The present study attempts to examine the effects of group awareness on knowledge construction and further surveys in what ways the different group awareness types support the collaboration in CSCL. In this quasi-experimental study, we adopted a self-developed group awareness tool that could display cognitive, social and behavioral group awareness…

The aim of this qualitative longitudinal study is to create a more in-depth picture of the emergence of team learning behaviours throughout the lifespan of temporary project teams. In order to grasp the emergence of these behaviours, three project teams were followed from the start until the end of their project during a period of three months.…

Proponents of civic engagement extol the virtues of the college experience for enhancing students' capacities for democratic participation, yet few studies have examined the organizational contexts of such actions. This article applies theory regarding social movements in organizations to highlight the relationship between campus curricular…

Students and faculty are grappling with learning teams in the online environment - more than half of all higher education organizations offer online courses (Hoffman, 2006). As online course developers try to replicate the best practices of traditional classrooms, the asynchronous technology of the Internet has added great capability while also…

National culture is being challenged as societies evolve from their homogeneous origins. The theoretical base of this study uses two cultural dimensions, individualism-collectivism (Hofstede, 2001) and high-and low-context cultures (Hall, 1976), to unpack the effects of national culture on social network sites (SNSs). This study explores cultural…

With the advancement of Internet communication technologies, distributed work groups have great potential for remote collaboration and use of collective knowledge. Adopting the Complex Adaptive System (CAS) perspective (McGrath, Arrow, & Berdhal, "Personal Soc Psychol Rev" 4 (2000) 95), which views virtual learning teams as an adaptive and…

Genre analysis, the investigation of typified communicative actions arising in recurrent situations, has been developed to study information use and interchange online, in businesses and in other organizations. As such, it holds out promise for the investigation of similarly typified communicative actions and situations in CSCL contexts. This…

There is paucity of original research that explains phenomena related to content organization and site design of educational Web sites. Educational Web sites are often used to provide Web-based instruction, which itself is a relatively recent phenomenon for business schools, and additional research is needed in this area. Educational Web sites are…

Metaphorical analysis of small group interactions enables researchers and practitioners to isolate, identify, and intervene with the current social reality of the group. This heuristic study offers one view of the specific meaning structures which account for the development of group cohesiveness. (BL)

Reviews and analyzes research on cross-national small group behavior and offers a value theory of small group development. Available from: International Journal of Intercultural Relations, Transaction Periodicals Consortium, Rutgers-The State University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903. (MH)

Describes an experiment in which the relationship between verbal utterances and communication structures are examined within a group structure. (Text is in French.) (AM)

In response to article by William Coulson in this issue, the author explores the possibility of a T group with a specific group focus rather than one which seeks to explore individual behaviors. He feels differences of opinion regarding the use of groups is a step toward understanding how best to proceed in the future. (CJ)

Derives and tests hypotheses from three perspectives on citizenship (postnational, multicultural, and national) with data on the claims making of migrants and ethnic minorities in Britain and Germany from 1990-95. Shows that migrant claims making is forged in the image of a particular nation-state. (CMK)

The decisions President Richard Nixon and his closest advisors made in the Watergate coverup were products of what Irving Janis calls "groupthink." Groupthink, a type of decision-making emphasizing unanimity over objective evaluation, develops when the decision makers (1) form a group of marked cohesiveness, (2) insulate themselves from…