The cognitive and performance benefits of group work in undergraduate courses depend on understanding how to structure groups to promote communication and comfort while also promoting diversity and reducing conflict. The current study utilized social network analysis combined with self-reported survey data from 555 students in 155 groups to…

Play is an important part of a child's life and essential to learning and development (Vygotsky, 1978). It is vital that students participate in play and that play be conducted in a restorative manner. Play allows a variety of group dynamics to emerge. Irvin Yalom (1995) identifies 11 curative factors of the group experience. These factors include…

Numerous researchers discuss the solidarity-producing effects of crime, natural disasters and mass tragedies; however, there is much we do not understand about the processes involved in the phenomena. We specify the social relationships that "generate" and "sustain" solidarity by building on Hunter's descriptions of the…

In this article an attempt has been made to identify Black unity and a discussion of how achieving a sense of collective Black identity, through utilizing skills peculiar to the human potential movement, can serve as a positive force to unite blacks. (Author)

Investigates the relationship between perceived discrimination and self-esteem of ethnic-minority adolescents in the Netherlands. Explains that the participants perceived the following: (1) a higher level of discrimination directed at their groups; (2) their personal self-esteem as independent of the group; and (3) that group discrimination was…

The author describes the outline and content for an English course entitled Man's Search for Utopia." (LF)

This book is intended to assist group leaders, teachers, counselors, and peer helpers in the development of relationships and active learning. The first chapter, "Icebreakers," begins with an overview that explains the nature, purpose, and importance of these activities. Icebreakers are used to help group members learn about each other in a…

Reports clinical observations based on time-limited groups and presents relevant data on clinical tools that accelerate development in groups. (Author/BL)

Investigated the relationship of interpersonal attraction and attraction to groups. Students (N=56) participating in growth groups completed the Group Attitude Scale and individual rating scales early, midway, and late in the group. Data indicated an increasing relationship between interpersonal and group attraction throughout the life of the…

Explored the nature of cohesion in groups formed to affect personal change. Members (N=227) of eight therapy groups completed the Three Factor Group Questionnaire. Results suggested risk-taking, attraction to individual group members, and the instrumental value of the group were all related to group cohesion. (Author/JAC)

Group members tend to like other members of their own group more than members of groups to which they do not belong. This paper focuses on some of the initial determinants of this own-group preference and on the isolation of factors which increase or decrease it. The major finding appears to be that the mere anticipation of cooperation or…

Examined the relationship between the social and task dimensions of small groups. Developed a measure of group members' feelings of cohesion. Demonstrated that perceptions about the quality of group interactions, goal attainment, group satisfaction, and group solidarity are significantly and positively related. (RC)

Points out that services to the foreign language profession, ranging from work on local committees to national leadership, are performed almost exclusively by volunteers and criticizes the attitudes of some members of the profession toward their visiting colleagues. Cites several incidents where visitors met with shocking lack of assistance and…

Describes characteristics of immature, or regressive groups, including avoidance of conflict, abdication of responsibility, and psychic numbness; and characteristics of mature, or generative groups, including group transcendence. Examines the notion of group mind and concludes that the evolution of mind is dependent on the group's psychological…

Learning is a metaphoric function in which the individual confirms or reorders his sense of reality by relating previous experiences with present ones. Outward Bound, an experiential learning approach, incorporates this insight in its theoretical foundations. The effectiveness of the metaphor is dependent on the extent to which the experience is…