Group process is defined as the change taking place in interactions among individuals over time. Examines how this occurs within growth-oriented groups that have certain developmental characteristics in common, even though specific group objectives may vary. (Author)

Data show that giving information to members of a group is more important in determining the perception by others that the person is facilitating group performance. Asking for information and opinions is more important in actual facilitation of group learning. Social-emotional support becomes important after initial phases of group interaction.…

Reviews basic sociometric tools and their analysis, provides information on computer programs to analyze sociometric data, and briefly examines considerations in conducting sociometric investigations. Looks at the social atom (significant others), constructing sociometry questions, and offers an analysis of individual status and interactional…

Examines the transition from a single conversation to two conversations in a group larger than three by focusing on three distinctive properties of the schisming-inducing turn (SIT): (1) the changes in recipiency structure; (2) the sequence-structural properties of the SIT and its uptake; and (3) the topical properties of the SIT. (61 references)…

Two studies examining four and five year olds' preferences for dyadic and group interaction found that females enjoyed dyadic interaction more than did males and that males enjoyed group interaction more than did females. (MDM)

This paper reviews the research conducted in the last 20 years on the application of technology in support of collaborative learning in higher education. The review focuses primarily on studies that use Internet-based technologies and social interaction analysis. The review provides six sets of observations/recommendations regarding methodology,…

The purpose of this investigation was to describe and explain the social dynamics of America's second most popular recreational sport, weight lifting, as performed on a university campus. Data were collected and analyzed using the participant observation approach to grounded theory research. Several hypotheses evolved from this analysis: (1) it is…

Drawing from data generated in more than 100 hours of interaction within 15 leaderless groups, a study investigated the interaction characteristics of emergent leadership--leadership that is earned through face-to-face encounters in a group. Each group was instructed to reach consensus decisions on two tasks, both of which provided the possibility…

This investigation sought to learn what communication behavior, if any, differentiated high- from low-Machiavellians. Two independent variables were examined, Machiavellianism (high and low) and experimental condition (naive and confederate). Dependent variables included the 12 categories of Bales' Interaction Process Analysis. The results suggest…

The Group Atmosphere Scale (GAS) was developed to measure systematically the psychosocial environment of therapy groups. Twelve content subscales, each containing 10 true-false items, assess the consensual psychosocial environment. Several of these serve as indicators of group cohesion and conformity. The GAS makes feasible a comparison of…

A study investigated whether the interaction patterns of high consensus groups differed significantly from the patterns of low consensus groups in the final stage of a decision-making task. Eighty-four college students placed into 19 groups were told to select a social problem, investigate it, and develop a solution. At the end of the three-week…

Frustration has been primarily investigated in relation to aggressive behaviors, but may elicit other behaviors depending on the responses available to the individual. To test the effects of task frustration and task success on subsequent group behavior, college women (N=80) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: task success, task…

An example of how the quality of research on small groups could be enhanced is to develop a framework of scholarship around a series of hierarchical guiding questions concerning the functions of communication in the small group, the characteristics of the behavior and of the producers of that behavior that determine the extent to which particular…