2-26-99

   Here is the February edition of the Ohio State University Newsfeatures service. The stories below report on only a few of the research projects under way here. For more information on these stories, please go to: http://www.acs.ohio-state.edu/units/research/

Adolescent Girls Give Parents More Help And Affection Than Boys

   Adolescent girls are more helpful and affectionate toward their parents than adolescent boys, new research suggests. In addition, mothers receive more help and affection from their children than do fathers. The study involved questioning 129 children in the 6th, 8th and 10th grades and their parents to see how often the teens helped their parents -- such as running an errand -- and how often they showed affection, such as giving hugs. “We found important gender differences in who gets and receives help and affection in families with adolescents,” said one researcher. (From a recent issue of the Journal of Adolescent Research.)
Contact: Mary Eberly, (248) 370-2314; Raymond Montemayor, (614) 292-3059.

Up-Front Rejection The Best Policy for Most Refusal Letters

   New research suggests that businesses and others who write rejection letters are better off delivering the bad news up front rather than placing it lower in the letter. Also, a business should clearly spell out the reason for the refusal when it makes that business look good and, when possible, suggest an alternative or a compromise for the reader. “The real goal is to make customers feel that they would do the same thing if they were in the business’ shoes,” said a researcher here. “In fact, giving a brief reason for the refusal makes people more likely to think the decision was fair.” (From a recent issue of the Journal of Business and Technical Communications.)
Contact: Kitty Locker, (614) 292-6556.

Fear of Regulators Keeps Some Doctors from Good Pain Treatment

   Doctors may sometimes be reluctant to adequately treat the pain of seriously ill patients because they fear legal problems for prescribing powerful narcotics, according to one expert who has studied the issue. Although some physicians may be overly skittish about their legal vulnerability, this concern may mean some patients don’t get the pain treatment they need, said a researcher here. “The prospect of drug use reviews and even fraud and abuse enforcement can inhibit physicians from prescribing adequate narcotics,” Jost said. (From a recent issue of the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics.) Contact: Timothy Jost, (614) 292-3381.

Jeff Grabmeier
Managing Editor

Earle Holland
Director
Science Communications