Teams share commitment, translate purpose into performance goals, and have members be accountable with and to their teammates. Types of teams are those that recommend, make or do things, and run things. The distinction between teams and other working groups is performance: an effective team is worth more than the sum of its parts. (SK)

Examined relationship between realistic, interpersonal, and here-and-now agendas and group members' in-session behavior and outcome among 24 college students in established personal growth groups. Found that group members who set here-and-now session agendas enacted more in-group intimate behaviors and had better outcomes than did members in…

Analyzed structure of social interaction within four therapy groups in terms of conditional responding of participants. Proposed that groups' interactions would show increasing structure across sessions. Findings showed no consistent pattern of group development, that frequency with which members spoke was inversely related to dominance in group,…

Lists 19 new publications in group work and reviews 7 of these. Publications reviewed focus on group counseling and group psychotherapy, structured groups, training groups, and group dynamics. (Author)

Examined relationship between group members' (N=36) approach to group sessions and group session climate and relationship between length of time in group and agenda quality. Found average ratings of interpersonal and here-and-now dimensions of agendas were significantly related to average perception of group climate as more engaged and less…

De Valk examines three group dynamics that challenge every trainer: groups that are too large, groups that are reluctant to talk, and groups that talk about everything but the issue at hand. Beary describes nine ways in which trainers can use questions to enhance the learning process. (JOW)

Work teams can be highly motivating and can reduce overhead costs. Teams with clear, limited objectives and the right skills, feedback, and incentives will perform well. Personality difficulties, resistance to change, and lack of training can short circuit their effectiveness. (SK)

Describes the stages of a team performance model: orientation, trust building, goal/role clarification, commitment, implementation, high performance, and renewal. (SK)

A survey of 328 volunteers serving on sports committees in Australia found that organizational commitment was higher in organizations with open decision making, conflict resolution, and attention to group process. Positive, effective committee functioning led to lower turnover. (SK)

In adaptive schools, working groups grow, develop, and learn from experience, becoming more effective as they go. Three premises about group development include the following: each group is unique, some groups mature, and attrition need not block development. Four guidelines for successful group meetings include decide who decides, define the…

Presents five strategies to help school social workers form groups during school hours. Advantages and disadvantages of each strategy are discussed, as well as how the formation of the group influences the nature of the group work. (Author/GCP)

Argues that optimal theory provides the needed non-Western perspective for a better understanding of group development in groups comprised of culturally diverse members. The Optimal Theory Applied to Identity Development is applied to Trotzer's stages of group development as a means of assisting group leaders to become more…

Reports on a study that explores human information behavior in command and control contexts in the military. Highlights include interwoven situational awareness; the need for dense social networks; contested collaboration; and insights into human information behavior in dynamic and complex group work contexts. (Author/LRW)

Contributes to scholarship advancing understanding communication by identifying theoretically coherent and empirically robust dimensions (separation, concurrency, and flexibility) underlying work group members' perception of time. Finds that work groups differ in theoretically meaningful ways with regard to time orientation and that their varied…

Comparison of student teams working on class projects and workplace teamwork finds similar characteristics of successful and unsuccessful teams. Differences include the relatively short duration of classroom groups, organizational culture, team formation, leadership, accountability, diversity, and type of task. (SK)