Model
Digital Document
Publisher
Florida Atlantic University
Description
The purposes of this research were to:
1. Measure community college students' attitudes toward
fifteen business concepts: international trade, supply and demand,
government regulation, marketing, consumerism, credit, labor unions,
management, capital, corporations, profits, social responsibility,
stock markets, technology, and business ethics.
2. Identify implications from these attitudes which pertain
to curriculum planning for the community college.
The hypotheses tested were that there is no significant difference
in the mean ratings, as measured by a semantic differential,
toward the fifteen business concepts between:
1. Students who have had business courses and those who
have had none.
2. Business and nonbusiness majors. 3. Male and Female students.
4. Students 21 and under and those over 21.
5. Students with business work experience and those with
nonbusiness work experience.
6. Associate Arts degree business majors and Associate
Science business majors.
The fifteen concepts to be evaluated were selected after an
extensive study of periodicals for the two-year period ending
September 30, 1973. A semantic differential instrument was constructed
as prescribed by Osgood, Suci, and Tannenbaum in The Measurement of
Meaning. The six pairs of bipolar adjectives used were unfair-fair, bad-good, dirty-clean, unpleasant-pleasant, awful-nice, and dishonest-honest.
The survey was administered to a random sample of 386 students
enrolled in freshman communications classes at Broward Community
College and Palm Beach Junior College during the fall term of 1973.
A two-way analysis of variance was computed for each classification
variable.
Overall group means were positive for all concepts by all
classification variables except the undecided college major group.
Students with the most business courses and students majoring in
business had the most positive attitudes. Significant F ratios
resulted in the rejection of the null hypothesis for classification
variables 1 and 2 and acceptance of the null hypothesis for the other
variables. Although the null hypothesis was accepted for classification
variables 3 and 4, there were significant interactions between
groups and concepts for these groups. Government regulation, labor
unions, corporations, and business ethics received negative ratings from almost all groups.
Conclusions. Students who had completed business courses had
more positive attitudes toward the fifteen concepts than those who had
not taken any business courses. Students majoring in business had
attitudes more positive than nonbusiness majors. Males and females
were differentiative toward supply and demand, consumerism, labor unions,
capital, corporations, profits, stock markets, technology, and business
ethics. Age influenced attitudes toward international trade, supply and
demand, government regulation, credit, labor unions, management, social
responsibility, and business ethics. Type of employment and type of
business degree sought did not influence attitudes significantly.
Recommendations. A general education course based on economic
principles as applied to the individual's role as a citizen, consumer,
employee, and entrepreneur should be designed for nonbusiness majors.
The general goal of this course should be to develop understanding of
how the free enterprise system functions and the relationship of
economic principles to problems confronting the American people, both
individually and collectively.
A consumer education course for all secondary school students
should include a study of the free enterprise system and be taught by
an instructor who has completed at least six semester hours in economics.
The attitudes of secondary school students toward business
concepts should be measured at two-year intervals for a period of ten
years to see if the career education program influences attitudes in
a positive direction.
1. Measure community college students' attitudes toward
fifteen business concepts: international trade, supply and demand,
government regulation, marketing, consumerism, credit, labor unions,
management, capital, corporations, profits, social responsibility,
stock markets, technology, and business ethics.
2. Identify implications from these attitudes which pertain
to curriculum planning for the community college.
The hypotheses tested were that there is no significant difference
in the mean ratings, as measured by a semantic differential,
toward the fifteen business concepts between:
1. Students who have had business courses and those who
have had none.
2. Business and nonbusiness majors. 3. Male and Female students.
4. Students 21 and under and those over 21.
5. Students with business work experience and those with
nonbusiness work experience.
6. Associate Arts degree business majors and Associate
Science business majors.
The fifteen concepts to be evaluated were selected after an
extensive study of periodicals for the two-year period ending
September 30, 1973. A semantic differential instrument was constructed
as prescribed by Osgood, Suci, and Tannenbaum in The Measurement of
Meaning. The six pairs of bipolar adjectives used were unfair-fair, bad-good, dirty-clean, unpleasant-pleasant, awful-nice, and dishonest-honest.
The survey was administered to a random sample of 386 students
enrolled in freshman communications classes at Broward Community
College and Palm Beach Junior College during the fall term of 1973.
A two-way analysis of variance was computed for each classification
variable.
Overall group means were positive for all concepts by all
classification variables except the undecided college major group.
Students with the most business courses and students majoring in
business had the most positive attitudes. Significant F ratios
resulted in the rejection of the null hypothesis for classification
variables 1 and 2 and acceptance of the null hypothesis for the other
variables. Although the null hypothesis was accepted for classification
variables 3 and 4, there were significant interactions between
groups and concepts for these groups. Government regulation, labor
unions, corporations, and business ethics received negative ratings from almost all groups.
Conclusions. Students who had completed business courses had
more positive attitudes toward the fifteen concepts than those who had
not taken any business courses. Students majoring in business had
attitudes more positive than nonbusiness majors. Males and females
were differentiative toward supply and demand, consumerism, labor unions,
capital, corporations, profits, stock markets, technology, and business
ethics. Age influenced attitudes toward international trade, supply and
demand, government regulation, credit, labor unions, management, social
responsibility, and business ethics. Type of employment and type of
business degree sought did not influence attitudes significantly.
Recommendations. A general education course based on economic
principles as applied to the individual's role as a citizen, consumer,
employee, and entrepreneur should be designed for nonbusiness majors.
The general goal of this course should be to develop understanding of
how the free enterprise system functions and the relationship of
economic principles to problems confronting the American people, both
individually and collectively.
A consumer education course for all secondary school students
should include a study of the free enterprise system and be taught by
an instructor who has completed at least six semester hours in economics.
The attitudes of secondary school students toward business
concepts should be measured at two-year intervals for a period of ten
years to see if the career education program influences attitudes in
a positive direction.
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