A selected sub-set of variables for which data were collected in Lowen stein's PICA project was factor analyzed to assess unidimensionality. The sub-set included those variables relating to the theoretically unidimensional concept of government pressures on the press. Included in this category were 15 of the original 23 variables. A one-factor solution was obtained, with 70 per cent of the total variance account ed for by this one factor. Loadings ranged from -.70 to -.94. This indicates that all of the variables included in the analysis are strongly related to the underlying dimension of government pressures on the press. Factor scores were computed for the 94 countries. These scores agreed closely in rank with an intuitive judgment of degree of government pressures on the press in these countries. This result provides additional confirmation for the validity of the factor analysis solution. These press freedom scores could prove useful in comparative studies of the genesis and effects of variations in press freedom They might also have special value in the study of a number of topics in comparative government and in social development. Further research is necessary to determine the generality of the findings in terms of variables included, countries included, and time period in which data are collected. A number of other suggestions for research are given.
b As the "fundamental social process,"' communication has no disciplinary home of its own. Rather, it engages the attention of scholars in a wide variety of academic disciplines, and even those identified primarily with the study of communication approach the field with a vast assortment of assumptions, theoretical frameworks and methodological tools.In few branches of communication is this heterogeneity more evident than in international communication. In a recent survey of international communication scholars, 25 different specialities within the subfield were indicated by the respondents.2Such variety in views of international communication may be taken as a n indication of a healthy youthfulness in the area. Certainly, there is little evidence of premature closure on one, or even just a few, theoretical frameworks or methodological approaches.On the other hand, if international comw.K.E.M. Kent is director of the Graduate Division and Communication Research Center. College of Journalism and Communications, University of Florida. Ramona Rush is dean of the College of Communication at the University of Kentucky. The authors' names are listed in alphabetical order; both contributed equally to the article. Assisting in the research methods were students in a class on mass communication research methods; Karen Osbornc and others of the Communication Research Center; and the Center for Instructional and Research Computing Activities, University of Florida. A preliminaty vcrsion of this article was presented at the 1976 convention of the Association for Education in Journalism.
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