The role of mass media and interpersonal communication in development in Latin America, Africa, and Asia is reviewed. Then, research and development program experience is synthesized to show (1) that the mass media at present play a major role in creating a "climate for modernization" among villagers, but are less important in diffusing…

In terms of its attention to research utilization, vocational rehabilitation today may be where agriculture was in 1913. One reason for this is an inadequate understanding of the process of research utilization. Scattered studies of research utilization have occurred, but suffer from a lack of integration. Among propositions that may be postulated…

Taboo communication is examined in relation to its distinctive characteristics and its significance in inhibiting social change involving birth control in Asian and other countries. Taboo communication tends to occur between very high homophilous individuals, which poses problems for communications research. Research is inhibited when researchers…

The change process can be described as a cycle consisting of 5 phases: invention, diffusion, decision, adoption-rejection, and consequences. Poor communication between inventor and user is probably the weakest point in the educational system. Most innovative decisions are made by the school system rather than individual teachers. Characteristics…

In spring 1977, just as California was emerging from one of the worst droughts in its history, 215 Palo Alto homeowners were interviewed about their views on energy and water conservation, and about the extent to which they had adopted 11 energy-conserving practices (ECP) in the home. The objective was to discover variables both important to…