The Ipsative Process to Reduce Response Set Bias

Researchers who gather data from several different groups arefrequently faced with the problem of response set bias. Thispaper discusses the ipsative process, a technique which canreduce systematic response bias which exists between groupsin a study. The usefulness of the ipsative process is illustratedon cross-cultural research findings gathered in four countries     

Professional Wrestling as Moral Order

This paper treats structuralist and interactionist perspectives as complementary in an approach to the dynamics of professional wrestling as a social scene. Both directive or formulating aspects of culture as it is specified for social life and the creativity of human agents in negotiating such constraints from the viewpoint of their particularistic interests are emphasized in an examination of the confirmation and negotiation of identities, the clash and resolution of moral meanings, the calculated transgression of legal tradition, the location of the charismatic hero, and the ritual importance of disorder and crisis in wrestling. As such, the paper is offered as a contribution to an understanding of the sources and movement of meanings in ritual and dramatic forms.     

THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL FORCES: EVIDENCE FROM THE BEHAVIOR OF FOOTBALL REFEREES

Analyzing the neutrality of referees during 12 German premier league (1. Bundesliga) soccer seasons, this paper documents evidence that social forces influence agents’ decisions. Referees, who are appointed to be impartial, tend to favor the home team by systematically awarding more stoppage time in close matches in which the home team is behind. They also favor the home team in decisions to award goals and penalty kicks. Crowd composition affects the size and the direction of the bias, and the crowd’s proximity to the field is related to the quality of refereeing. (JEL J00)     

PROTECTIONIST PRESSURES AND AGGREGATE ECONOMIC CONDITIONS: COMMENT ON TAKACS

This paper explores the influence of U. S. macroeconomic conditions and the international trade position on protectionist pressures as measured by escape clause cases brought before the International Trade Commission. Several possible difficulties with Takacs' pioneering empirical study of this topic are considered. It is argued that while further support is found for her principal conclusion that the state of the domestic economy is a significant determinant of such protectionist pressures, the quantitative strength of such aggregate factors is less than was suggested by Takacs' original study.