This special edition of "Communication" brings together the work of nine leading scholars of small group communication. The following topics are discussed: (1) small group communication research in the 1980s; (2) unanswered questions in research on communication in the small group; (3) emerging trends in small group research; (4) structure in group decision making, with implications for future research; (5) issues for teaching and research associated with problem-solving discussions in small groups; (6) consensus in small groups; (7) a formulative investigation of power and communication behavior; (8) the therapy group as rhetorical experience; and (9) Japanese student protest as a rhetorical movement. (RL)