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Using bivariate correlations derived from interviews with 52 Nigerian students attending Indiana State U 1984/85, focus is on correlates of 3 indicators: Nigerian unity optimism, African unity salience, & Third World solidarity. The strongest associations with Nigerian unity optimism centered on traditional outlooks, complementary religious & regional background variables, pessimism about democratic prospects in Nigeria, & a lack of enthusiasm for eliminating government corruption there. African unity salience & Third World solidarity were strongly associated with each other, but the meaning of their other correlates is elusive. Negative experience in the US was related to both of these variables, as well as to time. A number of relationships suggested the impact of cross-cultural contacts. Country-specific associations with other international students were of unexpected strength, with Malaysian friends reinforcing the culturally conservative correlates of country unity optimism. Having Saudi friends was notably associated with both of the transnational affiliations. Indicators of cross-national contact tended to be more strongly associated with one or more of the variables of primary concern than were indicators of cross-ethnic contact among Nigerians. The perception that international students have a good deal in common was strongly related to the variety of international student contacts the interviewees had experienced. 6 Figures. Modified AA

A study is reported which was conducted in Thrre Haute, Ind, in the Sum of 1967, using transcripts of the 'Speak Out' Program at radio station WAAC. It is noted that open mike radio forums or telephone call-in shows are offered by over 1,000 stations across the US & offer an interesting pattern of PO activity for the res'er. Interviews were obtained with 8 persons known to be frequent callers. All scored high on measures of conservatism, ego strength, & citizen duty. Data from a more general survey of callers which yielded 111 usable returns, & a survey of public leaders (mayoral candidates, members of the city council, & Sch board members) yielding 40 usable returns are also utilized. 'Speak Out' tended to appeal more to older people & to persons of relatively Ls. A comparison of the content of 'Speak Out' transcripts with front pages of the community's morning (Republican) paper shows a striking localism in the radio forum. 'I he program emphasized themes that differed from those emphasized in the local press & focused on criticism & complaint. Listening to 'Speak Out' was found to affect the behavior of people in the community. They appeared to develop a sense of participating in a common & concretely shared experience. It is concluded that this 'open mike' forum makes an important contribution to the functioning of local democracy. Further res on this previously unexplored COMM medium is urged. 3 Tables. Modified HA.

Among the crucial facts of our time are the profound differences in "modernization" or "development" that characterize contemporary nation-states. Despite a lack of complete agreement about the nature of these differences, it seems clear that variations in incomes, literacy levels, and rates of human reproduction are intimately involved. Development also affects so many other social characteristics that it has become a major preoccupation of social science in all of its branches.The purpose of this paper is to specify modernization levels of states in the American federal system, and to relate variations in development to other aspects of the state political systems. The quest is a natural one in view of the evident concern for development shown by political activists in the states, the emphasis placed upon it in many textbooks and monographs that deal with problems of state government, and the potential relevance for more general theories about all political systems. Problems of development are undoubtedly more pressing in poor nations, but it is not inappropriate to study modernization in an advanced setting. As Siegfried has noted, modernization tends to be an American phenomenon: it is the United States "which is presiding at a general reorganization of the ways of living throughout the entire world."Questions and answers about development have been formulated in a variety of ways, reflecting a variety of analytic concerns. Scholars concerned with poverty, for example, tend to ask (not unnaturally) "What produces economic growth?" The answers have frequently consisted essentially of single causes: e.g.—technological innovation (Adam Smith), population growth (Smith and Ricardo), the Protestant ethic (Weber), the achieving motive (McClelland), empathy (Lerner). The question can, of course, be phrased more broadly: "What causes a civilization to flower?" This query elicits some of the same answers, but others in addition: climate (Huntington), leaders or luck (Muller), cultural diffusion via trade (Buchanan and Ellis), race (Wax), challenge of the environment (Toynbee).

An examination of the effects of aging on party affiliation utilizing the results of '4 nationwide surveys by the Amer Instit of PO, spanning a period of 12 yrs at approximately equal intervals, & containing similarly worded items on party identification & vote in previous presidential elections.' Results indicate that re both voting & identification, aging seems to have produced a shift toward Republicanism during 1946-1958. It is noted that an individual's aging may reflect any or all of the following: diff's in soc roles & statuses, diff's in psychol which may result from physiological aging, greater experience in given role & status situations, greater total/sum experience, & reactions to a variety of particular personal or soc events. The data do not permit a choice to be made between sociol'al & psychol'al interpretations of aging: the former psychol stressing change that is dependent on processes of physiological evolution which accompany aging, sociol viewing the aging process from 21-60 as bringing preferred status in the society at every SE level. It is concluded that aging & generational theories complement each other in explaining why older groups are more often Republican. I. Taviss.