Socio-emotional interaction is considered a crucial factor that may affect the effectiveness and efficiency of collaborative argumentation and deserves further exploration. This study explored what temporal and sequential patterns of socio-emotional interaction could promote or hinder productive collaborative argumentation by comparing the…

This study investigated the applicability of the Big Five and FIRO-B frameworks as predictors of group process outcomes in the context of student teams. The personality dimensions of Agreeableness, Extraversion, Conscientiousness, and Neuroticism were correlated with the interpersonal behavior dimensions of Inclusion, Affection, and Control. The…

This essay about the work of a famous anthropologist is an attempt to illuminate one way that researchers could apply their findings about the behavior of people in particular groups to ethical considerations of social relations. I argue that Gregory Bateson (1904-1980) is a good example because he applied a few seminal ideas to a wide range of…

Bureaucratic work situations, particularly those with commercial goals, rationalize not only people's work tasks, but their social demeanor and behavior. This study examines the impact of such rationalization of appearance and interaction on clerical workers in several branches of a large bank. (Author/AM)

Suggests an important modification to H. A. Simon's original Model of Interaction in social groups to (1) explain the emergence and organizational structure of communication, friendship, and activity patterns and (2) trace their effect on human sentiment. Indicates that the more frequently people interact with one another, the stronger their…

This paper studies informal social participation of blacks and assesses what the patterns mean for the residents and the social organization of their communities. (Author/AM)

Although different philosophies may motivate presidential-press relations, causing frequent friction or adversity, there is nevertheless a strong degree of cooperation and collaboration between the press and a president of the United States. This interdependence has been particularly evident in recent administrations, and it progresses…

The purpose of this essay is to propose a different explanation of collective behavior and also to hypothesize how communication functions in this process. Using the experimental finding known as the "risky shift," this essay (1) summarizes the history of the risky shift, (2) presents two different theories which have been proposed to…

In the present study, members of two trainer groups did not form relationships which were both mutually therapeutic and confronting so frequently as did members of one trainer groups. (Author)

The relative power of cooperative and trusting patterns of behavior versus those of exploitation and distrust in affecting the results of group decision-making processes was investigated. The outcome of a study using the Prisoner's Dilemma Game seems to suggest the disproportionate influence of competitive people in these settings. (Author)

Systems descriptions vary in two essential ways. First, they vary in terms of the kinds of behaviors used in describing the system. Second, they vary in terms of the way the data are handled. The analysis of interaction patterns in dyads, groups, and larger systems has been difficult to describe. In this paper, an attempt is made to present a…

The purpose of this book is to present information about communicating in terms of "if-then" propositions that are based on scientific study. The book consists of two sections--Communication Behavior and Communication Experiments. The chapters in the first section of this book consider relationships, messages, information diffusion, and achieving…

A critical review of the small group literature is undertaken in an attempt to identify those characteristics which distinguish the dyad, the two-person group, from larger groups. Comparisons of dyads to larger groups are made in five categories of major small group variables: influence processes, affiliation processes, role differentiation and…

Discusses five areas of concern related to utilization of group experiences: (1) insufficient training of group leaders, (2) possibility of groups becoming mystic cults, (3) equating of therapeutic gain with expressing of negative feeling, (4) lack of awareness that group change may result from pressure to conform, (5) possible harmful…