This article reviews the quality circle concept, shows why its characteristics appeal to American executives, and examines some of its limitations. It looks at self-managing teams and discusses the reasons that adoptions have been relatively few. It then shows what organizational conditions are necessary for quality circles to evolve into teams.…

A person-centered approach to intergroup hostility is an alternative approach to dealing with social tension and conflict situations. The Camp David talks on Middle East peace exemplifies such an approach. (DF)

If being a competent small group problem solver is difficult, it is even more difficult to impart those competencies to others. Unlike athletic coaches who are near their players during the real game, teachers of small group communication are not typically present for on-the-spot coaching when their students are doing their problem solving. That…

Staffing as a process for dealing with pupil problems appears to have som merit in that it provides opportunity for various participants to express points of view; allows freedom for exchange of ideas; and bolsters the theory that two heads are better than one." (Author)

Found no single sequence of interaction phases that led to successful or unsuccessful group problem solving. Successful groups, however, tended to begin their discussions by attempting to analyze the problem before searching for solutions; unsuccessful groups immediately began searching for solutions. (PD)

Investigated use of the Nominal Group Technique (NGT) as an informational input mechanism into the formulation of a Solar Energy Plan. Data collected from a questionnaire indicated that the NGT was rated as being a highly effective mechanism providing input into the solar energy planning process. (Author/RC)

Analyses of the children's communication patterns revealed that LD children were less likely to disagree with classmates, less likely to try to argue for their choices, and more likely to agree with their peers. (Author)

Describes demonstrations of the risky shift phenomenon in eight social psychology classes of undergraduate and adult education students. Results showed that the phenomenon can be successfully and reliably demonstrated in a classroom. (CK)

Open meetings are regularly scheduled times when all class members and the teacher sit together in a closed circle to discuss important topics, such as name-calling. Such meetings are structured, moving from reviewing ground rules to posing a warmup question, encouraging numerous perspectives, personalizing the topic, and challenging students to…

Investigates the differential effects of cooperative learning with or without metacognitive instruction on lower and higher achievers' solutions of mathematical authentic tasks. Results indicate that students exposed to metacognitive instruction within cooperative learning (COOP+META) significantly outperformed their counterparts exposed to…

Summarizes research on disjunctive versus conjunctive, and multistage versus single-stage problem solving in a classroom setting. Concludes that students working in groups are less likely to drop out of class, give higher subjective motivation to learn ratings, perform better on tests, know more classmates, and score higher on Raven's Progressive…

Describes visualization methods used to design projects intended to improve the quality of life in developing countries, but which are also applicable to group problem-solving situations. Details main stages of a case study. Demonstrates that the techniques improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the problem-solving process and the quality of…

Metaphors are guiding images that influence one's approach to problem solving. Experiential learning is a process of metaphor change; the task of educators is to facilitate development of new metaphors that generate new potential when old metaphors don't work. Discusses stages of metaphor development, creating an open learning space, and…

Reports results from a study of university students in Sweden that investigated aspects of communicative processes using face-to-face and computer-mediated communication. Examined influences of gender on communication equality, social relations, and communicative processes and studied differences in self-awareness. Results showed few significant…

Presents five group problem-solving initiatives for use in adventure and experiential settings, focusing on conflict resolution, corporate workplace issues, or adjustment to change. Includes target group, group size, time and space needs, activity level, overview, goals, props, instructions, and suggestions for framing and debriefing the…