The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of cognitive abstractness levels, interpersonal perception abilities, and task type (factual or social problem solving) on group performance as measured by time consumed and adequacy of solutions. Eighteen college classes from Kearney State College participated in testing of perceptual…

Peer influence on students has been of interest to sociologists for some time. But most studies of elementary classroom interaction have focused primarily on teacher-student interaction. A study of peer influence on other group members was designed to explain why students assigned to low ability groups became inattentive more frequently than…

The literature on sex-related differences in leadership behavior was reviewed in order to explore underlying factors. Currently there exist several models of male leadership in small groups, but no models of human leadership which represent the experiences of women in same sex and mixed sex groups. Key considerations for constructing such a model…

This paper examines some of the conversational skills manifested by children within a nursery group as they organize their own activities among themselves and cope with social and didactic demands of adults. Among the features examined are the number of active and passive participants within conversing groups, the intentions and pragmatic…

The experiments here reported represent attempts to produce "equal status interaction" in four-man groups of junior high school boys, two of whom are white and two black. The theory is that equality is not a consequence of interracial task performance. Rather, it is likely that generally held beliefs about the differential competence of…

In a study to assess young children's social interaction with peers, six male toddlers who were the only participants in a playgroup were observed in two situations: (1) a GROUP situation in which at least four of the boys were present and (2) a DYAD situation in which only two boys were present. Both types of observations were made at 16, 19, and…

A study analyzed and compared four selected models in the cyclical tradition of group development as a basis for identifying possible issues and implications for future theory building. The theorists whose models were examined were Leland Bradford, Jack Gibb, William Schutz, and Theodore Mills. Both historical and conceptual perspectives of the…

A system for observing and coding verbal interchanges between the teacher and his pupils, at all instructional levels, is described in this study. The system, widely known as the Flanders System of Interaction Analysis, is reviewed in terms of its effect on the classroom behavior of teachers and on student attitudes. The application of the…

Describes an in-class exercise using students' discussion of their answers on a multiple choice test to demonstrate the powerful effects and pervasiveness of social influence. After a brief multiple choice test, students discuss their answers with their neighbors and then answer again. Similar response patterns emerge among the participants. (MJP)

This study of teacher behavior and peer interactions in preschools found that peer interaction of children with disabilities was associated with resource teacher focus on groups that included children with disabilities and/or resource teachers' no response and was inversely associated with classroom teachers' focus on children with disabilities…

The spoken language occurring when primary school children work in groups at the computer was examined. Findings suggest that discourse accompanying highly structured software conforms well to the initiation/response/follow-up (IRF) structure, with the computer often taking the initiating role. The more open-ended the program, the more…

This study quantified possible changes in the classroom learning experiences of high- and low-ability pupils, which might accompany an organizational change from streamed to mixed-ability classes for science learning in secondary schools. Deteriorations in the quality of the classroom interactions of both high- and low-ability pupils were found.…

An observational study of peer dynamics found three very different systems of peer interaction among Hawaiian children at three preschools. The children were demographically similar: part-Hawaiians from lower to lower-middle class backgrounds. Sixty children were studied in videotaped sessions. In Preschool 1, children usually play as dyads; in…

This curriculum guide, one of a series developed to assist those involved in implementing career education programs concerned with public service occupations, contains the basic instructional material recommended for the area of social and economic services preparation. The units described are: (1) social service agencies and programs, (2) why…

THE DEVELOPMENT AND INTEGRATION OF SOCIOPSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF SCHOOL DESIGN WERE INVESTIGATED BY FOCUSING ON THE IMPACT OF A UNIQUELY DESIGNED ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BUILDING, THE KENSINGTON SCHOOL. AN ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO SYNTHESIZE ROLE THEORY, DECISION MAKING THEORY, SOCIAL SYSTEM THEORY, AND SUCH PROBLEM AREAS AS STAFF PEER GROUPS, EDUCATIONAL…