AGING AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, 1987, 25, 4, 259-277.

The role of grandparents in infant development is investigated in a comparative analysis of grandparent-infant grandchild & parent-child interaction patterns in 30 Caucasian Mc families. The extent to which grandparents serve as social support agents for their adult children & grandchildren is also examined. Observations of dyadic play sessions between 51 grandparents & their 30 7-month old grandchildren were compared with those between the infants & their parents using both time-sampling & global coding schemes; information on grandparental support relative to other social support services was obtained via questionnaires completed by both parents & grandparents. Results indicate that both grandmothers & grandfathers are interactive & support agents, with a pattern of similarities & differences in interactive style evident across generation & gender. There is a high degree of overlap in parent and grandparent interaction style, but parents appear more competent; both parents & grandparents report a high degree of satisfaction with their level of intergenerational contact. Results support an expanded view of the effects of various agents in young children's social environments. 3 Tables, 40 References. Modified HA (Copyright, 1989, Sociological Abstracts, Ins., all rights reserved).

Abstract No. 3

Chovanes, Andrew B. «On Vietnamese and other Peasants», JOURNAL OF SOUTHEAT ASIAN STUDIES (Singapore) 1986 17(2): 203-235. There are serious theoretical and methodological issues concerning revolutionary activity. These are examined in extensive critiques of James Scott's The Moral Economy of the Peasantry and Samuel Popkin's The Rational Peasant, both studies of the Vietnamese peasant's role in the revolution, in the light of other work on peasants. Proposed is a «transcultural grammar that would view history as non-pro-gressional, not the inevitable outcome of class conflict, the most revolutionary group as that with nothing to lose, the presence of organizational factors which provide a new form of consciousness». 175 notes.

P.M. Gustafson

Abstract No. 4

Vasquez, John A. «Capability, types of War, Peace». WESTERN POLITICAL QUARTERLY 1986 39(2): 313-327. Whether a balance of power or a preponderance of power produces peace has long been a debate within the traditional literature. The quantitative analysis of Singer, Bremer, and Stuckey (1972) added to this puzzle the findinig that the balance of power was associated with peace in the 19th century but with war in the 20th century. A careful review of that study, more recent empirical work, and the logic underlying traditional explanations suggest that neither a balance nor a preponderance of power is associated with peace, but with different types of war. The author utilized both behavioral and historical approaches to construct a typology of war that will more clearly elucidate the varying role of capability in different wars. Classifies wars along three dimensions — whether they are fought between equals or unequals; are limited or total; or are dyadic or complex.

Abstract No. 5

Seccombe, Ian J. «Immigrant Workers in Emigrant Economy: An Examination of Replacement Migration in the Middle East». INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION (Belgium) 1986 24(2): 377-396. Jordan, with its relatively skilled labor force experienced significant unmonitored labor emigration to meet the growing regional demand for labor that followed the 1973-74 oil price increases. During this period, however, domestic labor demand was also increasing dramatically. This demand was met, to a great extent, by undocumented workers. Legal foreign workers in the mid-1970s, in accordance with Jordan's 1960 labor law, were predominantly from other Arab countries, but Asian workers, usually under contract to Asian

companies operating in Jordan, increased in number rapidly in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Considerable exploitation of foreign workers and abuse of the labor law have occurred. 27 ref., 6 tables. French and Spanish summaries.

C.Moody

Abstract No. 6

Soffer, Amon. «Lebanon — Where Demography is the Core of Politics and Life». MIDDLE EASTERN STUDIES (Great Britain) 1986 22(2); 197-205. Government and intercommu-nal relations in Lebanon since 1943 have been based on a solitary population census taken in 1932, which has resulted in political relationships in the state being based on a ratio of 6:5 in favor of the Christians. This article attempts to establish the size of Lebanon's population, the sizes of the various groups within it, and the population distribution. In all cases figures could only be estimated based on best available data, but they showed that the Muslims had become a majority, that geographical distribution had changed little, and that the demographic strength of the Muslim community and its socioeconomic weakness were factors that could not be ignored if Lebanon were to have a future. Based on statistics from the Lebanese government, the UN and UNRWA and secondary sources; 3 tables, map, 27 notes.

F.A. Clements

Abstract No. 7

Mohan, Bernard and Helmer, Sylvia. «Context and Second Language Development: Preschoolers' Comprehension Gestures». (UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA). There is wide agreement that non-verbal information, and contextual information generally, plays an important role in language understanding for second language learners. This raises the question of whether learners understand non-verbal communication. The «traditional» view of the role of context in language learning assumes that they do. The «social semiotic» view does not, holding that contextual understanding is developed in the process of communicative interaction. Contextual understanding is therefore likely to vary with age and cultural familiarity.

This paper investigates the understanding of English speakers' gestures by preschool children, comparing native English speakers (age four to five) with non-native speakers. Thirty -six emblems and illustrators, two forms of commonly used gestures, were decoded by forty children, twenty native speakers, and twenty English as a second language (ESL) speakers. The gestures chosen were screened by a panel of ten ESL teachers who considered them to be typical of classroom interaction.

It was found that the children, on average, understood about half of the gestures. ESL children understood less than native speakers. Analysis of variance results indicate that there is an effect for age as well as a strong effect for cultural familiarity (native speakers vs. ESL). There were significant correlations for the sequence of acquisition of gestures across all groups.

Results therefore contradicted the «traditional» view and were consistent with the «social semiotic» view. It is suggested that research on the role of context in second language learning should take account of the social semiotic and study the mutual development of language learning and cultural learning in the process of communicative interaction.